Chapter 1

"Vera, why have you become like this?" Luca Valentini's disappointed voice reached my ears.

My heart trembled in my chest as I explained, "I wasn't the one who played that video on the projector."

With how soft my voice was, the words were immediately swallowed by the jeers and snickers of everyone else.

Several Capos side-eyed me.

"She's not fit to be the future Donna at all."

"Every day, she uses the same trick to get the Don's attention. Honestly, even I'm growing sick of it."

"At this point, I can even imitate Vera already. 'Luca, you're so cool! Luca, I love you!' Hahaha!"

Several spotlights focused on Luca, making me unable to get a clear look at his expression.

"Vera, I know that you got hurt because of me, and that's something I've never forgotten. However, that doesn't mean that you can keep on using this same incident to morally blackmail me."

I hurriedly explained, "No, that's not it, Luca! Believe me when I say that I've never once thought of using this method to make you feel guilty. My phone was in my bag the whole time, so someone must've stolen it and deliberately played that video!

"Besides, it's been so long since that incident, yet not once have I ever brought it up. Isn't that proof enough?"

Luca stood there quietly, a complicated look in his eyes as he gazed at me.

Suddenly, he seemed like a complete stranger to me. The same Luca who used to believe in me unconditionally in the past, no matter what happened, was slowly vanishing.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Luca took a step forward, intending to come over to me.

"Luca!"

However, at that moment, an authoritative female voice called out before Elena Santoro walked out of the crowd.

Dressed in a smart women's suit, she was Luca's Consigliere and was frequently seen with him. They were almost inseparable.

Meanwhile, despite having been by Luca's side all these years and finishing countless missions flawlessly, I still didn't have an official title. Luca refused to even make me a Made Man, claiming that he was worried about putting me in danger.

Elena turned to me with a smile. "Unlike you, I've always been straightforward with my words. I know that you love Luca and want to be the Donna, but using such a despicable tactic is truly unbecoming of you.

"Luca is already feeling incredibly pressured lately, trying to get rid of some pests who have been stirring up trouble at the family's port, so what you're doing is just causing more trouble for him."

Pausing briefly, she went on in a voice laced with pity, "Sometimes, I truly do admire you for using such a shameless, attention-grabbing excuse just to get Luca to notice you. And you've been doing it for an entire year too. Still, you shouldn't have caused a scene at such an important event, no matter what you were feeling.

"Vera, take my advice and apologize, now. Don't do something like this ever again in the future, got it?"

Instead of answering, I simply turned to look at Luca.

When he sensed my silent refusal to do as Elena said, the last bit of remorse on his face disappeared. Instead, it was replaced by impatience.

Shooting me a cold stare, he said, "Vera, I've genuinely had enough of you."

I noted the victorious smile that curved Elena's lips, then raised my head to glance at the surveillance camera by the corner of the ceiling.

Ever since the gala began, Elena had been lingering around me, so she must've been the one to steal my phone just now.

Locking eyes with Elena, I said, "You took my phone, didn't you? I want to check the surveillance footage."

A trace of panic flashed across her face, but it was gone in an instant as she regained her composure.

She turned to Luca. "Luca, I tried to talk some sense into Vera out of the kindness of my heart, yet look at how she thinks of me."

Instead of arguing further, I headed straight for the central console with the intention of checking the surveillance records.

In the next second, however, Luca raised his gun and shot the surveillance camera.

With a loud bang, it exploded into pieces.

Luca instinctively twisted his body to protect Elena from the flying scrap metal as he yelled at me in a warning tone, "That's enough, Vera! Don't you think you've humiliated yourself enough? Elena has been working closely with me for the past five years, so I know better than anyone just what sort of person she is! Don't assume everyone is as despicable as you are!"

I was frozen to the spot, the last bit of mental defense I had crumbling down in my mind.

In my haste to avoid the flying shrapnel earlier, I had jerked my body aside with such force that it had pulled at old wounds, causing a sharp pain to shoot through me.

Noticing my grimace, Luca went tense, a hint of heartache appearing in his eyes. His tone was noticeably gentler as he uttered, "Vera, Elena is just looking out for you. From now on, stop using memory loss as an excuse to deceive others."

Even now, he still didn't believe me.

I murmured his name softly, then said, "Whether you believe it or not, tomorrow, I really will forget all about you."