During my wedding, hundreds of photos of me being sullied flutter down from the top of the church, landing before the guests below.

My fiancé instantly calls off our engagement and turns to kiss my sister.

Devastation washes over me. Just then, my childhood friend Derek Church, the Capo of the Church family, the East Coast's most powerful mafia family, pulls me into his arms.

He kicks the church's door open and presses a check worth a million dollars into my father's hands. He pulls me to the priest and has him announce that we are husband and wife.

I'm so touched that I agree to marry him. From then on, I become the Capo's wife.

Two years later, Derek and I finally conceive through IVF. I want to share the exciting news with him when I overhear his conversation with his subordinate.

"Lilyanne is afraid of pain and becoming ugly, so we can use Nicole to give birth to her child. Once she produces an heir for the Morse family, her position will be solidified. Then, the Morse family will become the Church family's MadeMan."

"As expected of you, boss. You knew the Morse family is full of politicians who would never accept a sullied woman into the family. The only way for Lilyanne to marry into the family was by having Nicole sullied."

My blood runs cold when I hear this, and the pregnancy report in my hand feels unbelievably heavy.

The man I thought was my salvation was actually the devil who pulled me into the abyss.

I dry my tears and call the Capo of the West Coast's mafia family, Derek's nemesis. "I have a way to help you become the mafia Capo dei capi. Do you want to work with me?"

The truth struck me like a thunderclap, leaving me utterly stupefied.

No wonder Lilyanne Accetta had been dressed more like a bride than I was on my wedding day. She even looked at me with such a mysterious grin on her face.

Two weeks before the wedding ceremony, Lilyanne claimed she was heartbroken over a recent breakup and invited me out for drinks. This was her first time being nice toward me, so I agreed to head out with her without any hesitation.

Thereafter, I went through a hellish 24 hours.

One drink was all it took. When I woke, I was sprawled undressed on the floor of the bar, hands groping me from every direction.

The more I struggled, the more agonizing it was. A cacophony of lewd laughter and pounding music assaulted my senses, while strobe-like flashes blinded me.

Lilyanne had known. She had orchestrated it all. It was no wonder that this spoiled brat, who'd always taken what was mine, would readily approve of my union with Russo Morse.

Even more baffling was Derek Church, the youngest overlord of the west coast and Capo of the Church family. He was actually willing to marry a defiled woman.

I had believed, foolishly, that he had done so out of love. Little did I know that it was all a conspiracy.

Derek exhaled a slow stream of cigar smoke, listening lazily as his subordinates flattered him. He ordered, "Switch Nicole's hormonal pills with vitamins again. She needs to be in perfect health to carry a strong child for Lilyanne.

"Once the baby is born, inform her that it died and deliver it to Lilyanne in secret. Nicole has undergone so many abortions that she already believes the problem lies with her. She won't question it."

Jimmy Holland, one of Derek's closest men, nodded. "Understood, boss. The embryo from the IVF procedure has already been replaced with the one from Lilyanne and her husband. It has already been transferred into Nicole's womb.

"Since she's so desperate for a child, she will certainly protect it with her life."

That last remark from Jimmy delighted Derek. He tossed a check to Jimmy as his reward.

Derek lowered his cigar and his sharp gaze swept over his gathered men. He warned, "Keep a good eye on your subordinates. Make sure that Nicole doesn't notice anything. She has to carry that baby to term."

They all nodded, affirming their understanding.

Jimmy smirked. "Don't worry, boss. Nicole is a silly woman. Just because we address her as 'Mrs. Church', she actually believes she holds authority over us.

"She checks in on us every day, yet she still has no idea I was the one who personally selected the men who had their way with her that night at the bar."

As he spoke, he pulled out his phone and tapped open an album. Hundreds of photos—each more sickening than the last. The same images that had been circulated at my wedding.

Laughter erupted around the room as the others grabbed the phone, scrolling through the photos of my undressed self with sick delight.

"Jimmy, make sure to include me the next time there's an opportunity for entertainment like this."

Derek's smile vanished.

With a single wave of his hand, one of his men placed the phone on the desk before him. Derek raised his fist and slammed it down, shattering the device into pieces. Then, in one swift motion, he pulled out his handgun and fired three shots.

The bullets lodged into the wall, mere inches from Jimmy's legs.

Jimmy went deathly pale, dropping to his knees as he pleaded with Derek.

"Nicole is still my wife at the moment. As I mentioned before, anyone who brings this up again will be fed to the sharks."

Derek's subordinates nodded in obedience, none daring to test the Capo's patience.

His Consigliere, who had been silent until now, handed a glass of whiskey to Derek while retrieving the gun from him. "Please calm down, boss. I will give these reckless fools a lesson shortly. Still, I couldn't shake off the unease. If Mrs. Church ever discovers the truth—"

Derek emptied the glass in a single gulp. Then, in an almost bored tone, he said, "I rule the west coast. Marrying me was a privilege she'll never have again. Besides, she's tainted. Who else would take her?"

From the shadows of the doorway, I clutched the IVF report tightly in my hands. It stated that the IVF attempt was successful. However, their conversation ruined everything for me.

Even though I was trembling all over, I still pressed a hand over my mouth, forcing back the sobs that threatened to escape.

Footsteps neared the door.

I spun around and bolted down the stairs. Once I got into the kitchen, I yanked open the freezer and grabbed the largest tub of ice cream I could find.

Sinking onto the barstool, I dug in. Scoop after scoop, the icy sweetness coated my tongue, numbing my senses, freezing my thoughts. My stomach twisted in protest, but I kept eating, shoveling it in like I could bury everything I'd just overheard.

Ice cream used to be my favorite food. But for months, I'd denied myself, following every strict regimen to prepare my body for pregnancy.

Convinced that my body was failing me, I endured a barrage of medications and daily injections, all in the desperate hope of conceiving. Little did I know, Derek had been secretly dosing me with hormonal pills, disguised as vitamins.

I couldn't hold my tears back any longer. My tears spilled over, an unstoppable flood, and the salty mix with the ice cream triggered a wave of nausea.

Putting my hands over my mouth, I replayed the conversation I just overheard in my head over and over.

I was never supposed to marry Derek Church. My fiancé had been Russo Morse—the eldest son of the prestigious Morse family. My parents had been eager to secure the alliance, thrilled at the match.

But then I was taken. I was kidnapped at three and sold off to a farm in the middle of nowhere. By the time I clawed my way back home years later, they'd already replaced me. Out of sorrow, my parents had adopted Lilyanne Accetta.

They must have thought my farm upbringing made me crude. Despite being their daughter, they clearly preferred Lilyanne as Russo's bride.

But Russo favored me more. He held my hand lovingly, saying he was willing to marry me.

However, the perfect moment I'd envisioned was violently destroyed when images of my violation were strewn across the wedding.

Russo's betrayal was swift, his lips finding Lilyanne's. The condemnation was equally swift—his family deeming me unacceptable, and my parents, hurling accusations, ordered the bodyguards to remove me from the sanctity of the church.

And then Derek appeared. He wrapped his arms around me, shielding me from the cruelty of the world. He sent mercenaries to make the people who humiliated me pay.

He looked at me with fire in his eyes, swore he loved me and would sacrifice his title as Capo just to have me.

I'd been drawn in by his strong, unwavering gaze. Yet, today, I learned the devastating truth—everything he did was a calculated move to secure Lilyanne's future.

Lilyanne smiling on my wedding day, had been laughing at my stupidity all along.

Derek's "rescue" at my wedding, and the subsequent outpouring of love and care, were nothing more than a calculated act, a facade designed to reduce me to a surrogate.

Tears streamed down my face, a torrent of pain and fury. My fists clenched and my lips bitten raw.

Then, his scent, so familiar, enveloped me. Derek's arms wrapped around my waist, his chin resting on my shoulder, his touch tender as he wiped my tears.

"Who hurt my darling? Tell me, and I'll erase them."

He pressed a handgun into my hands.

Silently, I raised it, sweeping the barrel across the room. The men around us stiffened, but not one of them dared to move.

Then, in a single motion, I turned the gun and pressed it under Derek's chin.

I disengaged the safety.

"What if it was you, Derek?" I asked, my voice barely a breath.

I was probably the first person who ever dared to point a gun at the Capo.

The Soldato stationed around the villa tensed at the sight, their hands tightening around their weapons. One wrong move, and I'd be dead before I even had the chance to pull the trigger.

Even the Consigliere, usually composed, exclaimed, "Mrs. Church!"

But Derek didn't move. He didn't even flinch. He continued looking at me tenderly.

It was no wonder that he was the Capo of the mafia.

"Why, you shameless woman—"

Jimmy, hovering at the edge, made a move to intervene. The sound of his voice alone was enough to fill me with revulsion.

Those words he uttered—"She still has no idea I was the one who personally selected the men who had their way with her that night at the bar"—replayed in my head over and over like a curse.

I pointed the gun at Jimmy instead, then pulled the trigger without a moment of hesitation before anyone else could react.

Unfortunately, I had never practiced shooting before. The bullet missed his head, grazing his cheek instead, before shattering a bottle of red wine behind him.

Jimmy's eyes widened in stark terror, his face draining of all color.

Derek's hand closed over mine, effortlessly prying the gun away.

"Darling, this room is for our baby. A bloody mess would be rather inconvenient, wouldn't it?" Though his words were gentle, his eyes remained devoid of any genuine concern.

Then, his gaze flickered to the ice cream on the counter. His brows drew together as he reached out, stroking my belly with gentle fingers.

"Darling, shouldn't you be glad the IVF procedure was successful? Why are you so furious?"

I took a deep breath to calm myself down. Then, coldly, I said, "You said I could eliminate someone if I was upset. Or is the Capo going back on his word?"

Derek was caught off guard. After that, he ruffled my hair and teased, "Of course not. Not when you are Mrs. Church."

Upon saying that, he signaled to a maid nearby and instructed her to bring me a cup of hot tea. Just as she placed the cup of hot tea in my hands, he lifted his gun and pointed it between her eyes, and pulled the trigger.

Just like that, he blew the maid's brains out right in front of me. Her blood splattered across my face, dripping into the tea I held. The liquid turned red.

My stomach twisted violently. The ice cream from earlier churned inside me, and before I could stop it, I dropped to my knees and vomited.

Derek wiped his gun as if he hadn't just murdered someone in front of me. Then, he pulled me up from the floor and got someone else to bring me another cup of hot tea to cleanse my palate.

Even though I was shaking, I was too afraid to go against him. All I could do was drink the tea emotionlessly.

"Expectant mothers shouldn't be having ice cream. I am shocked to find food that could endanger my wife in our home.

"Anyone who endangers my wife's health endangers my son. That maid deserved to die," Derek warned, his gaze sweeping over the others in the villa, cold and unforgiving.

The body of the maid was left a grotesque tableau, a stark and deliberate reminder of the price of disobedience. He made no move to have it cleaned up.

"Darling, don't eat ice cream again. You've sacrificed too much for this pregnancy. You have to make sure that you give birth to a healthy baby, understand?"

I took a deep breath before I finally managed to force a smile. "I understand."