Chapter 4

The ruby caught the harsh glare of the backstage lights. That ring was my only tie to the world before Dante Moretti, to a family I had hidden away just to protect a man who treated me like a fixture in his life.

His fingers closed tightly around it.

"Three."

A violent tremor ran through my body. I dug my nails into my palms until the skin broke and bled.

"Two."

"I'll do it."

The words left a bitter taste of ash in my mouth.

Dante smiled in triumph. He slipped the ring into his pocket and gave my cheek a patronizing pat. "Good girl. Now hurry up. She goes on soon."

I stepped into the nearest bathroom and locked the door behind me. Staring into the mirror, I saw only a ghost looking back—pale, soaked, and hollow-eyed.

For five years, I had concealed my true identity. I had buried Aria Conti, the daughter of Giovanni Conti—the man even other Dons feared as "The Specter"—just to play the quiet shadow of Aria Moretti. I had genuinely believed Dante was building something real, a life completely separate from the bloody legacy I had tried so hard to escape.

I was wrong. I had nurtured a wolf, mistaking it for a loyal dog.

You will pay for every ounce of today's humiliation, Dante. It will cost you everything you have.

I refused to touch the cheap satin dress, kicking the garment bag into the corner of the room.

Leaving the bathroom, I walked straight toward the chaotic stage entrance.

Valentina clung to Dante's arm, preening for the crowd.

When she spotted me, her face twisted into an exaggerated mask of disappointment. "Aria! You aren't ready! How is the dress supposed to look its best?"

Dante's eyes hardened into black ice. "Aria. Put it on now. Or so help me—"

The announcer's voice boomed over the speakers. "Please welcome, Valentina Costa!"

I didn't even look at them. I just turned around and headed for the staff exit.

"Grab her!" Dante snarled, momentarily forgetting the cameras surrounding them.

His two bodyguards lunged at me. One drove a heavy boot into the back of my knees.

A sharp crack echoed.

My legs buckled beneath me. I slammed hard into the concrete floor, a blinding jolt of pain shooting through my kneecaps.

People gasped, and camera lenses immediately swiveled in my direction.

Dante strode over and positioned himself between me and the majority of the cameras, effortlessly playing to his audience.

"My apologies, everyone," he announced, his tone dripping with fabricated regret. "This woman is a disgruntled former employee. She has developed an unhealthy fixation and is trying to disrupt tonight's event for attention."

He glared down at me, his eyes promising far worse consequences later. "Get this trash off my property."

The guards hauled me to my feet by my arms. My knees screamed in agony, fresh blood seeping through the fabric of my torn jeans.

As they dragged me past him toward the service doors and the pouring rain outside, Dante leaned in close.

His whisper cut like a blade. "Sleep in the gutter tonight, Aria. Think about your place."

They shoved me out the door, and I collapsed into a deep, freezing puddle.

The heavy rain washed the blood from my knees, diluting it into a pale pink stream.

I pushed myself up onto my elbows. Through the downpour and the glass doors, I watched Dante lead Valentina onto the red carpet, waving to the press. The hero and his starlet.

A grim, icy smile touched my lips.

Reaching inside my soaked coat, I pulled out a phone. It wasn't the device Dante monitored, but a slim, black, heavily encrypted one. A direct line to a shadow.

With stiff, freezing fingers, I dialed a number I had not used in five years.

It rang only once.

"Speak." The voice on the other end was deep, calm, and carried the heavy weight of a thousand silent threats.

"Marcello."

There was a brief pause, followed by a sharp intake of breath. "Aria? Where are you? What's wrong?"

"The game is over." My voice was steady now, perfectly calm and lethal. "Liquidate every asset and every investment tied to Moretti Enterprises. I want his cash flow completely severed by dawn."

I closed my eyes as the cold rain mixed with the hot tears finally building behind them. "And Marcello?"

"Yes, Regina?"

"Come and get me. I want Dante Moretti and his entire empire wiped off the map by tomorrow."