Chapter 4

Anna's POV

However, before Carlos could say anything, Liliana suddenly dropped to her knees before me.

"Anna, please don't blame them! If you want someone to blame, blame me! It's my fault that I'm just an adopted daughter. Vittorio and Carlos only did this because they were heartbroken at how I was always being picked on. Everything is my fault, so just blame me and me alone!"

Tears glistened in her eyes, making her appear utterly pitiful as she played the victim, as though she were the one who had suffered the most.

The hint of guilt in Carlos' eyes instantly vanished as his expression darkened. He immediately turned his anger on me.

"Are you done with your nonsense? Liliana is already begging you on her knees! What else do you want? All this over a network? Seriously?"

I gave a bitter laugh.

He was the one who used to say that there was no one more meticulous than I was.

Yet now, with a few casual words, he made it sound as though everything I had done was worthless—that I was worthless.

Both he and Vittorio should know better than anyone else what that network meant to me. It was meant to be proof that I deserved the Siciliano name, that I was worthy. Even more so, it was practically my life.

"Let's go, Liliana. We shouldn't bother wasting any more time on her."

Carlos took Liliana's hand and turned to leave.

At last, Vittorio spoke up. "Liliana is an adopted daughter, so there's no denying that this network will be more useful to her than to you. Just back down for now. Carlos and I will make it up to you in the future."

They would make it up to me? I was going to be dead real soon, so how were they going to do that?

"And if I refuse to back down?"

The furrow between his eyes deepened. "Anna, you know that doing that will be pointless. Don't make the situation uglier than it already is."

"Oh? And what are you going to do about it? Kill me?"

For a long while, he simply stared at me. In the end, though, he chose to leave without another word.

Once again, they had abandoned me.

By the time the crowd fully dispersed, it was already late into the night.

Just as I was about to head back, footsteps rang out behind me, drawing closer.

In the next second, a hand clamped over my mouth before I was dragged into a nearby alley, where three figures surrounded me.

"This is our target?"

"Yeah. That woman says that we can do whatever we want to her. Just be sure not to kill her."

I struggled to get to my feet, yet one of the men grabbed me by the hair and yanked my head back. A hard slap landed on my cheek, causing my head to snap to the side from the sheer force.

As a callused hand began tearing at the collar of my jacket, I kicked my legs wildly and shrank back as far as I could.

"Get away from me! Don't touch me!"

Somehow, I was able to fish out my phone and dial Vittorio's number, all while still struggling to escape the men.

In my mind, I chanted desperately, "Please… Vittorio… save me!"

Yet, even though I called him over and over again, no one answered.

Out of sheer despair, I called my personal doctor, Pietro Rossi. However, the call had barely gone through when my phone was snatched away and smashed against the ground.

Another harsh smack had my head spinning and dots dancing in my vision.

"Looks like your little lover is ignoring you. In that case, I won't hold back anymore."

With that, two of the men pinned me down by the arms, rendering me immobile. The only thing I could do was shut my eyes in despair.

Someone ripped my purse from me and tossed it to the ground, causing the contents to spill out.

"Boss, look!"

One of the men kneeled to snoop through the items before suddenly letting out a curse.

"Damn it, she has some sort of disease!"

"Fuck! What shitty luck! Who knows whether it's contagious? Let's go!"

Following that, the three men left me behind and fled, all the while swearing.

I lay sprawled across the icy ground, a bout of violent coughs wracking my body. Then, my vision went dark as I lost consciousness. However, right before the darkness took me, I vaguely heard Pietro calling my name.

…

By the time I regained consciousness, it was already the next day.

Pietro stood by my bed and told me that my condition had worsened. I would have, at most, two weeks left to live.

"It doesn't matter anymore."

Hearing that, Pietro sighed and asked, "Should I inform Mr. Luciano and Mr. Gambino about it?"

"They won't care."

I got up to take a walk in the garden, only for Liliana's voice to reach my ears.

"Oh, come on, Carlos. I just twisted it a little. Is this really necessary?"

Turning in the direction of her voice, I immediately spotted Carlos down on one knee on the floor as he massaged her ankle.

"Stop wriggling around. I already told you to be more careful and watch where you're going."

His tone was gentle, warm, and filled with heartache for her pain.

He used to treat me just like that in the past.

Tearing my gaze away from them, I spun on my heel to head back inside.

Yet, I had barely taken a few steps when Vittorio rounded the corner, a tube of medicated balm for Liliana in his hand.

Upon spotting me, he said warily, "Anna, what's done is done. The compensation you'll receive from here on out will only increase, so don't hurt Liliana."

So, in his mind, I was now that sort of malicious and wicked person?

Despite seeing the wounds covering my body, he was still only worried about me hurting Liliana.

He genuinely didn't care about me anymore.

"I no longer want any of that." I looked him straight in the eye. "I'll let go of everything that happened before. Consider it repayment for all that we shared over the years. From this moment on, we're even. Also, you don't need to worry. I won't cause any trouble for her."

With that said, I stepped around him and continued on my way. Not a moment too soon either, as the instant my back was to him, a gush of bright red blood spilled from my nose.

I returned to my room, grabbed my luggage, and departed for the airport without another backward glance.

"Carlos, Vittorio, I'm obliging your wishes and leaving. May we never meet again."