My husband was working over the holidays, again. He’d been sent out of town to oversee one of the Family’s dock operations and a string of gambling houses.. I decided to buy a ticket and surprise him.

Only business class was left.

Staring at the five-figure price, I gritted my teeth and spent a year’s worth of savings.

Then I couldn’t even figure out how to pull down the damn tray table.

The socialite seated next to me let out a cold laugh.

“Never flown business class before?”

I forced an awkward smile. “My apologies. You must be… important. You have that aura.”

“Oh, me? No. The man who keeps me is important. He’d charter a private jet if I asked. Business class is practically slumming it.”

I blinked. “A… keeper? That’s rare.”

“Not really. I’m his secretary. I mess up a lot. Cost him a fortune. He yells at me until I cry. And then, well… crying leads to other things.” She winked. “You know how it is.”

“Funny,” I said, my voice tight. “My husband has an assistant who helps him manage accounts for the docks. She’s always messing things up too.”

“You’re married?”

She looked me over, head to toe.

“My man has a wife about your age. Says he’s sick of her. That touching her is boring. Says I’m more exciting just brushing my hair out of my face.”

She leaned closer.

“I told him I wanted to see him for New Year’s. So he told the wife he had to work.”

The diamond on her finger caught the light. It was identical to the wedding band I’d lost.

My body went cold.

No. Matteo was just a low-level enforcer. A foot soldier the Family occasionally trusted with small operations—dock shipments, backroom gambling, nothing more.

When did he become a Don?

I stared at her ring finger.

“But that’s… a wedding band. Are you married to him?”

“This?” She held her hand up, admiring it. “I told him to take it from his wife.”

The air left my lungs.

“I wasn’t going to bother the wife, you know? But then, on my birthday, the woman had a miscarriage. Demanded he run to the hospital. Left me alone on my birthday.”

My hand drifted to my own stomach.

I remembered that winter. The ice on the sidewalk. Matteo’s wages were meager back then. A car was a dream. I slipped. Fell hard.

The three-month life inside me became a dark stain on the ice.

Matteo dropped everything. Stayed by my bedside for three days.

When I woke up, my ring was gone too. Lost with the blood.

He held me. “It’s okay. We’ll have another child. I’ll get you a new ring.”

I cried, shaking my head. “You said the Family might make cuts. We need to save money. Get me a new one when you’ve made it big.”

Tears shone in his eyes then. “I’m sorry. I’m a failure. I can’t give you the life you deserve.”

I told him it didn’t matter.

Beside me, the woman was still admiring the stolen ring.

My voice was flat. “So you had him steal his wife’s wedding ring for you.”

“He offered to buy a bigger one. But that old hag acts so high and mighty just because she’s the wife. She needed to be put in her place.”

I clenched my jaw so hard it ached.

“Honestly, this ring is cheap compared to what he buys me. But it’s the principle. It’s the wife’s ring.”

She smiled at me. Pitifully. “A woman who ends up like her… she’s finished.”

I gripped the armrest, forcing a smile. “A man who spends so freely on a mistress… the wife must get a hefty allowance to keep quiet.”

She laughed. Leaned in, her perfume cloying.

“Let me tell you a secret. The wife still doesn’t know he’s the Don.”

“Why not?”

She examined her diamond-studded nails. “What’s the point? Her best years were spent while he was climbing the ranks. If you were a powerful man, would you waste money on a faded wife? Money can’t buy back her youth.”

My own reflection stared back from the window. Tired. Worn.

She leaned closer. “Listen, you’re older, but you’ve still got something. I’ll give you some free advice. A woman needs work. Procedures. Your skin is dry. Your husband must be losing interest.”

I said nothing.

Her skin was perfect. Once, mine was better.

A decade in cramped safe-houses, always looking over your shoulder… I barely recognized my own old photos.

“Procedures are expensive.”

“So?” She shrugged. “My man gives me fifty grand a month for expenses. And he pays for the procedures.”

A tiny diamond glittered near her eye. My hand trembled against the fabric of my cheap dress.

“How long have you been his?”

“Since June twelfth. Twenty-twenty-three. Why?”

My blood turned to ice.

June 12, 2023.

The day my mother died.

She needed a fifty-thousand-dollar surgery.

I remember Matteo begging, calling in every favor, emptying our meager accounts. He scraped together thirty-five thousand.

I killed myself to find eight more.

It wasn’t enough.

He held me as I sobbed. “I’m sorry. I’m garbage. I couldn’t save your mother. You deserve so much better.”

My heart was breaking, but I wiped his tears. “You found thirty-five thousand. I’m grateful. Mama said you tried. She didn’t blame you. I don’t blame you. It was my fault for not finding the rest.”

His tears fell on my hands.

He gripped them like a lifeline. “Sara… just wait. Wait for me. I swear I won’t let us live like this anymore.”

I nodded through my tears.

Fifty thousand.

He had it.

“You know,” the woman said, pulling me back. “The wife’s mother needed fifty grand that month too.”

I looked at her.

She winked. “He was going to give it.”

I stopped breathing. “He gave it to you instead? For your allowance?”

“Don’t be silly. He’s loaded. Giving me fifty grand leaves him with plenty. He didn’t give it to the wife because…”

She rested her chin on her hand.

“I told him if her mother died, the wife would have no one left. No family. Then, even if she found out about me, she’d have nowhere to go. She’d have to stay quiet.”

I tasted blood from biting my cheek.

“And besides,” she smiled, “I really wanted that new Chanel bag. It was exactly fifty grand.”

I stared, my vision narrowing. “Aren’t you afraid the wife will find out?”

“Please. I’m smart.”

She laughed. “I told him to give her thirty-five grand. Make it look like his life savings. The wife will think her poor, loyal husband did his best. She’ll never think to look for another woman.”

Her smile faded, replaced by a scowl.

“The annoying part is he only agreed because he was worried the wife would leave him if I was ever discovered. Ugh. That old bitch got lucky.”

CRACK.

The sound was sharp in the cabin.

My palm connected with her cheek before I even knew I’d moved.

Chloe’s champagne flute toppled, splashing across her lap.

A flight attendant rushed over.

Chloe shrieked, hand to her face. “Are you insane!”

“You deserve worse!”

The attendant physically stepped between us, her smile strained. She guided a furious Chloe to a seat far from mine, speaking in low, placating tones.

Finally, Chloe simmered down. She dabbed at her dress with a towel, shooting me a look of pure contempt.

“I hate women like you. So self-righteous. Calling me a whore. You’re just jealous because you’re old and no one wants you.”

I surged forward.

The attendant held me back.

I forced myself to sit. My hands were fists.

Chloe’s gaze swept over me, dismissive. “Let’s be real. You’re not young. Your husband definitely has someone on the side. Go home and check his phone. A woman like you… no wonder men don’t come home.”

SPLASH

The fresh orange juice the attendant had just handed me was now dripping from Chloe’s hair and face.

Her scream was ear-piercing.

More crew swarmed us, forming a human barrier. The head flight attendant, her smile now brittle, leaned close to me.

“Ms. Lopez, please. She is a… valued guest of Don Matteo Cefalù. It is in your best interest to let this go. He is very protective of her.”

Don Matteo Cefalù.

The title hit me like a bullet.

We landed for a brief layover. Neither of us disembarked. Phones could be turned on.

I texted Matteo.

Where are you

A photo came back. A cluttered ledger desk, stacks of shipment records and betting slips. Working hard for my wife

For me? Or for someone else

No reply.

I sent a question mark.

A second later, I heard his voice. From Chloe’s seat.

“Someone threw a drink on you? Who dared touch you, mi amore?”

“Some old hag! It’s your fault! If you were here she wouldn’t dare!”

“Shh, it’s my fault. I’m sorry.”

A mechanical female voice chimed from her phone. Alipay payment received. Five hundred thousand yuan

Matteo’s voice was warm, indulgent. “Buy yourself something pretty. Forget about her.”

My nails dug into my palms.

Chloe’s pout was audible. “Not enough! You said you missed me! You wanted to see me for New Year’s! If not for that, I wouldn’t be on this plane with that psychopath!”

“What about the new villa I just bought for you?”

She went quiet for a beat.

“I see you smiling, cuore mio.”

“I am not!” Her voice was lighter. “But… fine. You get one chance. Only because I love you.”

“Good. I will make it up to you tonight. All night.”

“Three hours. Minimum!”

“However long you want.”

A tremor ran through me. When he was sent to oversee the Family’s New York territory, our visits were brief. Just hugs. Chaste kisses. When I hinted at more, he’d sigh.

“I’ve been under a lot of pressure, amore. The business… it’s exhausting. Let me rest, okay?”

He was always too tired. And then he’d be gone again.

The plane prepared for takeoff. Chloe made a kissing sound into her phone and hung up.

Matteo’s text arrived.

Why don’t you trust me, Sara? Are you sad I’m working over the holiday? When I come home, I’ll take you for that rotisserie you love

As the engines roared, an attendant approached Chloe with a black, gold-embossed box.

“From a gentleman, Ms. Apple gate.”

“My Prada necklace! He remembered!”

The attendant handed her a card. “The gentleman also asked us to convey a message: ‘Do not let the noise of others drown out your own voice. Move forward. I am behind you. Always.’”

I looked at Matteo’s text on my screen. I closed my eyes.

The head attendant appeared beside me. She pressed a small, cool stone into my hand. A diamond.

“For you, Ms. Lopez.”

“For me?”

“Don Cefalù is aware of your… disagreement with Ms. Apple gate. Her doctor says she must avoid stress. So. You will go and apologize to her. Sincerely.”

I stared at the diamond. A bitter laugh escaped. “An apology? This seems excessive.”

“The Don earns several of these in a day. It is nothing.”

Several of these in a day.

A five-figure diamond.

I rolled the stone between my fingers.

And laughed.

A stranger got more from him than I ever did.

I nodded. “Fine. An apology.”

The attendant announced me. “Ms. Lopez is here to apologize, Ms. Apple gate!”

I gave a slight bow. “My behavior was unacceptable. Please accept my apology.”

Chloe stood up. “Okay. Let me slap you twice. Then I’ll accept it.”

The head attendant laughed nervously. “Ms. Apple gate, please. She is older. Show some mercy.”

“Older means nothing.” Chloe smirked. “That face is already ruined. Slapped or not, no man will want it. I’m doing her a favor. She gets a diamond, I get satisfaction.”

Another attendant whispered to me. “Just let her, ma’am. Two slaps and it’s over. She’s the Don’s girl.”

“The diamond is six figures, Ms. Lopez. It’s a good deal.”

Six figures.

A decade of my life.

This stone could buy my last ten years.

I held it up. Let it catch the light.

Then I flicked my wrist.

The diamond arced through the air, clattered onto Chloe’s tray table, and bounced to the floor.

“I don’t want it.”

CRACK

Her palm exploded against my cheek.

The force snapped my head to the side. I stumbled, the taste of copper in my mouth. An attendant caught my arm.

“Ms. Lopez, please, just let it go.”

“We’ll find the diamond for you.”

Chloe sneered. “You dare refuse a gift?”

CRACK

My own hand flashed out.

The sound was louder, harder.

Chloe reeled back, crashing into her seat, a sharp cry ripped from her throat.

“You bitch! You hit me!”

“I’ll do more than hit you!”

I lunged.

Hands grabbed me, pulled me back. The rest of the flight passed under the watchful eyes of the crew, a tense ceasefire holding us apart.

The moment the plane touched down, Chloe, one cheek flaming red, bolted from her seat.

I watched her stride through the arrival gate.

And throw herself into a man’s arms.

Matteo.

His hands went to her waist. Then he saw the mark on her face.

His voice, usually so controlled, was sharp. “Who did this?”

“She did! The one you gave the diamond to! It just made her worse! No one has ever hit me!”

Chloe’s tears were instant, convincing.

His expression darkened, a storm gathering. The placid Don was gone, replaced by something dangerous.

“Where is she?”

Chloe pointed behind her, weeping into his jacket.

“Right here.”

I stepped through the gate.

Matteo’s body went rigid.