All Chapters of The Wife He Never Married: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

I was about to hail a cab when Andre caught up and grabbed my wrist."Don't be unreasonable. You know the Cardona Family made major concessions for this marriage.""They gave us a year of duty-free access to the East District docks and shared their South American drug route with us."I stared at him. "We could've gotten all of that without the marriage. You know I was already working on opening other shipping routes.""All I needed was a little more time..."Andre cut me off. "Time is exactly what I don't have. I need these concessions now to shut the elders up."The old Don had died suddenly. Andre's rise to power had been anything but smooth.Even after a full purge, the elders still seemed far from satisfied with him.I remembered how, before my hospitalization, he'd promised to discuss everything once I was discharged.I couldn't help a bitter smile. "Then what about me?"Andre faltered. His composed, gentle expression gradually turned cold."So what do you want me to do? Send Dais

Chapter 2

Halfway through the drive, the driver took a call and suddenly changed course, heading toward the first property Andre and I had ever shared.When I walked in, Andre had Daisy pinned against the wall, kissing her slender neck.I caught the flash of triumph in Daisy's eyes, but in the next instant she shoved Andre away, her eyes already red.Like a startled rabbit, she clutched the hem of her dress and hid behind him.Watching Andre's satisfied expression, I thought back to the day Daisy was sent over by the Cardona Family.She'd been crying just like this. I asked Andre how he wanted to handle her.He didn't even glance at her. "Whatever," he said, and walked away.I could have disposed of Daisy any way I pleased, just as he'd said.But we were both women. I wanted her to live with some dignity, so I gave her what she needed to survive here.Now, recalling all those phone calls while Andre sat by my hospital bed, I let out a bitter laugh.This was how she repaid me.Fury churned in my

Chapter 3

Before the banquet, Daisy claimed she had nothing suitable to wear.She went through my closet and picked out the exact dress Andre had given me for my twentieth birthday.But she still wasn't satisfied. She gazed longingly at the glass pendant on my table, her eyes wide and pitiful."I don't have a single piece of jewelry."Andre said nothing. Daisy reached for it.That necklace meant everything to me. It had been tucked inside my blanket when I was found at the orphanage.It was my anchor. Through every brush with death over the years, I'd kept it close.Andre knew how much it meant. Yet now he pretended not to see.My heart seized. I slammed my hand down on the table, blocking Daisy's reach.Only then did Andre lazily look up and meet my red-rimmed gaze.He sighed. "That necklace is far too cheap. Go pick something from the vault."Daisy bit her lip. "But the only pink diamond that goes with this dress was already taken by Ash."Andre didn't hesitate. He gestured at me. "Give it to

Chapter 4

"Andre!" Daisy threw her arms around him, tears streaming. "I hit her! It was all me! Please don't go after Ash. I'm begging you, I don't want my family to get hurt!"She was trembling violently."Enough. Stop. No one will dare hurt you." Andre quickly buried her face against his chest, then turned a look of disappointment on me. "Ash, you went too far."So ten years of fighting side by side, of trust built on risking our lives together, meant nothing against a woman who'd been around for six months.The betrayal cut deeper than any bullet ever lodged in my flesh. I couldn't hold it in. Tears filled my eyes.I looked at him, letting them fall. "So you're going to punish me for your wife?"Andre's breath hitched. The last time he'd seen me cry was years ago, when he'd fallen ill.He hesitated. But Daisy was the Don's wife. There had to be consequences.I was locked in the lounge. I lost track of how long I waited before the door finally opened.The man who entered wasn't Andre.Eric Rus

Chapter 5

Eric rattled off names from among the elders. Some of them, he told me, had even wanted to cut off my fingers.I smiled coldly. "Good. It's time to clean house."Six months ago, anticipating that resistance might persist even after the purge and block Andre's rise, I'd bought off the Family's accountant and obtained the original ledgers.And years of recordings had given me a trove of evidence tying Andre and his inner circle to tax evasion.I'd already had informants feed leads to the authorities. All I had to do now was hand over the evidence, and arrest warrants could be issued at any time.Everything had originally been put in place to protect Andre.Now I would make Andre understand the price of making the wrong choice.Two days later, Andre came to the isolation cell to collect me.On the ride back, we sat in silence until he tossed a prenatal exam report onto my lap."Daisy's pregnancy isn't stable," he said.I let out a mocking laugh. "What's your point?""I need you to behave.

Chapter 6

Fury overwhelmed reason. I slapped her.She'd been standing well away from the staircase, yet she shrieked and stumbled backward toward it.I tried to grab her, but she dodged. Her whole body tumbled down the stairs.Blood pooled beneath her instantly. At that same moment, Andre walked through the door.Daisy let out a wail. "Andre, the baby! My baby!"Andre scooped her up. He looked at me, and the accusation in his eyes was clear: Why couldn't I just behave?But he said nothing to me. Instead, he turned to Eric."Restrain Ash. Send her to the water cell in the East District."That was where the Family punished its worst offenders.Before I could say a word in my defense, Daisy clutched Andre's arm and whispered weakly, "Don't blame Ash. I accidentally broke her pendant. That's why she..."Andre turned back. His gaze was pure ice. "Is that so? Then you really are vicious, Ash."Rage churned inside me.I fought to keep control. My voice came out hoarse. "You know that pendant was from m

Chapter 7

Andre's mind went blank.His first instinct was to ask me what to do.Then he remembered. He'd sent me to the water cell.Irritation surged, but he fought it down and told Eric, "Send reinforcements. Contain the damage.""Put every pending order on hold. Count the losses and replace the shipment as fast as possible.""Find out who did this before dawn."Andre hadn't taken the attack seriously. He issued his orders swiftly and precisely.By his estimate, mobilizing the full Family would be enough to cover it up.But through the night, one disaster followed another.Across the other three districts, allied families suddenly closed their ports to him.He activated backup ports, but he'd neglected those connections for too long. By the time his people had them up and running, it was already dawn.The bulk of the arms couldn't be shipped out. Even the portion he'd asked the Cardona Family to help move was destroyed before it cleared the docks.Andre knew the enemy was working from the shado

Chapter 8

But this wasn't Andre's first setback.The old Don's legitimate heir had once stripped away half his allies and cornered him.Back then, he'd been like a hawk, seizing the perfect moment to strike back.This time was no different. The day after I made my public debut with the Dente Family, Andre sent me a set of photographs. They showed a Dente squad that hadn't evacuated the West District in time.He'd followed the trail and uncovered my connection to the Dente Family.And he knew that every loss he'd suffered bore Durand's fingerprints.Everyone in those photos had clearly been tortured. I had no choice but to call Andre."What do you want?"Andre was eerily calm. "Come back," he said flatly. "Come back to me.""Otherwise, these men will be corpses, a welcoming gift for your reunion with the Dentes."Durand was furious when he found out. We both knew that once Andre had me under his control, there was no telling what demands he'd make of the Dente Family.My brother deliberated, then

Chapter 9

In the silence that followed, he released my wrist. I grabbed a bedsheet, wrapped it around myself, and walked out without looking back.Only Eric stood guard outside. He'd sent the others away.When he saw me, he set down his gun, took off his jacket, and draped it over my shoulders. "What you did in there was reckless.""Have you even thought about what I'd do if something happened to you?"I felt his hand tremble on my shoulder.I knew, just as surely, how long he'd kept his feelings buried.But I had no intention of starting something new. So I pretended not to understand and said nothing.I left Boston safely once again.Even the Dente members who'd opposed my return had to take notice.I was quickly accepted into the fold. Andre, on the other hand, was falling apart.I'd given him the end buyer's identity, and he'd taken extra precautions.But the Family was already in ruins. The politician maneuvered behind the scenes and pinned all the blame on Andre.His fall was only a matter

Chapter 10

But the senior members refused.Eric once suggested killing a few of the holdouts to send a message.I turned him down. "Do you know what makes a good hunter?"Eric guessed. "A perfect shot?"I said, "Patience. We wait for the perfect moment."I continued my recovery in Italy. By the following summer, I was fully healed.Back in Boston, the authorities had used the earlier arrests to launch a full reckoning. The Family had no choice but to sell off property and resources just to survive.I was the generous buyer.Eric proposed my return one more time, arguing that the partnerships I held and the operations the Dente Family had entrusted to me could restore the Family to its former glory.By now, he had total control over the Family's real power. The elders understood perfectly. This wasn't a proposal. It was a notice.Faced with the strength I'd demonstrated, backed by Eric's full support, the elders seemed to come to their senses all at once.The ones who'd called for my head had died

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