เรื่องสั้นแนว Feel-Good Story Mafia และนิยาย Scumbag ในฉาก Female Growth

A deal between families forced my Fiancé Marco Corvini to marry me. My parents were dead. His obsession was Isabella Falcone, the princess of our rivals. In the end, Marco devoured my family’s empire and threw me to the wolves. He paraded Isabella on his arm like a prize he’d won. Twenty years later, I was on my deathbed. My own son—our son—held the poison. He said I was useless, that his father needed the Falcone family’s power. Then I opened my eyes. I was back. Back on the day of my blood oath. This time, to save my family, I didn’t sign my name on the pact. I signed hers. Isabella Falcone’s. As for me? I took the fortune my parents left me and disappeared. This time, I wouldn’t be the fool bleeding for a man who was never mine.

For our fifth anniversary, I planned to bid on a pink diamond ring. A young woman outbid me. I followed her outside to ask if she would consider selling it to me. She stood at the curb, showing the ring on her hand to the friend who had come with her. "I'm already tired of this one. "So my boyfriend told me to pick out something I liked for our first anniversary." I stopped. She would never part with an anniversary gift. Reese was busy handling the smuggling trade along the coast and could not come with me. He had only said he would not be home for dinner and told me to buy myself something nice to celebrate. When I heard her say her boyfriend had a candlelit dinner waiting for her, I smiled and envied their young love. My car pulled up. As I was about to get in, she turned around. I saw the ring on her hand, the one she was already tired of. My breath caught. Cold shot from the soles of my feet to the base of my skull. It was the ring Reese had given me last year, then discarded because it did not fit.

Five years ago, at a family council meeting, the old Don forced his son Victor Caceres and me to marry under a blood pact to stop the riots in the streets. As we exchanged rings, Victor spoke softly enough that only I could hear. "I can't defy my father's orders. But since I'm marrying you, I'll give you all the protection a Donna deserves, as long as you don't cross any lines." Over the next five years, he'd shielded me with his body during an air raid by a rival family and taken a knife meant for me in a gang fight. I'd been naive enough to believe that even a blood-soaked contract marriage could turn into something real. Then the old Don died unexpectedly, and Victor took control of New York's entire underworld. That night, Victor brought his first love, Selena Morelli, back to the estate from a safe house. He handed me an agreement to end our marriage pact. "Carl Lombardi has worked for me for ten years. He runs a clean operation, controls a wealthy territory, and has no children out of wedlock." I stared at the terms written on the parchment. After a long moment, I forced a smile. "If you need to make room for your true love, I'll leave. But why do you get to decide the rest of my life like you’re dividing up the spoils?" Victor frowned, his voice hard and final. "I've already settled the terms with the Lombardi family. They're more than happy to welcome you. "You wouldn't last long on your own without me. If you marry Carl and a gang war breaks out, I'll have every right to step in and save your life." So as power changed hands in the underworld, I was just a loose end to be tied up. Without a second's hesitation, I cut my fingertip, pressed my bloody print onto the agreement, and picked up the crest.

Six years ago, when the Berlandi family accused Nico Valenti of leaking their financial records, I found the evidence that proved him innocent. When they still refused to take him back, I mortgaged my mother's restaurant and put everything I owned on the line for him. With my backing, Nico eventually became the person in charge of Saint Vito Port. He promised that at this year's council meeting, he would openly introduce me as his wife. But that night, I was stranded at Blackwater Docks. I called Nico for help twelve times. He never came. Instead, he was at the council giving my pin to my best friend, Bianca Rossi, and letting her take my seat as his wife. When Bianca finally answered my call, she smiled and turned the camera toward the crowded hall. "Alessia, you're good at handling things. I'm sure you'll figure it out." Then Nico accused me of being petty. "It's her first time at the council. Do you have to embarrass her in front of everyone?" I looked at the seven fresh stitches in my palm and laughed. Nico had built his career with my help. Bianca was enjoying a status she'd gotten through me. Yet somehow, I was still the one expected to step aside just because I could "handle it." I didn't argue. I called the registrar. "Strip them of everything tied to my name. Effective immediately." If Nico and Bianca truly believed they had gotten this far without me, it was time for me to take back everything I'd given them.