"Natasha Santoro, did you call Jonathan away again?"

"If I'd known back then, I would've killed you."

"You should've never gotten out of there, you bitch!"

"Don't let me see you, or I'll kill you myself!"

Kelsey's messages came one after another, and the notification tone sounded shrill in the empty mansion.

I thought I was past caring, but reading them still made the scar on my face ache faintly.

The first message from Kelsey had arrived three years ago, at my birthday party.

It had been a photo of her and Jonathan in bed. Two naked bodies appeared on the screen, forced into my vision without warning.

I'd lost my mind and gone looking for her, slapping her hard across the face the moment I found her.

She'd shoved me viciously into a hotel vase, shards of porcelain cutting into my skin. Unsatisfied, she'd grabbed a piece and slashed my face with it.

Blood splattered across the floor.

Amid the staff's screams, I staggered up and tried to fight back, only for Jonathan to seize my wrist. His voice had been cold, stripped of emotion.

"This is what you get for laying a hand on Kelsey. Stop causing a scene whenever you please, or you'll be the one paying for it."

My nails dug into my flesh. The pain in my palm felt the same as it did back then.

I smiled and sent Kelsey a photo of Jonathan and me, our fingers tightly intertwined.

Laughing aloud, I blocked her number and called Jonathan. The line was noisy, and I could faintly hear a woman crying.

"What is it now?" he asked, clearly impatient.

My eyes were cold, but my voice stayed gentle. "Did I interrupt you? I'm sorry. I just wanted you to take me to the auction the day after tomorrow. You know what that day means to me."

"The day after tomorrow?"

His tone softened immediately, every trace of his earlier irritation gone.

Kelsey's sharp voice cut in, "That's our wedding anniversary! You promised you'd be with me, Jonathan!"

My gaze turned icy, and the hatred in my eyes hardened into something sharp.

The day after tomorrow wasn't just their anniversary. It was also my birthday, and the day Jonathan had sent me into the water dungeon.

"Nat, being with Kelsey is just to get the governor's support," Jonathan said. "Everything I'm doing is for you. You have to understand that."

Three years ago, on the eve of my birthday, I caught him cheating again. He'd begged me in anguish, as if I were the one betraying him.

I'd been foolish and hopelessly in love, so I believed him.

The next day, I woke up in the water dungeon.

It wasn't until Theodore Romano appeared that I learned the truth.

Jonathan had planned everything. To marry Kelsey, he'd offered me up as a bargaining chip and personally delivered me into that living hell.

"Nat, I'll come pick you up the day after tomorrow."

He ended the call there.

The dark screen reflected my reddened eyes.

How could I ever forget that pain?

Jonathan could pretend nothing had happened, living with one arm around each woman, but I would never let him have his way.

…

When Jonathan came to get me the next morning, he was holding a mask.

"I know you care about how you look. The doctor won't be here for a few more days, so use this for now."

He adjusted it carefully, his expression tender, as if the scar had nothing to do with him.

The mask covered the scar perfectly. He ruffled my hair lightly. "Nat, you're still so beautiful."

I glanced past Jonathan and gave a subtle nod to his subordinate, Samuel Ferri, who was trailing behind him.

Only then did I smile and say sweetly, "You're such a smooth talker. I'll punish you by making you stay with me all day."

Jonathan laughed. "How is that a punishment? That's a reward."

He took my hand and led me to the car.

Another vehicle followed us at a careful distance, but Jonathan, focused entirely on pleasing me, never noticed.

…

At the auction, the staff led us to a private box in the center of the second floor.

While standing at the door, I saw the woman who'd been following us enter the room next door.

A trace of mockery flickered across my eyes. I deliberately clung to Jonathan's arm, and he happily wrapped an arm around my waist.

Moments later, the sound of shattering glass came from next door. Satisfied, I pulled him into our box.

Most of the items up for auction were jewelry.

I placed bids on nearly every piece. However, Kelsey insisted on competing with me, and within a few items, she'd snatched away half of them.

I lost interest and dropped my paddle on the table.

Seeing my mood, Jonathan squeezed my fingers and chuckled. "What's the point of coming out if you're not having fun?"

"Samuel, get the manager," he said. "Tell him I'll outbid any offer that hits the floor."

Samuel acknowledged the order and left.

The delight in my eyes pleased Jonathan. He pulled me into his arms and murmured, "As long as you're happy, I don't care what it costs."

His words made me laugh.

Men really were pathetic.

When I loved him, he didn't value it. Now, he was baring his heart, and it was almost laughable.

The manager set things up at our window, and Kelsey continued trying to compete. Thankfully, every item that followed ended up with me, and the gloom weighing on me finally lifted.

The biggest surprise was the final necklace.

Jonathan had personally crafted it for my 21st birthday, and it had been lost years ago during a territorial clash. I no longer loved him, but that necklace carried too many memories.

Kelsey seemed to know its history. She bid aggressively, attempting to price me out of the room. She was convinced Jonathan wouldn't spend that much on me.

After the auction ended, Jonathan and I were led to finalize the purchases.

Halfway there, the manager hurried over and pulled him aside.

After a long while, Jonathan called and told Samuel to send me home first. I stayed in the car instead of leaving right away.

Before long, I saw Jonathan walk out with Kelsey wrapped around his arm.

I couldn't help but laugh. He was quite the multitasker.

At the entrance, Kelsey handed him a box. Jonathan understood immediately, took out the necklace, and fastened it around her neck.

It was the same necklace I'd just won.

The smile on my face froze, and a faint bitterness rose in my chest. Even this last reminder of our memories, he couldn't bring himself to give me.

Once she'd donned the necklace, Kelsey lifted her chin proudly in my direction.

I lost interest and went back to the mansion.

…

Jonathan didn't come home that night, nor for several days after.

Samuel later told me that several shipments had gone wrong, leaving Jonathan overwhelmed, and that he'd had a fierce argument with Kelsey over it.

Hearing that lifted the gloom that had hung over me for days.

Unfortunately, the relief didn't last long because trouble came knocking soon after.

Kelsey showed up with her bags in tow and moved straight into the mansion. No matter how hard Samuel tried, he couldn't stop her.

Jonathan arrived just in time to see her throwing my belongings out. His expression darkened, a storm gathering in his narrowed eyes.

With tears streaking my face, I hid behind him and choked out, "I've already given you John. What more do you want from me? I love him. Is it really wrong if I just want to be near him? What's wrong with loving someone?"

My voice was hoarse, yet the affection threaded through it was obvious.

Jonathan reached out and pulled me into his arms. When he looked at Kelsey, his gaze turned icy.

"Kelsey, don't push your luck. What's between you and me has nothing to do with Nat. And don't forget how you ended up as Mrs. Caruso in the first place."

The threat in his words was unmistakable.

Kelsey's face went pale. She staggered back, one hand bracing her belly.

Only then did Jonathan seem to realize he'd said the wrong thing. His tone shifted as he scrambled to patch things up.

"I-If it weren't for Nat's accident back then… That's enough. I'll pretend none of this happened today. Just go back to Colline delle Rose and stay there."

"What accident?" Kelsey shrieked. "Didn't you send this woman to my father yourself? And I'm not going back. What's so great about that broken-down estate anyway?"

I'd already known the truth, but I could no longer suppress the hatred welling up in me upon hearing their plot spoken aloud.

My fingers clenched tightly into Jonathan's suit jacket, my knuckles whitening.

Noticing my reaction, Jonathan lowered his voice, rough and strained as he tried to explain, "Nat, that was an accident. I'll make it up to you."

I shoved him away, my eyes bloodshot.

"Make it up to me?" I demanded. "By marrying the daughter of the man who abused me? Or by letting her move into the estate I designed and allowing her to carry your child?"

Three years of suffocating misery came pouring out of me.

My vision blurred as I met his impatient gaze. My hands and feet turned cold, and my breathing nearly stopped.

Jonathan didn't love me anymore. Why would he feel bad for me?

I needed to calm down. The plan couldn't fall apart now.

I slammed into Kelsey as I passed her and strode away, but I hadn't gone far when her scream stopped me in my tracks.

She collapsed onto the ground, clutching her belly and wailing, "My baby! Natasha, you're trying to kill my child! Amore, save our baby!"

Her expression twisted in agony, but the theatrics were excessive. I could tell at a glance that she was acting.

What I hadn't expected was Jonathan rushing forward in panic and scooping her up. The worry on his face stunned me.

As he passed me, his voice dropped, and he warned, "Nat, you went too far. The baby's innocent. You're going to pay for this."

A bitter laugh escaped me when I saw the urgency in his eyes.

"When you sent me into the water dungeon, I was pregnant with your child, too."

Jonathan stopped in his tracks. He turned back, his gaze complicated and unreadable. "I'll give you another child. I'll make it up to you."

He knew all along.

The realization hit me like a muffled thunderclap. My mind went blank, darkness swimming in my vision.

I couldn't take it anymore and blacked out.

…

When I woke up again, everything around me was dark.

Only a faint light overhead reminded me where I was—Colline delle Rose's underground prison, where Jonathan used to lock up traitors.

A figure in the shadows noticed my movement and spoke slowly. "Nat, you've been very disobedient. How could you touch my child?"

"You disgust me, Jonathan. You killed our child with your own hands."

My throat was dry, and my heart ached.

He fell silent for a moment before replying, his voice carrying a trace of regret, "There will be other children. My child is your child, too. You're the real Mrs. Caruso. My children's mother can only ever be you."

"Stay here and learn your lesson," he added. "I'll come get you later."

With that, Jonathan turned and left.

I stared at his retreating form and cursed aloud, "Jonathan, you're a monster. You'll do anything for power. I won't let you get away with this!"

His response was a soft chuckle, followed by the heavy sound of the door locking shut.

I closed my eyes and tamped down the hatred surging inside me.

Then, I called Theodore. "Let's move up the plan. Come get me from Colline delle Rose."