My husband, Julian Serrano, the Don of the most powerful mafia family in North America, was a no-show at our fifth-anniversary party. Instead, his assistant-of-the-month, a girl named Laura Vance, explained his absence with a sickeningly sweet smile. "Mrs. Serrano, Julian was just so exhausted at my place last night. I felt bad for him, so I turned off his alarm. You don't mind, do you?" Then, she shoved a bouquet of roses made from condoms into my hands. A wave of muffled laughter rippled through the guests. They all thought the little assistant was a fool for daring to provoke the woman Julian Serrano supposedly cherished more than anyone. After all, he'd sworn when we were young that he would marry me and never let me suffer a single injustice. He was just as possessive in bed. The second a tear rolled down my cheek, he would only get rougher, more demanding, fucking me until I couldn't think straight. Everyone was waiting for the show, expecting me to tear the mistress apart. But they didn't know what I knew. Just yesterday, I’d found this same girl sobbing, a complete mess. Julian had snatched a document from her hands, ripped it to shreds, and kissed her over and over. "Fine, fine, we won't sign the 'sponsorship agreement.' Just think of me as your boyfriend." "Stop crying, okay? You know I can't stand it when you cry." They were a tangled mess of limbs before their clothes were even fully off, their desperate gasps echoing as they stumbled into his private lounge. The open safe was right there. Ninety-nine identical sponsorship agreements spilled out, hitting me in the face and shattering the last of my delusions. When Julian finally arrived, he was so sure I wouldn't dare make a scene. He wrapped an arm around me, his voice a low, soothing murmur. "Kate, don't worry. We're husband and wife. No one will ever come before you." "I already gave that Gold Coast apartment to your butler. Don't cry. I want to see you smile for the rest of your life." But I didn't smile. Last night, I had already gotten the only permission that mattered—from the true head of the Serrano family—to leave. My tears and my smiles had nothing to do with him anymore. ... When Laura Vance handed me that disgusting bouquet, her eyes were shining with excitement. She had been waiting for this moment for a long time. For six months, she had been sending me things like a rat scurrying through the sewers. Julian's underwear. Key cards to five-star hotels. And finally, a small, bloody bundle—the proof of what she’d gotten rid of. My legs gave out, and I fell down the stairs, losing our child. The old Don never asked for reasons, only results. "It is your failure to allow harm to come to a Serrano heir." Julian's mother just sighed, calling me useless. They paid a fortune in hush money and hired the best doctors, thinking they had done more than enough. No one cared that I was so overwhelmed with guilt that I sliced my own wrists open. Julian rushed home, glanced at my bandaged arms, and smiled. "We'll get you a skin graft. You care about your looks, you don't want scars. Once you're better, we can have another one." He never mentioned punishing Laura. I just stared at him, too stunned to even cry. "But what about our promise..." "Enough!" He smashed his whiskey glass against the wall. "She already lost the baby, what more do you want?" "The baby you were carrying was mine, but so was hers!" "Do you really need her to pay that penalty for leaking a few family secrets to feel better? Katherine Hayes, you came from nothing, too. Can't you have a little compassion for her?" That was the first time Julian had ever yelled at me like that. It was the second time since our marriage that my world completely fell apart. But now, facing Laura's provocation, my face was a mask of terrifying calm. She seemed surprised, then took a drag from a cigar, a sneer on her lips. "Mrs. Serrano, my boyfriend was so good to me last night. He loves feeding me things. Especially this." She held the moist cigar right in front of my face. "Want a taste? Or maybe you're already used to 'second-hand' things." I was going to ignore her. But if she wanted a scene, I wasn't going to back down. I turned and winked at Julian. "Miss Vance is telling me all about her boyfriend. It's so funny. Does she not know about the declaration you made when you took over the family? The one that the entire Chicago underworld remembers?" Julian froze, staring at me in disbelief. The room went so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone remembered the words of a 16-year-old Julian Serrano as he took control of his family. "A woman's loyalty is between her legs. To ensure there areno mistakes, my personal assistant can't have so much as a male fly near her." So those ninety-nine condoms... they could only have been for Julian and Laura. Shock was written on everyone's faces. After all, our love story had been so public, so epic. Everyone called us "the last fairy tale of the Chicago Outfit." "I've never seen a mistress brazen enough to crash the wife's party like this. So shameless!" "Exactly! And showing off that kind of filth? It's a disgrace to the family name!" The whispers made Laura stumble, and she looked at Julian, her eyes welling up with tears. "Julian..." A single tear was all it took for the always-composed man to fall apart. He grabbed my hand, his words spilling out in a rush. "Katherine, you're older now, you don't get it. It's normal for young girls to want to share everything. She didn't mean any harm." "I'll apologize for her, okay? Just let it go. Go say something nice to her. If you don't, she'll be crying in my arms all night." I pressed my lips together, then let out a laugh. "You're right, I don't like to share. Which is why I have no use for cheap trash that anyone can have." Julian's eyes widened. "What did you just say?"
Laura covered her face, sobbing. "Julian, she's attacking my character! How can I ever show my face again?" I laughed. She had the nerve to be a mafia boss's mistress, but she was afraid of a few words? But what Julian did next sent a tremor of pure terror through me. He dragged me roughly toward the floor-to-ceiling window and ripped open the curtains! A raw, physical fear stole my voice. When I was ten, my wannabe gangster father brought his mistress into our home. The shock of it gave my grandparents fatal heart attacks, one right after the other. My mother attacked him like a madwoman, but my dad just laughed. "Betrayal? I was a nobody. You think I was interested in you, you naive little princess? It was always about your family's connections." In the end, my mother leaped from a high-rise building, landing in a pool of blood at my feet. Ever since, heights have been my deepest fear. Julian was so preoccupied with Laura's tears that he didn't notice I could barely breathe. "Katherine, your dad was right about you. You just don't know what's good for you!" I bit my lip so hard I could taste blood, but my vision still blurred. On my wedding day, my father was blocked at the door and screamed at me in a rage. "Katherine Hayes, you're just as ungrateful as your mother! No man will ever love you forever!" Julian had been furious, throwing his dignity aside to fight him. "You listen to me, you old bastard! As long as I'm alive, I will love Kate for the rest of my life!" But now, he was using my father's own words to humiliate me. Through the haze, I heard someone shout. "Mrs. Serrano lost control of her bladder!" Laura choked back a laugh and clutched her chest, crying out in pain. The grip on my wrist suddenly loosened. Julian looked down, hesitating for only a second before scooping Laura into his arms and striding away. That night, Chicago's underground forums exploded. Some cursed the shameless mistress. But many more mocked me and my mother, calling us pathetic for not being able to keep our men. They even asked if my mother used to piss herself every time her husband mentioned divorce. Meanwhile, Laura's Instagram was blowing up. Julian took her to exclusive private clubs for dinner and to watch the sunset over Lake Michigan. These were all the places Julian had once taken me, places that were no longer just ours. Before I left for good, I wanted to erase our memories from this city. My first stop was the high-end bridal boutique. The wedding dress that had been on display for five years was still the dream of countless girls. But at that moment, Laura was wearing it. The boutique owner gushed with praise. "Mrs. Serrano, you look absolutely stunning!" Julian and Laura exchanged a loving, knowing smile, both of them accepting the title. But I didn't care. Just as I was about to speak, Laura tilted her head at me, playfully using my first name. "Katherine, this dress fits me perfectly, don't you think?" That's when I realized it. My one-of-a-kind wedding dress, my perfect dress, had been completely altered to fit her. No wonder it felt so wrong on the day of our anniversary party. But I hadn't wanted to disappoint Julian. So I had squeezed myself into someone else's skin and played the fool. The straps kept slipping, and he had just laughed, telling me I'd gotten fat and needed to lose weight. A wave of nausea washed over me. "Don't you have your own clothes? Take it off." Julian just smirked. "Come on. Laura has no official status with me, she's insecure. It's just a dress, let her have it." I stared at the dress I had spent over six months designing. I gritted my teeth and stood my ground. "No official status? Didn't you hear them calling her Mrs. Serrano?" "I don't want the dress anymore. But I'm not letting a piece of trash have it either!" I reached out to tear the dress. Before I could even touch it, she screamed and started flailing her arms as if possessed. Julian panicked, grabbing my chin and yelling at her. "Here! Hit her here!"
Before I could process what was happening, a heavy slap sent my head spinning. Then another, and another, dozens of slaps raining down on my face. My eyes were wide with shock, my cheeks burning. Julian carefully pressed an ice pack to my face, his voice tinged with a hint of apology. "She's been having nightmares. A Gypsy psychic told her that the next time she sees her demon, she has to strike it down immediately." "It's my fault, really. I haven't been taking good care of my woman, I've let her get upset. You're my wife, you should understand me better than anyone. Just let her have this." I suddenly laughed, a hollow sound that made my eyes burn. I wanted to hit back, but I was too disoriented to even see straight. Blood dripped from my nose onto the white dress. The dress was ruined, my dignity was shattered, and I was covered in bruises. I broke down completely, swinging my arms wildly, screaming and crying. "Get out! Get the fuck out!" "Miss Katherine, you don't have to be like this. I'll apologize when I'm feeling better, okay?" Laura pouted, melting into Julian's embrace. Compared to her, I was the crazy one. And Julian believed every word she said. Seeing me defy him again and again, his expression hardened. He snorted. "The psychic said Laura needs to spend a night with her demon. Then she'll be cured." I stared at him blankly, not understanding what he meant. Not until I was tied to the bedpost like a footstool, a humiliating restraint. Laura stepped heavily on my stomach to climb into the bed. The man's heavy breathing, the woman's shameless moans—every sound was a knife twisting in my gut. I hugged my knees, my whole body shaking. I knew they had been together countless times, that they'd even had a child that didn't make it. But seeing it with my own eyes was a pain like no other. When a pair of sticky panties landed on my face, Julian lifted my pale chin, his hand trembling slightly. "You must be hurting right now, right? Remember this feeling. And don't ever mess with Laura again." I closed my eyes, a strange numbness spreading through me. "Fine. Let's get a divorce. We'll have nothing to do with each other." After that night, I didn't see Julian again. I stopped following their lives and quietly booked a flight out of the country. Before I left, I wanted to visit the graves of my mother and grandparents to say goodbye. Surprisingly, when I called, Julian actually remembered the anniversary of their deaths. "Kate, wait for me." The wind in the cemetery was cold enough to make my eyes water. Ten years ago today, I had lost everyone I loved in a single night. I ran a high fever, refusing to eat or drink, just waiting to die. If Julian hadn't forced me to take the medicine, I would have been long gone. After he saved me, my father tried to sell me to a 60-year-old rival boss to pay off his gambling debts. That night, Julian went to the underground racetrack and bet his life. He came back at dawn, covered in bandages, and threw a check in my father's face before leading me away from that house forever. His right hand, the one he broke that night, still trembles slightly when he signs documents. My thoughts returned to the present. I clutched the divorce papers in my bag and managed a weak smile. We shouldn't have ended up like this, but maybe it was the only way. I never expected Laura to be the one who showed up first. She didn't even bother to pretend, showing off the love bites on her collarbone. "Do you know what he said when he was on top of me last night?" "He said he can never really let go with you. He's always afraid you'll get too excited and lose control of your bladder." "He said he regrets it all. Saving you, ruining his hand for you, and especially marrying a woman who does nothing but embarrass him." "He also said... he should have just let you die all those years ago!" With that, she kicked her high-heeled shoe hard against my mother's headstone! My sanity snapped. I lunged at her, ready to kill. But Laura didn't move, just smiled a slow, chilling smile. Something was wrong. The next second, a dozen of the family's enforcers surrounded us. "What do you want?"
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