جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 8

Lucius studied me with a trace of suspicion in his eyes.“Are you angry?”He took the ring from Liz’s hand and casually spun it between his fingers, his voice soothing.“Don’t overthink it. You’ve worn this ring for years, and the style is already outdated. I’ll get you a bigger one later.”I stared at the glinting diamond between his fingers, my expression calm.And yet something seemed to prick lightly at my heart, leaving behind an inexplicable ache.Perhaps somewhere in those three years, my feelings for him had become real after all...Had I really fallen in love with him too?“Lucius.”“That’s our wedding ring.”His hand stilled.For a split second, his gaze flickered away.Then he looked at me, pressed his lips together, and seemed about to explain himself.“I...”“Donna, I’m sorry!”Liz suddenly cut in, sounding flustered.She stepped forward and placed herself between Lucius and me.She bit her lower lip, her lashes trembling.“I really overstepped. I just thought the ring was

Liz didn’t reply until the next morning.“What do you mean?”“Help me trick Lucius into signing the divorce papers. Once he does, the position of Donna will be yours.”There was a long silence before another message finally came through.Her reply was dripping with smug contempt.“Merope, have you finally realized that you’re past your prime? That you’re no longer good enough for Lucius?”“I heard he went to great lengths to win you over back then, but I think that was only because he hadn’t met me first. Now that I’m here, you should have stepped aside a long time ago.”I wasn’t angry. I only found it ridiculous.She thought she had won, but a man whose attention wandered so easily would never be short of another woman to replace the last.“Beg me.”“If you ask nicely enough, maybe I’ll help you.”I had no intention of indulging her.“You’re the one in a hurry, not me. If you don’t want to do it, I don’t mind staying in the position you’ve been dreaming of.”She fell silent for a mome

It wasn’t long before Lucius and Liz were pulled from the river by his men.Liz’s wet hair clung to her face as she pressed a hand to her chest and coughed weakly.“Lucius…”She called his name in a hoarse voice, bracing herself on one arm as she tried to move closer to him, but Lucius didn’t seem to hear her at all.He lifted his head, swept his gaze over the empty surroundings, and stared blankly in the direction where the helicopter had disappeared.Then he suddenly got to his feet, seized one of his men by the collar, and began trembling all over.“Where is she?”The man was so frightened by the look on Lucius’s face that he couldn’t speak.“Where is Merope? Who took her away just now? Why didn’t any of you stop her?”His voice cracked as he shouted.The man shook his head, trembling.“Don, I-I didn’t see clearly. It all happened too fast. By the time we realized what was happening, Donna had already left in the helicopter.”Lucius released him.He staggered back several steps, str

Gunshots echoed across the training grounds of the Moretti estate.Wearing noise-canceling earmuffs, I raised my pistol and pulled the trigger, sending every bullet straight through the center of the target.Three years spent living like a caged bird had done nothing to dull my marksmanship, and I was still the finest heir the Moretti Family had ever trained.Meanwhile, at the Camorra estate, Lucius had locked himself inside his study, where empty liquor bottles littered the floor and the heavy stench of alcohol filled the room.One of his men stood nervously outside the door to make his report.“Don, we found something. The last location Donna shared before she left, as well as the helicopter that picked her up, both belonged to the Moretti Family. They were the ones who took her away.”“We didn’t dare investigate any further because we were afraid of provoking the Morettis. They’re simply too powerful for us to risk making an enemy of them.”“The Moretti Family?”A manic gleam of joy