The Don’s Wife Died with His Secret Heir

“I’m not going with you to Sicily this time.”As I spoke, I deleted the pregnancy report from my phone.Dante paused.“What changed? You never like letting me travel without you.”Three days earlier, I had heard a voice message on his encrypted phone.A little girl’s voice had come through the speaker.“Daddy, you promised you’d take me and my brother to see the dolphins.”She sounded at least four years old.Dante and I had been married for six years.Everyone in New York knew that Dante Romano adored his wife.He had once taken a bullet for me. When a rival family kidnapped me, he wiped them out to bring me home. Wherever he went, he took me with him, as if even a few days apart were more than he could bear.I had believed no one could ever come between us.Then I heard that little girl call him Daddy.“I’m just tired.”I avoided his eyes and pushed away my glass of wine.Dante placed my favorite dish on my plate.“Then stay here and rest. I’ll come straight home as soon as I finish

Bianca glanced over her shoulder and closed the door, leaving the twins in the hallway.“My apologies, Mrs. Romano. The children were eager to see their father. I didn’t realize you would both be here.”Dante was already on his feet, his expression glacial.“Bianca, I told you never to appear in front of Elena or me again.”“Relax. I didn’t come back to New York to chase after you.”Bianca walked calmly into the room and set her purse on the table.“The children’s father and I came back to New York together to take care of some family business. As for today, I’m only here to pick up the wedding bands we had custom-made.”Five years ago, Bianca had been Dante’s personal secretary.She had repeatedly used work as an excuse to get close to him. One night after a family event, she had even entered his bedroom uninvited.Dante fired her the next morning.In front of everyone, he declared that I was the only woman he would ever love and that no one would ever take my place as Mrs. Romano.Bi

When I returned to the Romano estate, I didn’t have time to sit with my grief.Only five days remained until our anniversary.Before then, I had to erase every trace of where I was going.As I passed the sitting room, I saw Dante’s mother looking through a catalog of formal children’s clothing.One page showed the white ceremonial suit worn by a Romano heir when he was formally recognized by the family. A silver wolf, the Romano crest, was embroidered on the collar.The moment she saw me, she closed the catalog.“Elena, are you going somewhere?”“I need to deal with the estate my mother left me.”“Let the driver take you.”“That won’t be necessary.”I offered no further explanation and left alone.My uncle’s men were waiting for me at a law office.On the table lay a new passport and the documents I would need to leave the country.I opened the passport.The photograph was mine, but the name beneath it read:Elise Laurent.“This identity only needs to get you out of New York,” one of m

The next day, Dante left New York, claiming that the situation in Sicily had taken a turn for the worse.Before leaving, he kissed my forehead.“Stay at the estate and wait for me.”That evening, Bianca contacted me from a new number and sent me a photograph.It had been taken at the Romano family’s private estate in Sicily.Leo wore the white suit reserved for an heir’s formal recognition ceremony, while Mia sat on Dante’s shoulders.Bianca stood beside him. Next to her two-million-dollar diamond engagement ring was a new platinum wedding band.The same one I had chosen at the jewelry salon.Dante wore the matching band.【Now everyone knows we’re a family.】I didn’t reply.Four days later, our wedding anniversary arrived.Dante still hadn’t come home.That morning, I came down with a high fever.By evening, I could barely stand. The man my uncle had sent to escort me took one look at me and tried to stop me.“The weather is bad tonight. We can postpone the plan.”“We can’t.”“You’re p

Dante read the letter over and over.There was no explanation. No goodbye.Only that single sentence.But it was enough.Elena had known about Bianca and the twins all along.Dante summoned the Romano family’s head of security.“Find out everywhere Elena went before the accident.”“Everyone she met, every call she made, every transaction from her accounts.”The man hesitated.“Mrs. Romano disabled the location tracking on her phone. This may take some time.”Dante swept everything from his desk.“Then check the traffic cameras! She couldn’t have vanished into thin air!”The entire Romano organization was put to work.Hours later, the head of security returned to the study with a report.The day after leaving the jewelry salon, Elena had visited the law firm her mother once used.There, she collected her birth certificate, passport records, and several sealed files her mother had left behind.She had also asked the attorney to remove her name from every document connected to the Romano