Chapter 2 : The QUEEN has returned

Chapter 2: The Queen Has Returned

Five years later.

Limang taon narin ang lumipas mula nung gabing iniwan akong duguan sa sahig ng mansion na tinawag kong tahanan.

Five years since I lost everything. My marriage, my dignity, and m-my...baby.

People say time heals all wounds. That's all a lie. Time doesn't heal. It just teaches you how to live with the pain. It teaches you how to hide it behind expensive lipstick, behind a cold smile, and behind a title that makes even the strongest men kneel.

I stared at my reflection in the floor-to-ceiling window of my private jet. The woman looking back at me is no longer Elena De Luca.

Her long black hair is now perfectly waved, her lips painted in a ruthless shade of red. She wears a black tailored suit that costs more than what most people earn in a year. Her eyes, dati laging umiiyak at puno ng pagmamahal kay Alessandro, ngayon malamig na. Empty. Pero sa loob ng emptiness na yun, may apoy. Apoy ng galit na limang taon kong inalagaan.

And now.

I am no longer Elena De Luca, the abandoned, pitiful wife.

I am Madam E. Elena Gracias. The owner of the Gracias Empire. Half of Europe's underground casinos, the biggest shipment lines in Asia, and the most exclusive private club for billionaires in Paris — all mine. I built it from nothing, from the ashes of my old self.

And the man who helped me? Lorenzo Castello. The man who found me bleeding five years ago. The second most feared Mafia Lord in Italy, and Alessandro's greatest enemy.

"Are you nervous, mia cara?" Lorenzo's voice came from behind me. He was sitting on the leather couch, sipping his whiskey, watching me with those dark, amused eyes.

He is still as handsome and dangerous as the night he saved me. But unlike Alessandro, Lorenzo never made me feel small. He made me feel powerful.

"Hindi," I answered, pero my hand was shaking slightly as I held my clutch. Inside my clutch was the small ultrasound picture. The only picture I have of my baby. Five years old na sana siya ngayon. "I'm not nervous. I'm excited."

Lorenzo smiled, alam niya nagsisinungaling ako. Tumayo siya at lumapit sa akin, his hand gently touching my shoulder.

"It's okay to be scared, Elena. After all, you're going back to the place that killed you."

I closed my eyes for a second. The memories came rushing back. The blood, the gunfire, his cold voice saying "You're a De Luca, you can survive."

When I opened my eyes again, tears were threatening to fall, pero pinigilan ko. I will not cry. Not anymore. Hindi na ako yung babaeng iyakin na magmamakaawa sa kanya.

"Scared? No, Lorenzo. I stopped being scared the day I buried my own child alone while my husband was busy fucking his first love in our own house," I said, my voice low but full of venom. "I came back to make them feel the same pain. Or worse."

Lorenzo chuckled, proud. "That's my Queen. So, what's the plan tonight?"

Tonight. Tonight is the annual De Luca Gala. The biggest Mafia gathering in all of Italy. Lahat ng Mafia families nandun. And of course, the host is Alessandro De Luca himself. I heard he's about to announce his engagement to Bianca Moretti tonight.

Engagement. After abandoning me without even a divorce paper.

"Perfect!". I laughed.

"The plan is simple," I said, turning to him, my red lips forming a cold, beautiful smile that I practiced for five years. "I will walk in there as Elena Gracias, your date. The mysterious Madam E that everyone is afraid of and wants to meet. And I will watch his face when he realizes who I am."

"And Bianca?" Lorenzo asked.

My smile widened, pero mas malamig.

"Bianca... I will let her taste what it feels like to be abandoned. In front of everyone."

The jet landed in Rome. My heart was beating so fast, parang lalabas na sa dibdib ko. This is the city where I was born, where I fell in love, where I died.

As we stepped out of the car in front of the De Luca Grand Hotel, lahat ng tao tumingin sa amin. Flashes of cameras, whispers.

"Who is she? She's with Lorenzo Castello!"

"Is that Madam E? The Gracias Queen? Oh my God, she's so beautiful!"

"She's more beautiful than Bianca!"

I held Lorenzo's arm tightly, my chin up, my walk confident. I wore a deep red, backless gown that hugged my body perfectly. Every step I took, my heels clicked against the marble floor like a warning. A warning that I have returned.

And then, I saw him.

At the top of the grand staircase, standing with Bianca clinging to his arm like a leech.

Alessandro De Luca.

He hasn't changed much. Mas mature lang, mas dangerous. His black suit was tailor-made, his gray eyes still cold and commanding. He was still the most handsome man I have ever seen. And still, my heart... stupid heart... it skipped a beat when I saw him.

But that beat was quickly replaced by pure hatred.

He was laughing at something Bianca said, pero his eyes were scanning the crowd, like a King surveying his kingdom.

Until his eyes landed on me.

I saw it. The exact moment his whole world stopped.

His smile vanished. His body froze. His cold gray eyes widened, just a fraction, pero I saw it. His hand that was holding a glass of whiskey tightened so much na akala ko mababasag niya ito.

Bianca noticed. "Alessandro? What's wrong? Why are you..."

She followed his gaze. And when she saw me, her face turned pale as paper. Her fake smile disappeared.

"E-Elena?" she whispered, so soft pero rinig na rinig ko.

I didn't stop walking. I continued to walk up the stairs, slowly, elegantly, with Lorenzo beside me, until I was standing right in front of them.

So close I could smell Alessandro's familiar cologne. The same cologne I used to love.

It's been five years, Alessandro.

I looked straight into his gray eyes, yung mga mata na minahal ko dati, na ngayon wala nang epekto sa akin. Or at least, that's what I keep telling myself.

"Buonasera, Mr. De Luca," I said, my voice smooth, cold, with a perfect Italian accent that I learned for five years. I extended my hand, not for a handshake, but for him to kiss, as a sign of respect for a Queen. "It's been a long time. You look... well."

He didn't move. He just stared at me, his jaw clenched so tight, his eyes burning with so many emotions I couldn't read. Shock, anger, guilt, and... longing?

"Elena..." he finally said, his voice hoarse, so low that only I could hear it. "Ikaw ba talaga yan?"

I tilted my head, my red lips forming a smile that didn't reach my eyes.

"Elena?" I laughed softly, a cold, musical laugh. "Oh, caro, you are mistaken. Elena De Luca died five years ago on the cold floor of your mansion. You killed her, remember?"

I leaned closer, so close that only he could hear my next words.

"I am Elena Gracias. Madam E. And I'm here to take back everything you stole from me. Including your empire."

I pulled my hand back before he could even touch it.

And then I looked at Bianca, who was now shaking.

"Bianca, darling," I said sweetly, pero my eyes were daggers. "That dress... it's last season, isn't it? And that necklace? Oh, it's from my old collection. The one Alessandro said was too cheap for you? He kept it, I see."

Bianca's face turned red with embarrassment and anger.

"You... you bitch! You should be dead! You—"

But before she could finish, Alessandro grabbed her arm.

"Enough, Bianca," he growled, pero his eyes never left me.

The whole ballroom was now silent. Everyone was watching us. The abandoned wife who came back as a Queen, and the Mafia Lord who abandoned her.

This was just the beginning, Alessandro.

You abandoned me when I needed you the most.

Now, I will make you wish you never did.

I smiled, turned my back on him — the same way he turned his back on me five years ago — and walked away with Lorenzo, leaving him standing there, frozen, broken, and obsessed.

For the first time in five years, I felt alive again.

This is just Chapter 1 of my revenge, Alessandro.

And you will beg. You will kneel. And I will watch you fall.