Chapter 1

At two in the morning, a sharp pain in my abdomen tore me from my sleep.

I instinctively reached for the space beside me. The silk sheets were cold. Vincenzo hadn't come home again.

The pain in my lower abdomen intensified, and a cold sweat soaked through my nightgown.

My hand trembled as I grabbed the encrypted phone and dialed his private number, the one only I could call.

It rang for a long time before someone finally picked up.

Before I could even speak, a young woman's soft, sweet voice came through the phone.

"Donna? The Don is in the shower. He's exhausted."

"If you need him, try again tomorrow. I'm hanging up."

"Wait, Chloe, let me talk to him… I…"

But she hung up before I could finish.

I refused to give up. Fighting the pain that threatened to pull me into unconsciousness, I dialed again.

This time, I was met with a cold, mechanical tone.

Lying on the enormous bed, I gasped in agony. A cold fear of death washed over me as tears slid silently down my face.

I didn't want to die like this. I was only twenty-eight. I still had my parents. I still had Vincenzo.

The will to survive forced me to move.

With no other choice, I broke a Family rule and dialed 911. While still conscious, I used the last of my strength to crawl to the front door and unlock the bulletproof lock.

Soon, the wail of an ambulance siren shattered the silence of the luxury apartment building.

In the emergency room, the doctor stared at the frantic numbers on the monitor, his expression grim.

"Ectopic pregnancy, ruptured fallopian tube, and massive internal bleeding. She needs surgery immediately."

By then, I had regained a sliver of consciousness. I gripped the nurse's hand and gave her Vincenzo's number.

"Call him… please."

The nurse tried calling again and again, only to shake her head at me helplessly each time.

A younger nurse looked at my deathly pale face, her eyes full of pity. "Do you have any other family? Or a friend we can call?"

I gave a bitter smile and shook my head.

My parents were in Tuscany. Even on the earliest flight, they wouldn't arrive until tomorrow afternoon.

Besides, my mother had a heart condition. She couldn't handle a shock like this.

Ever since marrying Vincenzo, I had lost all my connections outside the family.

It was only then I realized that besides the man who was now with another woman, I had nothing.

"Give me a pen."

I gasped for breath. "The surgical consent form. I'll sign it myself."

This was probably the most pathetic moment of my life.

Calling my own ambulance, signing my own consent form, facing a life-or-death surgery all alone.

Thankfully, I had money. That was the one thing Vincenzo was never stingy with.

Money bought me the best private nurse and a VIP room.

The surgery lasted all night. When I opened my eyes again, the morning sun streamed through the window, a little too bright.

Seeing I was awake, my nurse quickly handed me a glass of warm water, her voice tinged with lingering fear.

"Miss Vance, thank God. The doctor said if you had arrived just half an hour later, not even a miracle could have saved you."

I subconsciously touched my abdomen.

There was a new scar there, but a life was gone.

Vincenzo and I had tried for a baby for two years. We had imagined this child's arrival countless times, only for it to end in this tragedy.

I fought back my tears and pulled out my phone. I had to tell Vincenzo what happened.

This time, it was Vincenzo himself who answered.

"Vincenzo, I…"

"Elara, do you have any idea what the rules are?"

"Who gave you permission to call an ambulance? My man at the precinct reported flashing lights at the De Luca penthouse last night. Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you've caused me?"

My knuckles turned white as I gripped the phone, my heart feeling like it was being squeezed in a vise.

"I almost died… Vincenzo, last night I…"

"Enough. I know I've been neglecting you because of Marco, but did you have to pull a stunt like this to get my attention?"

He cut me off. "I was with Marco yesterday. He was having a rejection episode, and his condition was critical. Chloe was there too."

"And another thing, there's nothing going on between Chloe and me. She's like a sister to me. She's no threat to your position as the Donna of the De Luca family. Can you stop acting like some jealous, classless harpy?"

After a few seconds of dead silence, Vincenzo spoke again.

"Well? Say something, Elara?"

I opened my mouth, but my voice was raw and hoarse.

"I was trying to tell you, I had an ectopic…"

Before I could finish, I heard Chloe's panicked, tearful voice on the other end.

"Vincenzo! Stop talking on the phone! You have to come see Marco, the doctor says his vitals are dropping!"

"I have to go. This is important." The line went dead.

I stared at the white ceiling as my tears finally broke free, streaming from the corners of my eyes into my ears, chilling me to the bone.

Eight years. I had been with Vincenzo for eight years.

In those eight years, we survived gang wars and countless assassination attempts.

Two years ago, we stood before a priest and vowed to build an empire of our own.

But now, just three months after his blood brother Marco returned with his sister, I had become nothing more than an unreasonable, jealous madwoman in his eyes.

"Ha." I covered my eyes and, in that empty hospital room, laughed until my body shook, tears streaming down my face.