All Chapters of The Don's Hidden Heiress: Last Week Alive: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

Five years ago, when my dad finally found me in a foster home in the slums of Novastone, I was nothing but skin and bones. Cigarette burns from my former foster parents still scarred my arms."Let's go home, Eva," he'd said.I thought I finally had a home.That was, until the day of his funeral.As I stood by my dad's coffin while the lawyer read the will, I learned the truth. The daughter he had finally found would inherit poison and an impossible task. Within five years, I was supposed to win the sworn loyalty of one of the three family power holders.My half-brother, Alessandro Andreotti, was now the family's Underboss.Benedetto Martini was the heir of the Martino family and my fiance in a political marriage.Lastly, there was Roberto Foscari. He was the chief medical advisor and intelligence officer—Dad's most trusted fixer.For five years, I tried desperately to please them all.Alessandro sneered, "Don't call me your brother. You don't deserve it.""The marriage will h

"Eva, you're still saying that? Emanuela postponed her honeymoon because of you. She was so worried that she hadn't slept all night." Roberto's voice had gone cold. I threw off the blanket and tried to get up, but Roberto pressed me back down. "Worried I hadn't finished the job?""Where do you think you're going?""Out of here!" I said, struggling. "I want to see Alessandro and Benedetto…"Roberto's tone was terrifyingly calm. "They won't see you. Alessandro's handling business on the West Shore. Benedetto and Emanuela are preparing for their honeymoon. What you need right now is treatment, not theatrics."Treatment?I stared at him. He felt like a stranger to me. The man who once handed me hot cocoa and smiled at me like I mattered now looked at me with eyes as cold as ice."You think I'm insane, too, don't you?""You need help, Eva."He stood and walked to the door. "It's safe here. No one will hurt you here. Get some rest. I'll check on you later.""Roberto!"He stopped

Roberto nodded. He took the blood transfusion equipment from the medical kit. His movements were meticulous. They were professional to the point of being chilling."Wait," I said.Everyone turned to me."I'll give the blood," I said calmly. "But I have one condition.""You're in no position to bargain," Alessandro said coldly.I looked at Roberto. "Let me finish. If anything happens to me, bury the metal box from my nightstand with me."Benedetto frowned. "Metal box?""It's just some personal items. It isn't that important. It's just my last wish."Roberto glanced at Alessandro. After a pause, Alessandro nodded.They even brought a voluntary donation form. My hand trembled as I signed. The trembling wasn't from fear, but because the poison had already invaded my nervous system.I wrote the last letter to my name and put the pen down. "Eva Andreotti."The sting of the needle in my vein was faint. I watched the dark red blood flow through the clear tube and into the bag. A str

The first recording was dated five years ago. It was just after I had been brought back into the Andreotti family.Emanuela's voice hissed through the speaker. "She doesn't deserve it. Why should a bastard born of an whore enter this family? I'm the true jewel of the Andreotti family!""Ms. Romano, we could arrange an accident—" another woman's voice replied hesitantly."No," Emanuela cut her off. "That would be too obvious. I want her alive, but she must be in more pain than death. I want everyone to despise and loathe her until she can't bear to stay alive."The second recording was from two years ago."How are things going with Benedetto?" Emanuela asked.A man answered, "He believes it. He thinks you're the one who donated the eye back then. These are cosmetic lenses. Once you wear them, they'll look exactly like a prosthetic."Emanuela chuckled."Good. Keep an eye on Eva. If she makes a move on Benedetto, let me know immediately."The last recording was dated six months a

Emanuela died on the coldest day of that winter.The poison took three full days to run its course. They said her final state was horrifying. Her skin was ulcerated, and her eyes were bloodshot. She was like a rotting corpse. No one claimed the body. Her ashes were scattered into the Blackthorn River. It was where my grave should have been.Alessandro inherited the title of Don.But he abandoned the main estate and moved into the side wing that had once been mine. My room remained untouched. The Colt pistol lay on the nightstand. He polished it daily.He rarely smiled or spoke. Under his rule, the Andreotti family grew colder and more efficient, but they were also more lifeless.Benedetto tore up the marriage contract and severed the alliance with the Andreottis. The Martini family suffered for it. Their business collapsed. He never married. Rumors had it that he funded a scholarship at a university in Iernia, named after my mother, for literature students.Roberto closed his cli