Reborn to Marry the Silent Outcast

Seven months after my father, Lorenzo Caruso, died, the final toxicology report came back.His regular medication had been slowly replaced with something else. The dose was small enough to slip past routine screening, but strong enough to slowly destroy a healthy heart.The money trail led from a medical supply company to a casino, then through two shell companies before finally reaching an account controlled by the Falcones.I stared at Roman's name. My mind went straight back to three months earlier.Marietta had been sitting in my father's study wearing Roman's shirt, with the Caruso harbor dividend sheets spread across the desk.I asked Roman how long it had been going on.He only looked at me. "Does it matter now?"That was when I realized the Falcones had already infiltrated the finances, warehouses, and docks after my father's death.On paper, I was still the Caruso heir. In reality, I couldn't even leave the estate without my husband's permission.The one thing that finally gav

When Roman walked into the sitting room, my bodyguards were standing outside the door.He noticed them but didn't react. "Since when do you travel with so many men?""Since today.""Because of me?""Because I'd rather stay alive."Roman's eyes lingered on my face. My answer clearly put him on guard, but he didn't press me.After my father died in my last life, I had mistaken his calm for maturity.Now I knew better. He was calm because he saw everyone around him as pieces on a chessboard.He did not ask me what was wrong like he normally would. Instead, he turned to Elio. "The Vieris made a smart move by sending you."Elio said nothing. He only leaned against the wall nearest the door.Roman went on. "If you get picked, they get an alliance for free. If you don't, they can ship you to the South District the next morning. Arianna, do you really understand what you chose?""Better than I used to."Roman finally looked back at me. "Used to?"He sat down and laced his fingers together. "Ye

Anthony was not at the repair shop.His younger brother, Daniel Cole, was there, packing.The moment he saw Elio, the color drained from his face. "How did you find this place?"I put the photo of the drug lot numbers on the table. "Did your brother handle these?"Daniel did not answer. He kept glancing at the door. "Anthony told me last night to skip town.""Why?""Because somebody started cleaning house."He swallowed. "He said if I wasn't gone by today, I'd disappear just like he did."I was about to ask more when Elio suddenly raised a hand.A car had stopped outside. It was not one of ours.The back door of the shop swung open, and my hand went straight to my gun.Two men came in. One of them saw me and froze.They hadn't expected me to be here.Daniel had been their target all along.One of them swore under his breath and started backing toward the door.He did not want to open fire on me in a place like this.Anyone in their line of work knew there was a huge difference between

My father personally arranged the operation at the old docks.The docks were part of an abandoned freight yard. The outer perimeter belonged to a storage company that worked with the Carusos.We moved the night crew out ahead of time and closed two access roads using maintenance as an excuse.Rosa went into the warehouse as planned.Elio and I were in the second-floor office. Two guards held the stairs, and two more covered the exit into the container yard.Another car waited two blocks away with the backup men my father had stationed there.What I wanted was evidence, not a chance to prove who was tougher.Rosa's voice came through the earpiece first. "It's all here."Then came the sound of heels clicking against concrete.Marietta had come. She opened the box and glanced at the numbers. "Increase the dose a little in the next batch."Rosa asked the question we had rehearsed. "He's already passed out twice. Wouldn't more make it happen too fast?"Marietta answered flatly, "They can't

My father first brought in an old adviser respected by both families as a witness. Then he summoned Bruno Falcone, the head of the Falcone family, and Roman to the estate.Before the door closed, both families' bodyguards were ordered to wait in the outer hall. There was nothing on the table but evidence and ledgers.My father pushed the file across the table. "Your son poisoned me."Bruno turned a few pages, his expression darkening with each one.Casino cash. The doctor's statement. Anthony's ledger. The drug lot numbers. The port contracts.Any one of them could be explained away on its own. Together, they were impossible to dismiss as coincidence.Roman kept his expression calm. "Marietta handled many of my personal investments."My father said mildly, "So you're going to let her take the fall?"Roman did not answer.I finally understood how Marietta had found her way into my father's study so quickly in my last life.She was not just the other woman. She also managed the money Rom