Chapter 7

Over the past few days, Vincent had been taking Sofia all over Euroland, indulging her every whim.

Her Instagram was filled with private jets, top-tier jewelry, and limited-edition sports cars.

At the same time, every mafia family received an invitation to the Costa family's birthday banquet.

On the day of the event, Vincent stood among the crowd, listening to the endless compliments, yet an odd sense of irritation lingered beneath the surface.

It had been a long time since he last heard from me.

In the past, whenever he traveled, I would send him message after message. Even if he did not reply, I would still keep checking in, stubbornly showing I cared.

However, those past few days, his phone had been completely silent.

Uneasy, Vincent stepped out onto the terrace under the excuse of getting some air and dialed my number.

No answer.

He frowned and called the house steward instead.

"Where is she?"

"Sir, Miss Isabella left a few days ago and hasn't come back since."

Vincent's expression darkened instantly, his voice turning icy.

"Where could she possibly go? She's an orphan. Without me, she can't survive anywhere. Once she's done throwing her tantrum, she'll crawl back on her own."

A friend approached with a smile, handing him a cigar.

"What, still thinking about that girl?"

Vincent instinctively glanced toward Sofia, who was surrounded by guests, glowing under their attention. Then he replied calmly, "It's over."

"Good," his friend said with a knowing look. "The Costa family's principessa is the only one worthy of being your Donna."

Vincent suppressed the strange restlessness in his chest and put on a polite smile.

"Meeting Sofia was the greatest stroke of luck in my life."

Not far away, Sofia happened to overhear him. Her face flushed instantly as the people around her began to cheer and tease.

However, just as the mood warmed, her close friend Anna hurried over, her expression tense. She leaned in and whispered something in Sofia's ear.

Sofia's gaze sharpened, and her smile froze.

"Are you sure?"

Anna nodded firmly.

In the next second, Sofia's expression changed dramatically. She let out a sharp, panicked scream. "Has anyone seen my crown? My diamond crown is missing!"

"What crown?" Vincent frowned immediately.

"It was a coming-of-age gift from my father," Sofia said, her voice trembling as she forced out a sob. "It has five ten-carat diamonds on it. It's priceless."

The entire banquet hall erupted into commotion.

Vincent quickly stepped in to calm things down. "Don't panic. Seal all the exits. Whoever took it couldn't have gone far."

He strode off to make arrangements.

Left behind, Sofia lowered her gaze, then suddenly turned to her friends.

"I was in the dressing room on the second floor earlier. Maybe I left it there."

The group chattered as they headed upstairs. That was when they saw me, carrying a suitcase, about to head up as well.

Sofia immediately covered her mouth in exaggerated surprise.

"Isn't that Isabella? How did she get in here?"

Anna's voice rose sharply. "I saw her sneaking around earlier. She must have stolen the crown!"

Several women rushed toward me, Sofia's eyes burned with anger.

"I told you to stay far away. Did you lose your way or something? You've already left the family, so why are you still following us?

"It must have been you who took my crown!"

I raised an eyebrow slowly and looked at them.

This morning, I had gone to headquarters to retrieve the diamond crown my mother had prepared for me. I was on my way to the dressing room to change into my gown.

I had not expected to walk straight into such a ridiculous scene.

Anna stepped forward, looking me up and down with open disdain.

"Dressed like that? Don't tell me you snuck in pretending to be staff.

"Come on, where's the crown? We know you're poor. It's normal to be tempted when you see something valuable, but stealing from the Costa family? You must have a death wish.

"Sofia is too kind to say anything, but we won't let this slide. Hand it over."