Chapter 1

I watched the “Transfer Application Submitted” notification on the computer screen and calmly closed the page.No one knew that I was living a replay of this entire, messed-up life.In my last life, I was my parents’ perfect puppet. I took that Executive VP gig at the New York HQ and followed every single one of their orders. All of it, just to be near them and prove I was worthy of being the daughter of the capo, Domenico Carlo Elio.Everyone had assumed I died fifteen years ago—taken out by a stray bullet and burned to ash. But now that I was back, standing at my biological father’s side, it was clear to everyone that I was nothing more than an intruder.This life? Before they even had a chance to open their mouths and assign my sister, Elena, the coveted West Coast territory, I preemptively hit “SUBMIT”.“Dad, Mom, I’ve applied to the Vegas subsidiary. I’m going to join the desert wind farm project.”The laughter at the end of the long mahogany table screeched to a halt.My father—D

Chapter 2

The next morning, I went downstairs for my morning run.The ground floor living room was brightly lit, laughter spilling out like broken glass.Elena was clinging to my mother’s, arm, rubbing against her like a kitten, her voice sickeningly sweet:“Mamma, please invite every ‘made man’ in the city to the coming-of-age party. I want the Rose Mass to be the most sensational event New York has seen in ten years.”“Yes, yes, my little princess gets what she wants,” my mother said, gently tidying a stray strand of hair near Elena’s temple.My father took the cigar from his lips and smiled with complete indulgence: “Elena is growing up. It’s good to invite the elders. Let the outsiders see the Elio family’s next rose.”They were the picture of domestic bliss, like a Mafia-version of ‘The Holy Family.’ I was the superfluous character accidentally sketched into the corner.I hugged the wall, heading toward the kitchen, just wanting a glass of cold water.“Rhea, you’re awake?” My mother looked

Chapter 3

Back in my room, I locked the door, and the world finally fell silent.I opened my laptop. First, I logged into the corporate intranet and reread the NDA for the ‘Las Vegas Desert Wind Power Project Team.’ Then, I opened Zillow and searched for a one-bedroom apartment in Henderson. I wasn’t planning on staying in corporate housing this time—I wanted a territory entirely my own.After saving the documents, I picked up the red marker and crossed off another day on the calendar.Fifteen days left.The second hand on the clock seemed to be dragged down by the desert heat, moving slower than a jammed clip.For the next few days, I switched myself to silent mode. Mom and Dad were totally swallowed up by planning Elena’s graduation and her massive gala, which meant they were far too distracted to even notice my little act of ‘rebellion.’The gift was personally chosen by my mother—A customized Rolls-Royce Dawn, the body painted Elena’s favorite ivory white, the family crest meticulously tr

Chapter 4

The red-eye flight bucked over the desert, the engine’s roar a low, constant requiem.But I slept better than I had in years—no cigar smoke, no Sicilian dialect scolding, and certainly no pitying upward inflection on “Signorina”. I was just a small-time worker, exiled to a goddamn desert wind project.After a two-hour-and-forty-minute flight, the landing gear smashed onto runway 05R, and the Vegas heat hit the window like a fist. The sky was high, a cobalt blue stained with a hint of neon purple; the air was so dry it felt ready to ignite.I pulled my hoodie low, dragging my 20-inch carry-on through the terminal, vanishing into the crowd like a droplet of water hitting the sand and instantly evaporating.The Uber I’d booked dropped me at a grayish-pink single-story apartment on the edge of Henderson. The wrought-iron sign was rusty, but it perfectly blocked the blinding neon from the casino across the street.It was a one-bed, one-bath, 550 square feet. The floorboards creaked underfoo

Chapter 5

Six months into my field assignment, I volunteered for the transfer to the farthest corner: the “Valley of Fire” Project. We traveled to the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, staying in a trailer camp with intermittent satellite signal. By day, I ran geological profiles through canyons with a theodolite and core boxes; by night, I dumped the data into my laptop, joyfully losing myself in the work.One evening, just as I came down from the mountain, my phone caught one bar of signal at the trailer door and immediately vibrated—Mother.I walked to the top of the dirt slope to answer.“Rhea! You finally picked up!” Her voice carried a restrained urgency. “I was beginning to fear the worst, not hearing anything from you.”“I’m out in the field, can hardly get a signal in here,” I said calmly.“Oh… the desert, is it hard?” She paused, as if choosing her words carefully. “Are you… alright?”“I’m fine.”“Well… your father he—”I remained silent, waiting for her to continue.“Actually,

Chapter 6

In the end, I abandoned my planned trip to Sicily.Two days later, on an impulse I couldn’t quite name, I found myself on a red-eye flight back to New York.I hadn’t told a soul.By the time the taxi pulled up to St. Vincent’s Private Hospital, the sky was a pale gray. The VIP floor was silent save for the beeping of the monitoring equipment.I stood at the end of the hallway, still interrogating my own motive: Duty? Or that tiny spark of expectation, too faint to even count as an ember, that had reignited?I took a deep breath and pushed the door open.The room was quiet, broken only by the regular beep of the monitoring equipment.Don Carlo Elio was propped up against the headboard, his eyes closed, his face pale—asleep, perhaps. He looked frailer than he had two years ago, his temples showing more gray.My mother, Adrianna, wasn’t there, only a nurse quietly tidying the side table.The nurse looked up, startled, clearly not recognizing me.I signaled her to be quiet and moved gently

Chapter 7

After returning to Nevada, I tossed my suitcase directly into the container dormitory and was climbing a wind turbine platform three hours later.The desert wind, like sandpaper, polished away every last trace of emotion left over from the hospital visit.Headquarters approved my promotion to “Senior Field Engineer,” tripling my salary and adding stock options. I put a down payment on a fair apartment, the balcony facing the Red Rock sunset—the deed only carried the name Rhea R., no prefix required.Mother’s calls changed from “occasional” to “routine.” The pictures she described were always the same:Don Carlo was moodier after his discharge, often locking himself in his study, staring at cigars.Elena moved to Chicago after the wedding, only coming home to withdraw funds when her accounts were low.The mansion was too large; even voices echoed.I responded with “Mmm” and “Oh”, my fingers never leaving the keyboard—I needed to finish modeling the turbine subsidence data; I had no time

All Chapters of Too Late for Regret: Chapter 1 - Chapter 7