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Chapter 3

Author: Lianne
After leaving the Moretti estate, I took the city loop bus to downtown Palemore.

With a criminal record, erased academic credentials, and a physical disability, there was not much I could do.

I found a part-time job at a restaurant, doing odd chores, just to get through the next ten days.

It was almost laughable.

After I was brought back to the Moretti family at fifteen, they gave me only €100 for living expenses during my first month.

After that, they decided I was not as good as Sophia and stopped caring about me altogether, even though I was their biological daughter.

I worked while studying, paying for my own tuition and living expenses.

At 11:30 PM that night, after washing the last dish, I walked out of the restaurant alone. That was when I saw Salvatore stepping out of a black Lamborghini.

He walked straight toward me.

"Irene, why have you been out so long?"

Before I could answer, he took my hand and led me to the car.

He opened the door. On the passenger seat was a beautifully-made tiramisu cake.

"Irene, happy birthday."

I froze.

The Vitale family and the Moretti family had been close for generations. They were neighbors, and my marriage to Salvatore had been arranged before I was even born.

Even when I got lost at two and was only found again at fifteen, that engagement was never voided.

I still remembered the first time I saw Salvatore after returning to the Moretti house.

He stood there in a black shirt under the Mediterranean sun, looking like a ray of light.

Salvatore was the third son in his family. The butler had told me to call him ‘little brother’.

I called him that for five years.

Back then, he was the only one in the Moretti family who did not look down on me.

When others bullied me, he stepped in to protect me. On holidays, he brought me gifts. He was the only person in all of Sicelia who treated me with kindness.

That kindness ruined me.

I fell for him completely. I thought he was my salvation, my safe place.

When he was injured by a rival family, I even gave him one of my kidneys.

However, in the end, he was the one who personally arranged for me to spend seven years in prison.

"Irene, what's wrong? Did you think I forgot your birthday?" His voice pulled me back to the present.

"Thank you," I said calmly.

Then, he took out another delicate gift box from the back seat.

"Open it."

I lifted the lid.

Inside was a custom-made red wedding dress.

"Do you remember what you said when you were little? That you wanted to wear a red wedding dress and marry me? I had this made in advance. Do you like it?" he asked gently.

In this world, Salvatore was probably the only person who would ever give me a red wedding dress.

My throat tightened.

"Salvatore… You remembered wrong. I don't like wedding dresses, and I don't like the color red."

The nuns at the orphanage once told me they had found me outside a bridal shop.

Back then, I had been wearing an expensive red dress.

After I grew old enough to remember things, I would often stop in front of bridal shop windows. I got used to always wearing red.

I thought maybe, just maybe, my parents would find me again that way.

Salvatore paused, then reached out and ruffled my hair like he used to seven years ago.

"I'm sorry. I remembered wrong. I'll have someone remake the dress right away. Come on! I'll take you to a restaurant to celebrate."

I got into the car.

On the way back, a light rain began to fall.

Salvatore held my hand tightly. "Irene, why are you even thinner than before? And your leg…"

Before he could finish, his phone rang. I caught a glimpse of the name on the screen.

Sophia.

He answered immediately. I did not know what she said, but panic filled his eyes. He quickly told the driver, "Turn around. We’re going back to the Moretti estate."

As the car sped back, Salvatore kept texting Sophia nonstop.

When we arrived, I saw her.

Sophia stood on the roof of the main building, still in her white dress.

When she saw Salvatore and me, her face turned pale.

"Dad, Mom, Christina, Salvatore… My sister is back now. It's time for me to step aside. Goodbye."

Then, she jumped.

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  • The Silenced Songbird Sings Again   Chapter 22

    Salvatore stayed in Napleton City for seven days.He did not try to see Liliana again.Every morning, he parked his car at the corner across from the shipping company and watched her walk into the warehouse.In the evening, he watched her come out, then get into the car Joseph had sent and leave.The way she walked had changed. Her left leg still carried a slight stiffness, but she no longer kept her head down or her shoulders drawn in.She walked steadily, her back straight.Sometimes she would greet the workers, smiling as she said a few words.They respected her. Not the kind of politeness people faked, but real respect.She was doing well in the Conti family.On the seventh evening, Salvatore saw a man come to pick her up. The man wore a sharply tailored black coat and had a tall, solid build. He stepped out of the car and opened the door for her.Joseph.Liliana walked up to the car. Joseph leaned in and said something to her.She smiled.It was a smile Salvatore had

  • The Silenced Songbird Sings Again   Chapter 21

    Napleton City. Three days later.Liliana stood at the entrance of the shipping warehouse, a cargo list in her hand.By now, she was used to checking the incoming and outgoing shipments herself every morning.Lucas said she was too meticulous, but she would just smile and keep going."Miss Liliana." A worker ran up to her, looking nervous. "There's someone outside asking for you."Liliana looked up. "Who?""He didn't give a name. He just said he's an old friend."An old friend?Liliana's fingers tightened slightly. "How many people?""Just one."She set the list aside and walked out of the warehouse.The wind at the port was strong, carrying the salty scent of the sea. A cargo ship sat in the distance while workers loaded and unloaded goods. Seagulls circled overhead, their cries sharp in the air.A man stood at the warehouse entrance.He was wearing a black coat and had a tall figure. His back was to her, facing the sea.However, Liliana recognized him immediately.She s

  • The Silenced Songbird Sings Again   Chapter 20

    Sicelia, Palemore.Salvatore stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window in his study, a glass of whiskey in his hand. Outside, the rain had been falling for three straight days.A full year had passed since Irene disappeared. He had searched all of Itania, Francia, Suisse, Austriel, and Germaria, yet he had found nothing.Joseph's methods were even more thorough than he had imagined. Irene had vanished from the world, as if she had never existed at all.However, Salvatore had not given up. He hired the best private investigators and planted informants across multiple countries. He had even gone to Napleton City himself three times. Each time, he was ‘politely’ escorted out by the Conti family.He could not see Joseph.He could not see Irene.A lot had happened to the Moretti family over the past year.Sophia's ‘illness’ had miraculously disappeared after Salvatore called off the engagement. She tried to win him back. She even asked Natalie to speak for her, but Salvatore did

  • The Silenced Songbird Sings Again   Chapter 19

    Three days later in the Conti Estate.Liliana stood at the entrance to the basement.The space was vast and brightly lit. The walls were made of rough stone, lined with portraits of past dons of the Conti family.At the center hung Joseph's father, a man with a shadowed, brooding gaze. Beside him were photos of Marco in his younger years, along with even older ancestors.Core members of the Conti family sat along both sides of a long table. Marco sat at Joseph's right, and the other capos were seated in order of seniority.Joseph sat at the head of the table. He wore a black suit, the silver eagle crest of the Conti family pinned to his chest.Candlelight flickered across his face, deepening the sharp lines of his features."Liliana."His voice was not loud, but every person in the room heard it clearly.Liliana stepped forward.She wore a fitted black suit, and her hair was pinned up, revealing the slender line of her neck. Her left leg still carried a slight stiffness, but

  • The Silenced Songbird Sings Again   Chapter 18

    One year later.Liliana had fully become part of the Conti family. She was no longer the thin, fragile girl who had just walked out of prison, limping and worn down.She had put on a little weight, and there was color in her face now.Her hair had grown to her shoulders and was usually tied back with a simple band. She wore clean, simple clothes, usually a white shirt and black pants. It was neat and practical.She was now the true boss of the Conti family's shipping company.Lucas still held the title of manager, but she made every major decision.In just one year, she had increased the company's profits by thirty percent. Marco had praised her openly during a family meeting."Anthony's daughter really does carry his blood."No one questioned her identity anymore.That evening, as Liliana stepped out of the shipping company, she saw Joseph's car waiting at the entrance.The window rolled down."Get in."Liliana got into the car."Where are we going?""The port."The car

  • The Silenced Songbird Sings Again   Chapter 17

    Six months later.Liliana began getting involved in the Conti family’s business. Joseph did not throw her straight into core operations. Instead, he started her at the foundation.She learned about the family's legal businesses. They had two shipping companies at the port of Napleton City, several restaurants in Vomerra Heights, and a hotel on Capria Island."Learn the legal side first," Joseph told her. "We'll talk about the rest later."Liliana had no objections.Every morning, she went to the shipping company. In the afternoon, she visited the restaurants. At night, she returned to the old apartment.Her days were full.The manager of the shipping company was a man named Lucas. He was in his forties, balding, always speaking quickly and with urgency.At first, he did not think much of this newcomer being pushed into the company. To him, she seemed like someone who was only there to pass the time.That opinion did not last long.On her first day, Liliana did not sit in the

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