Chapter 1

Giovannina's POV

Everyone looked at me in utter disbelief.

My Papa, Guglielmo Carrettiere, sprang to his feet. "Are you sure, Giovannina? Do you know what you're saying?"

The long table was lined with the Carrettiere Famiglia's Consiglieri on both sides, yet not a single one of them said a word.

The council chamber fell dead silent.

Half an hour ago, we had received an ultimatum. Information had leaked during the delivery of an underground arms shipment managed by the Carrettiere Famiglia, costing the lives of dozens of allies.

According to the Alliance Treaty, the Carrettiere Famiglia had to hand over one of its heirs to stand trial. If not, the Alliance Famiglie would revoke our rights and place everyone in the Famiglia under an indefinite death sentence.

The only people who could be handed over were me or my stepsister, Margherita Carrettiere.

I met Papa's gaze and responded calmly, "I can go. Let me stand trial."

Margherita was my Papa's stepdaughter and the woman Carlo Guardia loved. In my previous life, Papa had chosen to hand Margherita over for the greater good, which ultimately led to her corpse being discovered at Capello Manor. From that moment on, Carlo had loathed me.

For a decade, he believed I simply couldn't bear to give up my position as heiress to the Carrettiere Famiglia. He believed that I was the one who deserved to die.

We'd tied the knot, yet he detested me. Hence, our marriage had existed only in name. He'd only deigned to grace me with his presence when I was terminally ill and on my deathbed.

I never imagined that after I breathed my last, he would take off the ring that symbolized his status as a Don and shoot himself in front of my gravestone, right before the eyes of his entire Famiglia.

This time around, all I wanted was to stay as far away from Carlo as possible.

Papa fell silent for a long time, looking at me with a deeply conflicted expression.

I was the heiress that the Famiglia had poured all their blood, sweat, and tears into raising for over two decades. Margherita, on the other hand, had suffered from a heart condition since birth, and Papa felt he owed her far too much.

Yet, he had also failed my Mamma in the past. Thus, if he surrendered me, it would weigh heavily on his conscience, too.

After a long, internal struggle, the look in Papa's eyes remained unreadable. "Giovannina, you know what's at stake here. Are you out of your mind?"

This time, I wouldn't live such a weary life again.

I slowly slid the signet ring belonging to the Carrettiere Famiglia's heiress off my right index finger. It clinked as it hit the long table, and I placed it in front of Papa.

I said firmly, "From this moment on, I renounce all my claims to the Famiglia's legacy. I'll give the right of succession to Margherita."

I paused for a moment before continuing, "Furthermore, I hereby declare that my engagement to Carlo Guardia is off."

With that, I left Capello Manor without a backward glance.

…

My engagement to Carlo had been arranged by the Dons of our respective Famiglie. Now that it had been called off, I had to make a trip to Guardia Manor.

The moment I crossed the threshold, I heard a heated argument echoing from the main hall.

Carlo's Papa, Matteo Guardia, was so angry that he hurled the cup in his hand. "Have you lost your mind? The Carrettiere Famiglia has agreed to surrender an heir to stand trial. Margherita's about to die for her Famiglia. Giovannina's the one who is betrothed to you!"

Clad in a bespoke black suit, Carlo stood ramrod straight and said resolutely, "I won't marry Giovannina or make her this Famiglia's Madre. Margherita's the only woman in my heart!"

"Are you really going to break your engagement?" Matteo's expression was grim.

I strode forward. "I'm the one who's breaking the engagement."

All eyes turned toward me, and just like the council chamber back home, a heavy silence settled over the grand hall of Guardia Manor.

It was no different from my previous life. For Margherita's sake, Carlo had been willing to forfeit his chance to become the Don of the Guardia Famiglia just to call off our engagement. In his eyes, Margherita was more important than anything else.

At the time, I had been so hopelessly in love with him that when Matteo was about to cripple one of his arms, I had thrown myself in front of him to protect him. In tears, I had used my position as the heiress of the Carrettiere Famiglia to keep our engagement intact.

In the end, we remained engaged to each other. However, time had eventually proven that the engagement I had desperately held onto had only become a source of torment for both Carlo and me.

Carlo's expression darkened, as if he had never expected those words to come from my mouth. Glaring at me menacingly, he demanded, "What game are you playing this time?"

He spat out, "Giovannina, you'd better pray you mean what you say. I've never loved you. Our engagement was nothing more than a decision made by our Famiglie. Regardless of whether Margherita's the one who is ultimately sacrificed, I'll never marry you!"

A dead silence fell over the hall. Everyone held their breath, waiting for my response.

I didn't lose my composure as I did in my previous life, nor did I plead with him to stay.

Ignoring Carlo, I took out the contract I had prepared beforehand from my handbag and handed it to Matteo. "This is the proof of the annulment of my engagement to Carlo."

Carlo froze for a moment, staring at me in utter disbelief.

Matteo was caught equally off guard. "Giovannina, don't do this…"

I plastered a smile on my face. "I have no interest in forcing someone's hand, nor do I want a man whose heart belongs to another woman."

There wasn't a single trace of sorrow on my face as I turned to Carlo. "Carlo, from this moment on, you're free. Whoever you walk down the aisle with from here on out has nothing to do with me."

Carlo stared at the contract in Matteo's hands, an inexplicable sense of unease rising within him. Bewildered, he grasped my hand and demanded, "What's the meaning of this? You know full well that Margherita's the one being handed over, yet you still want to call off our engagement. Do you want Margherita to die?"

I wasn't sure if other people would die or not, but I might.

As it turned out, in Carlo's eyes, I had always been someone who would stop at nothing to get what I wanted. Holding his gaze, I leisurely said, "So what you're saying is… I'm the one who should be handed over to die?"

The air went still for a moment.

Carlo appeared hesitant before his expression returned to its usual indifference. "You've been trained as an heiress since you were a child. Unlike Margherita, who has a weak heart, you can survive this."

I jeered. So, because she was different from me, I should be the one to endure all of this. Because I was capable, I was the one who deserved to die.

I raised my head and looked at Carlo calmly. "I'll pay back my Famiglia's debts. As for you? I don't want you anymore."

My voice was barely above a whisper, yet he heard me loud and clear. His pupils contracted, and he instinctively reached out to grab my wrist. "Giovannina!" he rasped.

I pried his fingers open, one by one, and walked straight out of Guardia Manor. Not a single sound followed me into the night.

I thought to myself, "Carlo, this time, I've given up everything, including you."