All Chapters of From Scapegoat to Donna: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

My adoptive father was a Capo in the Gambino family.When his biological daughter, Emma Garcia, came home, she hated me for having the life she thought was hers. She wanted me gone, whatever it took.She took my room, my favorite doll, even my fiancé, Luke Smith. At school, she turned my classmates against me, bullied me, and bruised herself so she could blame me for it.She stole our parents' gold jewelry and drugged them, then pinned both crimes on me.Father slapped me when he found out. Mother screamed that she'd been blind to adopt someone like me. Then they threw me out.I fought my way back on my own. I became the best surgeon at the Gambino family hospital and earned a place people respected.Emma couldn't stand it. She begged Luke to pull strings and get her into my department at the family hospital. Luke was the Don's right-hand man, and Emma was his wife. No one there dared cross her. Some even helped her torment me.I wanted to leave, but the Gambino family didn't let peopl

Chapter 2

I'd worked out the angle. The bullet missed my vital organs, though it grazed my waist."Ah!"Pain tore a scream out of me, and my whole body tensed.A second later, I hit the ground among the bodies and pools of blood.The impact sent another jolt of pain through me.I shook all over, sweat pouring down my face. But relief washed through me too.The bullet hadn't hit an organ. I was going to live.And I'd saved the Don. No one could question why I hadn't gone to the OR.My phone slipped from my pocket when I fell. On its flashing screen was the department director's name.They couldn't wait for their scapegoat to arrive.I squeezed my eyes shut and pretended the pain had knocked me out. I let the phone ring.The Don and his guards spun toward me."Save her! Now!"The Don raised his gun, aimed at the ambusher's head, and fired. One shot. The man dropped.Before long, the riot was suppressed.The people who'd helped put down the riot gathered around as I was carried, bloodied, to the fa

Chapter 3

Mrs. Gotti saw me. Her eyes went bloodshot, and she lunged forward to slap me hard across the face."You bitch! How dare you murder my husband!"She grabbed my collar and raised her hand to hit me again, but the Don's guard behind me blocked her arm.His gaze swept the crowd. "Dr. Garcia saved the Don. Who dares lay a hand on her?"The council elders shared power with the Don, and the people gathered here were Elder Gotti's most loyal men.They weren't afraid of the guard. They shouted back."We don't care who she is! She killed our elder, and she'll pay with her life!""If you protect her, you're just as guilty as she is!"They rushed me, each of them desperate to avenge Elder Gotti.The guard fought to hold them back, but there were too many.Someone slipped through. Two slaps cracked across my face, followed by a vicious snarl."You're just a nobody orphan! If the Gambino family hadn't taken you in, you'd have been dead long ago! You dare bite the hand that fed you and murder our el

Chapter 4

The Don came over and helped me back into the wheelchair.A doctor hurried up behind him and checked my wound.But the crowd started to stir."Wait. If she didn't do it, how did the elder die?""But Dr. Emma and Deputy Smith swore she did!""Then... were they lying?"Panic crossed Emma's face. Then she remembered she'd bought off the hospital staff, and she straightened.She slipped free of Luke's arm, took a small step forward, and lowered her head like the injured party."Don," she said sweetly, "you're going awfully far to protect her. Don't tell me you've fallen for my sister?"The crowd erupted again."So that's it! The Don's letting a pretty face think for him!""A man like that has no right to lead the Gambino family! Luke should be Don!""Yeah! Luke for Don!"Emma kept feeding their anger."My sister is pretty, I'll give her that. But she murdered an elder. Don or not, you can't bend the truth to protect a killer. The family's laws apply to you too."The people who'd started to

Chapter 5

Under their stares, Emma stumbled back into Luke.She grabbed his shirt and tried to smile. It came out as a grimace."That... that's fake! AI made that footage! Amelia seduced the Don and got him to frame us!""Enough."The Don's low voice stopped her cold. Emma's legs gave out, and she sank to her knees, trembling.Now that they knew the truth, some family members glared at Emma. Others couldn't meet my eyes. A few came forward to apologize.Mrs. Gotti got to Emma first. She struck her hard across the face."You bitch! You killed Gotti, then tried to blame Dr. Garcia!"Emma crumpled sideways, her cheek swelling up in an instant.Mrs. Gotti pulled back to hit her again.Emma panicked. She covered her face and screamed, reaching out toward Luke. "Luke... Luke, save me!""He can't save you," the Don said. "Everyone who hurt the woman who saved my life will answer to me.""I'll investigate every part of this. The guilty will pay. The innocent won't."He swept his gaze across the crowd. T

Chapter 6

As they wheeled me away, I heard the Don behind me. "Take everyone involved to the family dungeon."Emma broke when the guards dragged her away.She fought and begged for help, but no one could save her now.Luke stood motionless, his face blank. He knew he was finished.He'd been the Don's most trusted deputy and the likely successor to his seat. Now he had nothing."Don, it wasn't my fault! It was all Emma's idea! That bitch fooled me!"The Don didn't even look at him. He turned to leave.Luke watched him go, fists tightening at his sides.He'd served as the Don's right hand for years. Now he'd been cast aside in a moment.Luke couldn't accept it. He made one last desperate move.He broke free of the guards, pulled his gun, and lunged to take the Don hostage.The Don spun, caught Luke's wrist, bent it back, and stripped the gun away. Then he said coldly,"Drag him out."In the family hospital's VIP room, monitors beeped steadily beside my bed.They'd given me the best painkillers the

Chapter 7

"What is it? Tell me." His smile widened when I called him by his name."My son Joe." I gripped the blanket as my voice began to shake. "He's at home right now. I don't know if Emma's done anything to him. Could you send someone to bring him here?"Brooklyn's smile froze on his face.It took him several seconds to speak. "You... you have a child?"I nodded.I'd found him the day my parents threw me out.He was only three months old then.He had a heart defect and was terribly weak. Caring for him took time and money I barely had.Maybe that was why his parents abandoned him.I couldn't leave him. I took him home and adopted him.To pay for his treatment and give him a good life, I took every surgery the hospital offered, chasing every bonus I could earn.I left early and came home late.But he was such an easy child. He rarely cried or fussed, as though he knew how hard I worked.Whenever I had time, he'd cling to me and call me Mama in his small, sweet voice.Just thinking of his litt

Chapter 8

"I spent a long time looking for his biological parents. No one ever came forward.""He was born sick. Maybe that's why they left him."I looked down at Joe. He was still grinning, unaware of what we were saying, and I gave his chubby cheek a gentle pinch.Brooklyn said nothing for so long he might have turned to stone.I didn't know what was wrong. He'd asked. Why wouldn't he answer me?The Don was impossible to read. Now that the people who'd tormented me at the hospital had been dealt with, maybe I could stay and keep my distance from him.After a long silence, he swallowed and repeated, "You found him?""Yes." I held Joe closer, my chest aching. "It was winter. I still can't understand how anyone could leave him out there."My heart hurt for the baby. Brooklyn, though, started to smile.He sprang to his feet, hardly able to hide the joy in his voice. "That's wonderful!"Joe and I stared at him, equally confused.Brooklyn sat back down and rubbed his nose, flustered. "I... I mean...

Chapter 9

I rolled over, buried my face in the pillow, and sighed.Joe smacked his lips in his sleep and murmured, "Daddy..."I had no words.Little traitor.In the days that followed, Brooklyn never pressed for an answer. But he came to see me every day.Every morning, I woke to flowers by my bed. Violets one day, wild roses the next, lilies of the valley still wet with dew after that.Breakfast waited on the table, still warm. Joe's bowl always held a treat: honey cake, a blueberry muffin, something new each day.Once he'd finished the family's morning business, Brooklyn came by.He rarely said much. He sat by the window with his papers, glancing up now and then to watch us play.Joe was entirely won over. The moment he saw Brooklyn, he'd run to him, little legs pumping, and call him Daddy.I told him not to. Brooklyn wasn't his father.But he was too clever for his age. "If Mama marries Daddy, then he'll be my daddy, right? So when will Mama say yes?"Then they both stared at me.My face hot,

Chapter 10

I went rigid and pulled Joe tight against my chest."Who are you?"The gunman grinned.He stepped into the room, gun raised. "So you're the woman Brooklyn's been hiding. And you've got a kid? Jackpot.""Brooklyn? I don't know any Brooklyn."He wanted Brooklyn's money or his life. Either way, Joe and I were leverage. First we had to survive."Cut the act. You think I came here without doing my homework?" He shoved a phone into my hand. "Call him. Tell him he has an hour to break both his legs and get me a hundred million dollars. Otherwise, you and your boy...""No need to call. I'm here."Brooklyn's voice came from outside the room.The man jerked in surprise, grabbed me, and pressed the gun to my head."Brooklyn, I sent a whole squad of retired special forces after you. You took them out already?""Get that gun away from her. Take me instead!" Brooklyn snapped. His gaze found mine, and his voice softened. "Don't be scared."I was shaking so hard I could barely nod. Tears blurred my si

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