Chapter 1

When Casey Fusco pushed the divorce papers toward me, his gun was right by his hand. It was a Colt M1911. The barrel of the gun looked cold and unfeeling, much like the look in his eyes.

"Sign it."

Casey was seated in the red velvet high chair that represented the power of the family's leader. He had a cigar between his fingers. The smoke from it wisped in the air, blurring his features.

"Rowena is pregnant. It's a boy."

He flicked the ashes from his cigar and spoke to me like he was negotiating a losing deal on arms. "The family needs an heir, and you can no longer bear any children. This child is very important to me."

I looked at the ultrasound on the table. The shadowy clump in the ultrasound was like a dagger to my heart.

My name was Nicole Sabato.

I had been with Casey since he was kicked out of his family and ended up as a beggar in the slums. I had experienced numerous bloodshed by his side before I finally became the woman of Don Fusco.

Five years ago, we were sharing a piece of moldy bread while shacking up together in the slums. I helped him get rid of his family's competitors by assassinating them on a rainy night.

I served a term in federal prison for him and even helped him get a corrupt senator, who was difficult to handle, on his side. I drank so much that my stomach bled internally, and I nearly died on the negotiating table.

The incident that left me almost dead was when I took two bullets for Casey, who was already a Capo then. One bullet was lodged an inch away from my heart, while the other bullet got me in the abdomen.

Both bullets took away the first child I had with Casey and also my right to become a mother.

Casey knelt in front of my hospital bed that day and kissed the back of my hand, which was covered with needle pricks. He swore to me, "Let's not have any children, Nicole. If any of those stubborn old coots in the family dares to say a word against you, I'll kill them."

I could still hear his vow, which turned cold faster than a bullet shell.

"So?" I looked up at Casey. Even I was surprised by how calm I sounded.

Casey avoided my gaze and frowned. "I'm giving you 500 million and two vineyards from the Socario Islands. It's enough to make sure you never have to worry about money the rest of your life."

Five hundred million dollars.

That was the price he was paying for five years of my life, for the bullets I took for him, and for every drop of blood exhausted by the Sabatos to help him rise through the ranks. What a great deal for him.

The Nicole from before would have flung those papers onto his face and pulled a gun to his head while questioning why he would do something so horrible. However, all I felt now was fatigue. I had enough of the days of living by the edge of unknown danger.

I picked up the pen and signed the papers. My writing was tidy as I pressed the pen hard down on the paper. The moment the words 'Nicole Sabato' were on the paper, I could hear Casey's uptight breathing relax. He felt relieved.

He was feeling fortunate that I didn't make a scene. I was still the same cool, calm, and collected 'lethal assassin' who knew how to act according to the situation.

"Congratulations on your wish coming true, Don Fusco." I put the pen down and pushed the papers back to him while giving him the perfect smile used in social situations.

Casey was taken aback. There was a flash of astonishment in his eyes. He probably did not expect me to accept such a clean break. "Don't… Don't you hate me?"

"Hate?" I stood up and adjusted the collar of my black coat. "You must be kidding, Don Fusco. Emotions are the most useless thing for a member of the mafia or an assassin from the dark web. Don't you remember teaching me that?"

Casey choked on his words. That was the first lesson he taught me back then, when he was making his way up the ranks.

Back then, Rowena Jovine abhorred the fact that he was an illegitimate son who had nothing to his name. She took every cent he had and got together with a senator. Casey had looked at me red-eyed and told me that only those who were not affected by emotions could stand at the peak.

Those words were like a boomerang that turned to hit me.

The phone on the table vibrated as its screen lit up with the name 'Rowena'.

Casey picked up the call. I had never heard him sound so gentle before. "Yeah, I'm here. Don't be afraid. I'll head over right now." He hung up and pulled on his sleeve to hide the black smartwatch on his wrist. It was not the watch I gave him.

"Let me give you a lift, Nicole." Casey looked a little in a hurry as he stood up.

"It's fine." I picked up my sunglasses from the table and put them on to cover the slight redness in my eyes. "Ms. Jovine is still waiting at the hospital for you to fulfill your duties as her child's father. The elders of the family will be unhappy if you get there too late."

Casey's expression froze. He watched as I stood up straight. He opened his mouth to say something, but all he could say was, "Take care of yourself."

I pushed the door and left without looking back.