Luca, wincing with each wheezing breath, raised his small hand and clumsily wiped away my tears. "Don't cry, Mommy. It... it doesn't hurt as much anymore. I don't blame Papa. Maybe I'm just not strong enough."

His maturity was a blade twisting in my heart.

I took a deep breath, forced myself to sit up, and said, word by word, "Luca, listen to me. We don't need Papa anymore."

Luca froze, his eyes wide above the oxygen mask.

My eyes were resolute. "As soon as the review period is over, we're leaving."

"Where are we going?"

"To a place with no Connor Family, no lies, and no pain."

Luca nodded forcefully. "Okay! As long as I'm with Mommy, I'll go anywhere."

Just as he finished speaking, the door to the room was thrown open.

The loud noise made Luca flinch, and he broke into another fit of harsh coughing.

Santino stood in the doorway, his eyes fixed on us. "Leaving?"

"And where do you think you can run with my son?"

The moment Luca saw Santino, he scrambled into my arms in terror.

"Don't come any closer," he whimpered. "Mommy, I'm scared."

I held my trembling, feverish son tightly and looked up. "Get out. Luca doesn't want to see you."

Santino stopped, his displeasure clear on his face.

Before, this child had always clung to him like a puppy, looking at him with worshipful eyes. And I had been utterly obedient.

This sudden coldness was new to him, and he was offended by it.

But he quickly reverted to the arrogance of a Don. He adjusted his cuffs, his tone detached.

"Riley just returned to New York. As a family ally, it's my duty to look after her and her son. The test was a success, Finn has been diagnosed, and Luca is alive. Stop being so dramatic."

Still alive. The words were a slap across my face.

"So you admit he's not your son?" I swayed, my body a live wire of rage. "But Luca is!"

"For an outsider, for a woman you have no formal ties to, you forced your own sick son through a medical stress test that nearly stopped his heart and left him with severe respiratory distress!"

Santino took a step closer. "Erin, you knew the situation five years ago. You chose to stay. You insisted on having this child."

"All these years, whether you were suffering in the slums or enduring this for Finn, you did it all for me, didn't you? A testament to your love?"

He reached out to touch my face, but I flinched away.

Santino's hand froze in mid-air, a flicker of disappointment flashing through his eyes.

"This is the path you chose, isn't it?"

My ears were ringing.

Yes, it was my choice.

I was stupid enough to think love could soften a stone. I was naive enough to believe that if I endured enough, he would eventually turn back to us.

In the end, the only one I'd convinced was myself.

I reaped what I sowed.

I clenched my jaw, refusing to let the tears fall. "You're right, Santino. I made my choice."

Finally, the adoration in my gaze was gone.

"You're being irrational," he said coldly before turning to leave.

For the next few days, Luca and I were kept in the private ward.

It felt less like treatment and more like house arrest.

The nurses in the hallway were always whispering.

"Did you hear? Don Connor bought Miss Riley a pink diamond necklace yesterday. A million dollars."

"Yeah, they say it was to celebrate her son's diagnosis. He really spoils them rotten."

"What about his actual wife and son in that room? I heard they put the poor kid on a stress treadmill until he collapsed, just for a test for the other boy."

"Shh, keep your voice down. It's just pitiful."

Every word was a slap in the face.

But I couldn't feel the pain anymore. Once a heart dies, all that's left is the will to escape.

The day we were discharged, the sunlight was so bright it hurt to look at.

Luca stared at a cake in a shop window, swallowing hard, but then obediently looked away without a word.

For five years, to play along with Santino's "going straight" act, Luca had never had a decent meal or a new set of clothes.

I felt the small wad of cash left in my pocket.

"Come on, Luca." I took his hand, forcing a smile. "Mommy's taking you out for a nice meal."

I wanted him to know that even without his bastard of a father, I could still give him the world.

A waiter showed us to our table.

I was holding the menu, explaining to Luca which pasta was which, when a familiar, grating laugh came from the table next to us.

"Santino, this truffle is delicious. Finn loves it."

I slowly turned my head. At the best table by the window, Santino was gently cutting a steak for Riley.

Finn sat beside them in a custom-tailored suit, his face glowing with health, looking nothing like a child who had just undergone major surgery.

"Papa, I want that lobster!" Finn demanded, tapping his fork against his plate.

Santino didn't correct him. Instead, he tenderly cut the lobster meat and placed it on Finn's plate. "Alright, eat slowly."

Luca saw it all. He gripped his fork tightly, his eyes fixed on the fatherly love he had never known.

"Should we go?" he asked in a small voice.

"No," I said, placing my hand on his. "We paid. We have a right to be here."

Finn saw us.

He jumped down from his chair, picked up a steaming bowl of soup from the table, and walked straight toward us.

Riley saw him but just covered her mouth with a light laugh, making no move to stop him.

Finn stopped in front of Luca.

"Hey, who let you in here?"

Finn's voice was sharp and cruel. "What are peasants like you doing in a place like this?"

After he spoke, he flicked his wrist.

The bowl of scalding lobster bisque tipped, without warning, right toward Luca.

The instant the scalding soup flew through the air, I moved on pure instinct, throwing myself over Luca to shield him.

"Ahhh!"

Luca's scream tore through the restaurant's elegant atmosphere.

Although I blocked most of it, the hot liquid still splashed onto his pale forearms and chest.

His skin instantly turned a raw, angry red, and blisters began to form.

And the one who did it, Finn, immediately burst into a theatrical wail, playing the victim.

"Mommy! That woman tried to hit me!"

He was completely unharmed, yet he cried more pitifully than Luca. "I was so scared, my hand slipped and I dropped the soup...."

His pathetic lie instantly drew the attention of Santino and Riley as they walked over.

"Finn! My baby!" Riley snatched Finn into her arms, her eyes flashing as she accused me, "Erin, how could you be so cruel? Finn was only trying to share his soup with Luca. Why would you push him?"

I held Luca, who was trembling in pain, my eyes burning with rage.

"Riley, drop the act!" I pointed to Finn's perfectly clean hands. "He did it on purpose! Look! Luca is the one who's burned!"

Santino strode over. When his gaze landed on Luca's angry red blisters, a sharp intake of breath escaped him and he instinctively reached out a hand.

But then his eyes met Riley's.

He stopped, withdrew his hand, and swept the "frightened" Finn into his arms, soothing him gently. "It's okay, Finn. Don't be afraid."

"Erin," he said, turning to me, his voice cold as ice. "When did you become so hysterical? Accusing a child who was only trying to be kind?"

I was so furious I couldn't speak. I pointed at the angry red welts on Luca's arm. "You call this sharing? Santino, are you blind? That soup was boiling!"

"Enough!"

Santino cut me off impatiently. "All I see is you screaming, and Finn terrified of you."

Luca was covered in a cold sweat from the pain, his small hand gripping my clothes, unable to even cry out anymore.

"Mommy, it hurts. It hurts so much."

My heart was bleeding. Santino, that's your son moaning in pain. Can't you hear him?

I didn't have time to argue with them. I scooped Luca up and tried to rush out. "I need to get Luca to a hospital. His burns need to be treated."

Santino glanced at the blisters on Luca's arm, his brow furrowing as if the sight was an ugly inconvenience.

"Leaving so soon?"

"No one is leaving after upsetting my guest."

Black-suited bodyguards immediately blocked the exit.

I held Luca, turning back in despair. "What are you doing? He could be permanently scarred!"

Santino, while gently patting Finn's back, said casually, "You can go. But first, you apologize to Finn."

"What did you say?"

"Your outburst scared Finn. Apologize. And keep apologizing until he forgives you."

Luca began to tremble violently in my arms, his breathing growing shallow. "Mommy, it hurts so bad. Am I going to die?"

His was the injury, but the pain was all mine.

On one side was my dignity. On the other was my son's pain.

Looking at Santino's cold profile, I finally understood. In this man's heart, Luca and I were worth less than stray dogs.

To appease Riley's son, he would let his own flesh and blood suffer.

"Hurry up. My patience is wearing thin," Santino urged.

Finn peeked out from Santino's arms, waiting for my humiliation.

I closed my eyes, a single tear tracing a path down my cheek.

For Luca, I would walk through hell.

I turned, faced the boy who had burned my son, and said,

"I'm sorry."

Santino watched me coldly. "Is that how you apologize?"

Luca's breathing grew more ragged.

Finally, I bowed my head. "I was wrong. Please, I beg you, let me take him to the hospital."

Santino looked surprised that I would go that far, hesitating for the first time, his jaw tight. "I didn't tell you to..."

I didn't wait for him to finish. The moment the bodyguards were distracted, I bolted.

At the nearest emergency room, doctors treated Luca's burns.

Second-degree burns, deep enough to threaten nerve damage.

After his wounds were treated, Luca finally fell into an exhausted sleep.

Watching my son, wrapped in bandages, I leaned against the cold hallway wall, completely drained.

I dragged myself to the end of the hall to pay the bill. As I passed the smoking area, I overheard two familiar voices.

"Santino, wasn't that a bit much back there?" Riley's voice was probing. "What if Erin gets really angry and tries to run away with Luca? He is your biological son, after all."

The air was silent for a few seconds.

Then came Santino's mocking laugh.

"Run? Where could she run?"

Through the glass, I saw him leaning against the railing. "She cut all ties with her family to marry me. She endured five years in the slums for me. Just now, she was willing to bow to Finn for that kid."

"She and that worthless kid would do anything for me. This is just a little tantrum."

"She'll never leave me."

So he knew.

He knew exactly how pathetically I had loved him for five years, how I'd believed his lies like a fool, how I'd endured humiliation just for the dream of a normal life.

And because he knew, he dared to trample on my dignity so recklessly.

But you're wrong, Santino.

This time, it's not a tantrum.

Once a heart is truly dead, there are no second chances. And I will make sure you never find us again.

The day Luca was discharged, the sky was a dreary gray. In just two weeks, my baby had been hospitalized twice.

I used the last of my money to hire a car, intending to take Luca back to that moldy basement to pack our things.

"Mommy, when are we leaving this place?" Luca looked up, his small face full of hope.

I ruffled his soft, curly hair. "Soon, Luca. As soon as Mommy mails the last documents to the council of elders, we'll—"

Before I could finish, a black van shot out from a quiet side street and slammed into the front of our car.

The deafening crash left my head spinning.

Before I could react, the car door was yanked open.

Two men in black ski masks burst in, knocking out the driver before grabbing Luca.

"Let him go!" I screamed, but the street was empty.

One of the men backhanded me across the face. A rag reeking of ether was pressed over my nose and mouth.

Before darkness consumed me, the last thing I heard was Luca's heart-wrenching cry.

"Mommy!"

When I woke up, the salty, damp smell of the sea filled my nose.

I was tied to a rusty iron chair in an abandoned warehouse on the docks, surrounded by shipping containers.

"Mommy..."

A weak voice came from my feet. Luca was curled up on the ground, his small body shivering from fear and cold.

"Awake?"

A brute of a man crouched in front of me, toying with a dagger. He used the tip to lift my chin. "The life of Mrs. Connor has to be worth a lot, right?"

He tossed a phone onto my lap. "Call Santino Connor. Ten million for the two of you."

"You have the wrong person," I rasped, my throat raw. "He won't pay. In his eyes, we are worthless."

"Cut the crap!"

The kidnapper slapped me hard across the face. "You're Don Connor's wife. You gave him a son. You think he won't pay a little money for you?"

I tasted blood. "We're getting a divorce," I said, my voice hoarse.

The kidnapper clearly didn't believe me. He grabbed Luca, pressing the flat of the cold blade to the child's delicate neck.

"Make the call! Or we'll see how he likes getting his son back in a body bag!"

Luca was so terrified tears streamed down his face, but he didn't dare make a sound.

"No! Stop! I'll call!" I screamed, my composure shattering as I dialed the number I knew by heart.

The phone rang. And rang.

It rang five times, then went dead.

The kidnapper's face darkened. He dragged Luca to the edge of the pier, dangling him over the dark water.

"Ah!" Luca cried out in terror.

"Don't! Don't hurt him! I'll call again!"

I cried out, dialing again.

A third time. A fourth. A tenth.

Each time the call went unanswered, the kidnapper lowered Luca closer to the churning waves below.

Luca was so terrified he was on the verge of passing out.

Finally, on the eleventh try, he picked up.

"Santino!" I sobbed, my voice shattered. "Luca and I have been kidnapped! We're at the East End docks! They want ten million, or they'll—"

"This act is getting old, Erin. Would you really go so far as to use your own son just to get my attention?"

I pleaded, betting on whatever shred of humanity he might still have. "It's not an act! They're going to kill him! Can't you hear the water? They're going to throw him in!"

"Enough," he sneered. "You know my accounts are frozen. I don't have a cent. If you want me back in that miserable hovel, find a less pathetic way to do it."

Enraged, the kidnapper snatched the phone. "Santino Connor? If you don't want your wife and kid to become fish food, transfer the money now."

The line was silent for two beats. In the background, I heard the roar of an engine.

Then, Riley's syrupy voice came through. "Santino, Finn's race is about to start. He's waiting for you to wave the flag. Who's being such a buzzkill?"

Santino's voice grew colder. "Listen, whoever you are, there's a limit to how far you should play along with this madwoman's act."

"You want money? It's not happening."

The kidnapper roared in frustration. "You really don't care? I'll kill them right now!"

On the other end of the line, Santino was silent for a long moment. "I don't have time for these games."

"Since you two love playing life-or-death games so much, you can live with the consequences."

With a final click, the line went dead.