Years ago, I, Ella Marin, became the wife of Andrew Lorenzo, the underboss of the Lorenzo family.

Sadly, my last three years were spent in prison after I caused a fatal car accident. I heard plenty of “good news” about my husband while I did my time.

Andrew had officially taken over the Lorenzo family once the Don had stepped down.

He then spent a fortune on a woman called Rose Gunfire and was rumored to have had a one-night stand with a rival. He was also seen acting intimately with Sophia, the Principessa of the Rossi family, and private photos of them kept appearing online.

When the underboss came to warn me about Andrew, I remained calm.

“The Don says that as long as you don’t cry or make a scene, you’ll still have a place in the Lorenzo family after your release.”

I replied quietly, “So he has women on the side. I can handle that.”

Three days before that, the church’s hospital had called to tell me that my mother was terminally ill. Since the Lorenzo family could help find a kidney donor, I agreed to a marriage in name only.

All for my mother’s sake.

Relying on memory, I made my way back to the estate where a party was already underway. However, the moment I appeared, everything went quiet for a moment.

Sophia Rossi stood in the center of the crowd and covered both her nose and mouth at the sight of me.

“Where did this beggar come from? We don’t feed scraps to dogs here.”

A beggar?

I lowered my eyes and glanced down at myself. My dress was covered in mud, and one of my legs held itself awkwardly behind me, a result of the “care” I had received from the cell boss in prison.

Yeah, no one would ever guess I had once been the underboss’ wife and that I used to be above everyone else.

I looked at Andrew Lorenzo sitting at the head of the table. He studied me with eyes that held nothing but disgust.

“She just got out of prison. Of course she smells.”

“Ella, go wash off at the fountain in the backyard before coming in. Don’t stink up the place for Sophia.”

Laughter rippled through the room. The soldati and associates who once treated me with absolute respect were mocking me.

I lowered my head and said nothing. “Fine.” I turned and headed toward the backyard.

I knew he was waiting for me to either cause a scene or question him, but I had nothing left to fight with. Even if it meant acting like a dog, I had to obey.

If Sophia wanted to see me humiliated, I had to give her exactly that.

Only if Sophia were satisfied would Andrew be satisfied.

Only if Andrew were pleased would I get the money I needed and a kidney donor.

The backyard fountain drew water from underground. At night, it was bitterly cold. I turned on the hose beside me and let the water pour over my head. Cold water ran down my back. My injured, lame leg throbbed, and I could barely stay on my feet.

A sudden commotion broke out in the entrance hall.

Andrew shouted anxiously, “Doctor! Call the family doctor now!”

I froze. A long time ago, he had panicked like that for me too.

But when my eyes focused, the hope I should not have had was crushed.

My husband, Andrew, was on one knee. He held Sophia’s hand carefully as he shouted at the doctor.

“Look! Sophia scraped her hand!”

The doctor looked at it again and again. He finally found a tiny red mark on the tip of her pale finger.

Sophia’s eyes were teary. She pouted. “It hurts so much, Don Lorenzo. Will I have a scar?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll have someone get the best scar cream right now.”

I leaned against the cold marble wall as darkness crept in. The difference between love and indifference was painfully clear. All this fuss over a single scraped finger. I had a lame leg, yet I had to shower in freezing rain.

Before I blacked out, I heard one of his men shout.

“Donna… Ella has fainted in the backyard!”

Then, I heard Andrew’s cold voice.

“She won’t die. I know she’s tough. Toss her in the storage room.”

Before I lost consciousness, I remembered the times we had together ten years ago, when we were at our poorest.

We lived in an attic in Booklyn.

Andrew once held me as I burned with fever, and sweat ran down his face from worry.

“Ella, when I take my place as Don, I’ll make you the most respected woman in New Yorke. Anyone who dares to disrespect you, I’ll kill without hesitation.”

At last, he had power.

No one in New Yorke, legal or street, dared cross Don Lorenzo.

But he had crushed me, the woman who had suffered alongside him through it all.

He made sure to trample me even more.

I finally realized the boy who loved me had died ten years ago, and that it was time for me to let go.

When I woke up, it was already noon the next day.

Andrew stood in front of me and threw a maid’s uniform in my face. Disgust showed plainly in his eyes.

“Sophia is pregnant. She’s been in a bad mood.”

He lit a cigar. His gaze was cold.

“The previous maid was clumsy. I don’t trust her. From today on, you’ll attend to Sophia personally.”

Smoke filled the room, and his face blurred behind it.

“Serve her well. Next month, I’ll arrange your mother’s surgery.”

I froze. I could hardly believe my ears.

She was my love rival.

She carried my husband’s child, yet he wanted me to serve her.

Andrew was ruthless.

After a long silence, I gripped the maid’s uniform.

“I’ll take good care of Ms. Rossi.”

Andrew’s eyes moved slowly over my face.

He snorted before slamming the door.

That night, thunder roared, and rain poured without pause. I was kneeling on the expensive carpet in the living room, carefully wiping the red wine stain on it when Sophia’s arrogant voice called.

“Ella, get me a glass of water.”

I got up and respectfully handed her the glass with steady hands.

She did not take it. Her beautiful eyes moved slowly, looking me up and down.

“Look at you. You’re so pathetic. Do you think Andrew feels sorry for you? Listen carefully. The Donna of the Lorenzo family is going to be me. And you? You’re nothing but a dog Andrew keeps to amuse me.”

Three years ago, I would have shot her without hesitation.

But I could, alas, presently not do this.

My mother’s life was still in their hands.

When I remained silent, Sophia sneered before stepping closer.

Then there was a sharp crack. The glass had hit the floor and shattered.

Sophia let out a scream.

“Ah! My hand!”

A door upstairs burst open.

Andrew barged in wearing only his robe and saw the mess on the floor.

His face instantly turned dark. “What happened?”

Sophia collapsed into his arms. The hurt on her face was perfectly crafted.

“Andrew, Ella is still your legal wife. How can she really serve me? Besides, she spent three years in prison. She may not be used to taking care of anyone.”

Andrew quickly turned to stare at me, and his eyes looked ready to tear me apart.

“Ella, let me warn you. Stop holding on to foolish fantasies. I already showed you mercy by allowing you to stay in the estate and serve Sophia. If you keep on hurting her with your misplaced pride, you can’t blame me for what I do next.”

I stood there and almost laughed. In Andrew’s world, the truth never mattered. All that mattered was Sophia’s happiness.

He raised his hand before I could defend myself, and the slap he gave me echoed throughout the room. His palm struck my face with brutal force. My body slammed into the cabinet beside me, and the blow made my left ear ring. I fell to the floor. Broken glass cut into my palm. A sharp pain swept through me, and my vision went dark.

The smell of blood filled the air.

In the final second before I lost consciousness, I saw Andrew holding Sophia close. He looked down at me with open disgust.

“If you’re going to die, do it somewhere else. I don’t want that bad luck in this house.”

When I woke up, the room was completely silent.

There was no medicine. No clean clothes. Not even a hint of sunlight came through the windows.

I tried to sit up, but the untreated wounds all over my body burned with sharp pain, as if they were tearing open again.

I could not die. If I died, my mother would lose her treatment. I sucked in a breath and forced myself to change out of my dirty clothes.

Suddenly, Andrew stumbled in. He reeked of alcohol.

I tried to get up and move away instinctively, but my legs refused to cooperate, and I collapsed back down. The next second, a burning hand grabbed my wrist. Andrew’s tall body pressed me down. There was no tenderness. No gentleness. He simply ripped at my maid’s uniform.

“Ella…”

He said my name, but there was no care in his touch. It felt like he was only venting his anger, so I struggled with all my strength.

“Andrew, are you crazy? Let me go!”

He ignored me and pressed his face against my neck. A strong rose scent filled my nose. It was Sophia’s favorite perfume. My stomach churned, and the nausea grew stronger than my fear.

“Bleh—ugh!”

I pushed him away without thinking. I hit the carpet and gagged.

The room fell silent again. Andrew went still at the edge of the bed. His face turned dark. He fixed his wrinkled collar and looked at me with a cold, threatening stare.

“You think I’m dirty?”

I was still gagging. I did not even have the strength to explain.

He gave a short, mocking laugh and stepped on my back.

“What are you pretending to be so pure for? Back then, you were willing to kill me for five million from the Rossi family heir, Mark Rossi. You even took the blame for him for five million. I told you I would become the Don one day. Forget five million. I would have given you fifty million! And how did you repay me? For a little money, you went to prison. You went as far as selling yourself. Those three years in prison, how many men did you have? Do you expect me to believe you fought them off like this too?”

Each word felt like a knife stabbing into my heart.

“I told you. I didn’t.”

Three years ago, I gave him the same explanation over and over.

But Andrew never believed me.

Or maybe he simply refused to believe me. I looked at the face in front of me. It was so familiar, yet it felt completely strange. This was the man I had loved for ten years.

“If you think I’m dirty, then don’t touch me.”

“You think I want to? Sophia is pregnant. I don’t want to hurt her or our child. I came to you just to blow off some steam.”

I froze.

So he was worried about their child. His words felt like needles piercing my heart. The pain spread until I could barely breathe.

“Be smart. Otherwise, your mother is in the hospital…”

Andrew did not finish the sentence, but I understood. He always followed through on his threats.

So I stopped fighting.

I even slid my arms around his waist and forced myself to respond to him.

What once made our love burn brighter had turned into nothing more than a cold exchange. We each took what we wanted.

Later that night, after Andrew left, I dragged a metal box out from under the bed.

At the very bottom, I found a dull stainless steel ring.

Andrew had made it for me himself a few years ago.

“Ella, I swear on my family’s name. When I reach that position, I’ll replace this with the biggest diamond ring.”

His teenage promise still echoed in my ears. But the boy who swore he would love me for life was gone. I clenched the ring and limped to the artificial lake on the estate.

Without hesitation, I threw it toward the center of the water.

There was a soft plunk.

It disappeared into the darkness without a ripple.

Goodbye, Andrew.