Alessia's face bore a striking resemblance to Pia's own, except that Alessia looked a lot more delicate and innocent as a flower.

Pia stared blankly at Alessia's face, feeling her heart struck once again with excruciating pain.

Vito's conversation, which she overheard in his office, immediately echoed in her ears, and the words on the test report jumped out at her in her memories.

All of the fragments pieced together at once, and suddenly, it all dawned on her.

So, this was how it was.

Pia understood everything now. Vito had completely set her up from the start!

And in this grand scheme of things, everyone played the roles of the audience, watching her make a fool of herself as she fell deeper and deeper into the game by falling in love with Vito and even getting hypnotized by him.

She had been nothing but a clown for other people's amusement after all.

The person Vito loved had never been her. He'd only picked her because she bore a resemblance to Alessia. She was nothing but Alessia's "counterfeit," who could also take a bullet or two for him.

The truth dawned so heavily on Pia that her vision began turning black. All of the pain and grievances she'd suppressed for years immediately burst forth like a broken dam.

She was still hurting from the gunshot wound, and now, her entire chest was beginning to hurt as well. She had to lean against the wall to even keep herself upright in the first place.

A metallic taste rose in her throat, mingling with the taste of tears seeping in through her lips. Yet, she bit on her lips so as not to make a sound while she sobbed.

It was a long while later when she clutched her aching chest, trying to suppress her surging emotions and closing her eyes to calm herself down.

Then, she opened her eyes again. The pain in her chest gradually turned into that of stern determination.

She abruptly turned on her heels and went down another alley before disappearing.

Pia wandered aimlessly for a while. It wasn't until midnight that she finally went back to her ward.

When she went in, however, she realized that Vito was already there, waiting for her.

Vito's face darkened as soon as he saw her walk in. His voice was tinged with displeasure as he demanded, "Where have you been, Pia? Why didn't you answer your phone?"

Pia pulled out her phone and saw that it had been turned off a long time ago. She hesitated for a moment and then said perfunctorily, "Sorry, I didn't know that my phone was out of battery. I just went out for some fresh air."

Vito's expression softened slightly, and he didn't press further after that.

"Alright. I didn't mean to blame you. You're mine, after all. From now on, you should tell me in advance wherever you're going so that I'll always know where you are and I won't have to worry."

Then, he looked at all the injuries on Pia's body with a grave expression on his face and said, "Santi is holding a document containing the Cuomo Famiglia secrets in his hands. He messaged me just now, offering to exchange them for you.

"I need you to cooperate fully in my plan to get the documents from him. His remaining forces are still a constant threat to me, and I must get rid of him once and for all."

Pia's breath caught in her throat. Her face turned deathly pale when she finally realized why Vito had come to see her today.

He hadn't been worried about her injuries after all. It was only because she was still of some use to him.

He wanted her to act as bait to wipe out Santi and his remaining forces in one fell swoop and eliminate all future threats.

This realization shattered Pia's last remaining hope.

As it turned out, she was nothing but a lowly tool, forced to risk her life for him, even though she was severely injured.

However, she really didn't want to continue being his puppet anymore!

She gripped the hem of her hospital gown tightly. For the first time in her life, she mustered the courage to refuse Vito's orders.

"I haven't healed fully from my injuries yet. I'm afraid that I can't participate in your plan this time."

Before she had even finished speaking, however, Vito had already gotten up and slung an arm around her waist.

His force was strong and powerful as he forcibly pulled her into his embrace.

The distance between them suddenly closed, their noses almost touching.

When their eyes met, Pia saw a burning spark in his eyes. A split second later, Vito's fingertips traced provocatively along her waist as a hint of amusement appeared in his eyes.

His voice was deep and dangerous.

"Didn't you say that you would always willingly do anything for me? Hmm?"

It was true that she said that last time, but it was all in the past now.

In the past, she thought that he was her savior, and that he had already treated her as his fiancee.

But now, the truth was out, and the bubble had burst. Pia didn't want to continue being that fool anymore!

Her hair all stood on end as she instinctively tried to break free from Vito's grasp.

"But… But my wounds are still bleeding. I can't move around too much."

Vito refused to let go of her. He just cocked his head to the side and asked in a teasing voice, "Are you seriously going to refuse me? Or, are you just asking for a reward afterward?"

His words pierced into the scars in Pia's heart like needles.

The sweet nothings he used to whisper in her ears now seemed like sugar-coated bombs that could go off at any second.

He continued coaxing her into it, tempting her, in the name of love, to willingly go through heaven and hell for him.

She felt a wave of nausea in her throat, and she could no longer bear to feel his hands on her anymore. She shoved him off roughly and exclaimed, "Let go of me, Vito Castaldo! I already told you that I'm still bleeding from my wounds!"

Pia's resistance caught Vito off guard. He staggered back by a few steps after getting shoved, barely regaining his balance afterward.

He stared at her in disbelief. His demand had just been rejected by her, and his eyes grew sharp at once.

"How dare you defy me!"

Pia clutched at her wound that was now bleeding through the bandages and trembled with pain. Yet, she still met his angry gaze.

"Do you truly care if I'm dead or alive? I've already blown off Santi's ear, and you're still offering to give me up in exchange? You're sending me to my death!"

Vito's expression softened slightly. He soothed her and said, "You're my fiancee, Pia. How could I not care about you? I will immediately find a way to save you as soon as the document is in my hands and make sure that you're not at all harmed in any way."

However, his words were nothing but lies to Pia now.

She looked at him with red-rimmed eyes, her voice trembling as she asked, "Who do you actually see me for, Vito? Your fiancee? Or just a commodity used as a transaction?"

Vito didn't expect her to ask him such a question. He frowned and said in displeasure, "Of course, you're my fiancee. We're already engaged to each other. Are you telling me that you can't feel how sincere I am toward you?"

She recalled the hypnotizing engagement party that had been just for show and chuckled. Every word she said pierced straight into Vito's heart.

"So, you're willing to push your fiancee to the forefront and watch her die?"

Vito's face was dark, his eyes burning with anger at being defied.

They continued staring at each other as the tension around them grew even more suffocating than ever.

After a long silence, Vito reached out and gripped Pia by her chin, uttering words that sent a deep chill straight down her spine.

"You will go to him in three days."

This wasn't just a statement, but a direct order.

His piercing gaze cut through Pia, the cold indifference in his demeanor causing a sharp pain in her chest.

She felt herself being consumed by a burning hatred. A single thought suddenly crossed her mind.

She had already repaid all the debts she owed him over the years when she risked her life multiple times for him.

And now, she was completely done playing the fake fiancee.

She was going to run away and escape him completely. She was going to escape from the clutches of the Castaldo Famiglia!

After Vito was gone, Pia left the hospital, making sure to avoid the surveillance cameras in the hospital, and went straight home to pack.

She stuffed her clothes and belongings higgledy-piggledy into her trunk until it nearly burst at the seams. After multiple failed attempts to zip it up and having the zip break and fall to the floor instead, she finally couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into tears, no longer knowing what to do.

She just suddenly realized that she had no place to go.

Ever since Vito brought her back from the Hughlin slums when she was 15 years old, he had been her only refuge.

But now, she realized with a start that her entire world had been built on Vito's lies after all.

Now that the lies had shattered, her whole world collapsed, leaving her with no place to go.

She felt so helpless that she went completely numb, subconsciously rubbing the diamond ring on her ring finger.

Vito was the one who had personally placed it around her finger. It was engraved with her name on it, proving that she was the "one and only person" in his heart.

But now, it was pathetically ironic after all.

She plucked off the ring in a temper, meaning to throw it in the trash. While raising her hand, however, she hesitated as a final, almost-pathetic shred of devotion pulled her back as if she was bewitched.

Just as her fingertip brushed against the prongs, she suddenly sensed a slight looseness in the stone.

Her eyes narrowed as she carefully pried it open.

To her shock, she discovered a tiny tracking device that was almost invisible to the naked eye hidden underneath the diamond.

Pia's eyes widened at once as a chill crept into her bones.

Then, she burst out laughing.

Her sorrowful, self-deprecating laughter gradually turned colder and fainter with each passing second until tears finally rolled into her mouth.

As it turned out, everything had been nothing but a facade—Vito's care for her, his sincerity toward her, and even the ring, which was supposed to be a symbol of promise, turned out to be an invisible shackle instead.

He had wanted to make sure that she would never escape his grasp, ever!

It only just dawned on her then that she could probably never escape Vito's control on her own without any outside help.

The more she thought about it, the more desperate, fearful, and anxious she was.

She sat on the cold floor the entire night as she thought for a long time.

When dawn broke, she inhaled deeply and dialed a number.

"I want to discuss a potential offer with you."

Less than half an hour later, Pia received a text message on her phone.

It said, "The money has been transferred into your bank account, and your new identity will be finalized tomorrow. I'll be sending someone to take you to the airport at 2:00 pm sharp tomorrow afternoon, and you will no longer have anything to do with the Castaldo Famiglia anymore.

"Also, you had better not try any funny business, or you will never be able to bear the consequences!"

Pia stared at the text message and finally managed to relax her taut nerves.

It finally dawned on her that after sitting on the cold floor for the entire night, she was now burning hot everywhere on her body.

Her wounds hadn't healed yet, and now, she was also running a high fever.

She hurriedly took some meds and went to bed, slowly closing her eyes. Finally, she could get a good night's rest now.

Just when she thought she could get through her last night here in peace before escaping the next day, she received a blaring phone call that immediately shattered the illusion.

"Pia Bellucci! Get downstairs immediately!"

She'd only just answered the call when Vito's Underboss, Ciro Pagano, spoke urgently to her on the phone.

A pang of fear swept through her as she became alert at once.

Ever since discovering the location tracker in the ring, she was no longer surprised that they knew exactly where to find her now. Yet, Ciro's urgent voice made her feel very uneasy.

She hurried down the stairs. Before she could even ask what was going on, she was forcefully shoved into the car at once.

"Don Castaldo has demanded that you go to the docks immediately."

Pia's fingers clenched as her heart pounded in her chest.

"I have a fever, and it still hasn't gone down yet…"

"This is the Don's order," Ciros said, starting up the car at once and speeding off, his eyes focusing only on the road ahead.

Ultimately, Pia wasn't able to fight back, so she followed him to the docks, her heart pounding with anxiety.

When she was dragged onto the yacht deck, she realized that chaos had already unfolded at the scene. She swept her gaze across the crowd and immediately saw Alessia standing on the opposite yacht, her makeup a smudged mess, while crying and screaming for Vito.

Meanwhile, the man standing behind her was the very person Pia hoped she never had to meet again in her life—Santi Cuomo.

The man who had demanded her in exchange for the Castaldo Famiglia's top-secret document had turned up here.

Fear and panic gripped Pia's heart at once. She trembled hard as her heart sank to the bottom of her stomach.

Santi had grabbed Alessia by her hair, forcing her to look up as he laughed cruelly with a triumphant glint in his eyes.

"This is your real fiancee, isn't she, Vito Castaldo? She looks so similar to Pia that I nearly grabbed the wrong person! Had I never followed your car and caught this woman, I would have completely fallen for your ruse! Haha!"

Vito's expression changed as he began panicking.

He never thought that Alessia would take his car out on a joyride on her own. His initial plan to exchange Pia for the document and then kill Santi was totally ruined now!

"Don't you dare try any funny business, Vito!" Santi yelled, the gruesome scarring on his ear twisting with rage. "Hand over Pia Bellucci at once, and I'll let this woman go! If not, then I'll beat her to death right now!"

His gaze swept across the crowd before freezing on Pia, his eyes blazing with hatred as soon as he saw her.

"Pia Bellucci, you damn bitch! Today, I'm going to make you wish you were dead!"

Pia looked at Santi's crazed state and felt a chill running down her spine. He looked like he was the Grim Reaper himself.

Vito gulped hard, his Adam's apple bobbing anxiously in his throat as he watched Santi point a gun at Alessia's temples. His throat tightened as he yelled back, "Santi! I've already brought Pia here just as you said!

"You can do whatever you want to her! Just let Alessia go!"

Pia stared at him, completely stunned, her heart sinking deeper than the ocean itself.

So, even though Alessia was the one who ruined all his plans, she was still the one to pay the price because she was nothing but a tool—a sacrificial pawn, to him.

"You want me…to die in Alessia's place?"

Her voice trembled hard as if there was a needle pricking at her throat.

Vito answered in a low voice, "You're skilled in combat, Pia. But Alessia… She isn't."

Even so, did that still mean that Pia deserved to be tortured by Santi and used as Alessia's scapegoat again and again, like this?

Pia felt all of her strength drain away.

She looked at Vito's resolute eyes and suddenly laughed out loud, tears forming in her eyes.

"I don't want to be your bodyguard anymore. You have no right to decide my life or death!"

Vito's face was as dark as thunder. "You became a MadeMan of the Castaldo Famiglia the moment I saved you from the slums. I am your Don. And whatever I tell you to do, you will do it!"

While speaking, he seemed to notice Pia's hurt, wounded look in her eyes, and her pale face, and suddenly softened inexplicably.

His tone softened as he said, "Just work with me, Pia. I won't abandon you even after rescuing Alessia."

Pia continued to struggle, but Vito ordered his men to tie up her hands and gag her mouth.

"Trust me."

Santi, on the other hand, was beginning to lose his patience. He threatened loudly, "Stop yapping nonsense and send her over at once! Otherwise, I'm going to shoot!"

Vito inhaled deeply like he was making a hard decision, and personally handed the restrained Pia to Santi's men.

Almost at the same time, Alessia was released and shoved back haphazardly into Vito's arms.

Santi's eyes were filled with hatred. The moment Alessia landed in Vito's arms, he cocked his gun and pulled the trigger, roaring and cursing out loud.

"Die, all of you!"

Gunshots rang out, and Pia saw Vito instantly shield Alessia behind him. The bullet embedded itself right into his left arm. He let out a painful groan as blood instantly began seeping from his arm.

His Soldati acted swiftly, immediately rushing to shield him behind them and suppressing Santi's Soldati with more gunfire, managing to pull their wounded Don to safety.

Pia wanted to scream for help, but her hands were tied, and her mouth was gagged. She could only twist her body in vain while looking at Vito in despair.

The same man who had rescued her from the slums and given her a new life was now pressing on his wound on his bloody arm while looking at her as if to say, "Wait for me. I'll save you!"

She remembered Vito saying the same thing to her countless times during past shootouts and chaos, and she'd always believed him.

But this time, she resolutely turned her head away.

She didn't want to see him again.

She was no longer his puppet.

She was never entrusting her life to anyone else again!