Todos los capítulos de The Wife They Tried To Replace: Capítulo 21 - Capítulo 30

Valentina’s POVThe early morning sunlight filtered through the sheer white curtains of our penthouse suite, casting long, delicate shadows across the hardwood floor. I stood by the expansive floor-to-ceiling windows, holding a ceramic mug of hot black coffee, watching the city below slowly wake up. The streets were beginning to hum with activity, buses stopping, commuters rushing, and yellow cabs weaving through the gridlock.Just a few weeks ago, looking out at this exact view would have filled my chest with a heavy, suffocating anxiety. I would have been calculating how many hours I had until I needed to have breakfast ready, wondering if my dress was appropriate enough to accompany Marco to some meaningless corporate brunch where I would be treated like little more than an expensive accessory. I would have been trapped in the exhausting loop of trying to earn affection from a man who was entirely incapable of giving it.Now, the view felt completely different. It looked like an op

Valentina’s POVThe afternoon sun beat down gently through the tall office windows as I worked through the thick stack of papers on my desk. Every file I opened brought a new surprise. For years, Serena and the old board members had hidden their favorite luxury projects inside complicated financial reports. They spent thousands of dollars on expensive floral arrangements for parties that only rich people attended, while ignoring the real letters sent by people who actually needed help.I picked up a pink letter from the bottom of the pile. It was handwritten on cheap paper.Dear Foundation, it read. My name is Clara. I left my husband three months ago with my little girl. We are staying in a small room, but I have no money for job training, and I cannot find a safe place to leave my daughter while I work. Please, is there any help?My throat tightened. I remembered that feeling of being completely trapped, of looking around a room and realizing there was no safe door to walk through.

Valentina’s POVThe blood drained entirely from my face. My knees felt weak, and if Dante hadn't instantly wrapped a strong, unyielding arm around my waist, I think I would have collapsed right there on the polished hardwood floor.On the high-resolution security screen, the face belonging to the person in the cafe window was impossible to mistake.It wasn't Marco. Marco was sitting in a maximum-security holding cell fifty miles away, facing decades behind bars.It was Serena.Her dark hair was shorter now, dyed a sharp, contrasting blonde at the tips, and her cheeks were slightly hollowed out, but the cold, calculating smirk curling her lips was unmistakably hers. The very same woman who had laughed behind my back for three years, who had stolen my engagement, and who was supposed to have fled the country months ago with an older investor, was sitting right across the street.“She’s... she’s supposed to be in Europe,” I whispered, my voice shaking so badly the words barely formed. “T

Valentina’s POVThe armored car tore through the subterranean tunnel, the silence inside the cabin heavy and pressurized. Outside, the city was a labyrinth of steel and secrets; inside, it felt like the eye of a hurricane.Dante didn’t look at me. His eyes were fixed on the tactical screen mounted between the front seats, his fingers dancing across the interface as he orchestrated an entire private intelligence network.“Thomas,” Dante said, his voice clipped and precise. “Reroute to the private estate in the mountains. We need a secure facility to process the data we’re about to pull. And alert the local task force. I don’t want Serena having a single square inch of the city to disappear into.”“Yes, sir,” Thomas responded.I looked at my hands. They had stopped shaking, but the lingering adrenaline still hummed beneath my skin like a live wire. Serena hadn't just appeared; she had launched a full-scale assault. A smoke bomb at the foundation headquarters was a message. She wasn’t ju

Valentina’s POVThe descent down the mountain slope was a terrifying blur of gravity, tearing branches, and jagged rock. I felt Dante’s arms wrap around me with an iron grip, tucking my head securely against his chest as we tumbled through the thick underbrush. Every impact against the rocky ground jarred my bones, but his body acted as a protective shield, taking the brunt of the punishing fall.With a sudden, jarring thud, we crashed into a dense thicket of pine bushes, finally skidding to a halt on a narrow, hidden ledge about forty feet below the highway.My breath exploded out of my lungs in a sharp gasp. The world spun wildly, the deafening roar of the helicopter blades and the roaring echo of the explosion vibrating through the very earth beneath us.“Val? Valentina, look at me.”Dante’s voice cut through the ringing in my ears. He was kneeling over me, his hands frantically checking my arms, face, and shoulders for injuries. His custom suit was torn, his face smeared with dirt