Word reached me that Elena had been discharged from the hospital and had moved directly into Dominic’s estate.

My parents had already rushed over to the compound to dote on her, leaving me entirely alone in our childhood home. I immediately contacted my attorney to draw up the divorce papers.

However, I realized that several of my crucial asset titles and deeds were locked away inside Dominic’s personal safe at the estate.

The moment I stepped outside to retrieve them, Dominic’s car pulled up right in front of me.

He rolled down the window, his gaze soft and warm. Smiling at me as if nothing had happened, he said, “Get in. Let’s go home.”

I stood my ground, refusing to move.

He stepped out of the vehicle and gently ruffled my hair. “You’ve been throwing a tantrum for days now. It’s time to stop. I came all this way just to bring you back home.”

A bitter laugh echoed in my mind. So, in his eyes, my deep anguish amounted to nothing more than a childish tantrum.

“Dominic, do you honestly think I’m just throwing a tantrum?”

His expression darkened, his temper visibly flaring beneath the surface.

“Do you always have to be this unreasonable, Sienna?”

I didn’t bother replying. Since I was already planning on a divorce, there was no point in wasting my breath on another argument. Besides, I needed to get back into the estate to secure my documents anyway.

I pulled open the car door and climbed into the passenger seat.

We arrived at the estate shortly after. The moment I stepped out of the car, my sister glided over and smoothly wrapped her arm through mine. She looked exceptionally vibrant, wearing one of my custom silk nightgowns.

“We haven’t seen each other in so many years, Sienna. It’s a shame about the poisoning last time; we didn’t get a chance to properly catch up. I’ve been feeling so terribly guilty about it.

“Thank goodness Dominic went to fetch you. We can use the welcome-back banquet he threw for me to finally catch up as a family.”

My mother chimed in immediately, “Elena always thinks of everything. We’re a family, after all. A welcome-back banquet simply wouldn’t be complete without Sienna.”

I froze, looking at Dominic in sheer disbelief.

Of course. He hadn’t changed at all. His grand gesture of driving out to bring me back wasn’t out of care for me; it was solely to appease Elena. If it weren’t for her banquet, he wouldn’t have bothered showing his face.

“Why aren’t you saying anything, Sienna?” Elena asked, tightening her grip on my arm.

I pulled my arm out of her grasp. “I’m just here to grab a few things. Then I’m leaving.”

Elena’s eyes instantly welled with tears, her voice cracking dramatically. “Are you upset that I’m staying here, Sienna? I knew I shouldn’t have come back.”

She wept gracefully, her shoulders trembling with endless sobs.

“I’ll just leave. I won’t disrupt your lives any longer.”

Dominic handed her a linen handkerchief, his tone incredibly gentle as he comforted her. “No one is driving you out. Rest easy and stay right here.”

“But my sister…” Elena reached out, attempting to grab my wrist again.

Dominic turned to me, his voice snapping into an authoritative command. “Tonight—”

“I’ll be there,” I interrupted sharply.

I had to be there. I was the revered Donna of this mafia family. I had spent eight brutal years married into the Cross family; this estate belonged to me just as much as it did to him. I was not about to hand it over without a fight.

Back in the master bedroom, I gathered all my property deeds, offshore account certificates, and asset documents, packing them securely.

I messaged my attorney to finalize the divorce agreement.

Then, I changed into a structured evening gown and fastened a diamond necklace around my neck. Even if I was walking away from this life, I was going to do it with absolute dignity and grace.

Forty minutes later, my heels clicked sharply against the marble floor as I stepped into the grand banquet hall.

Elena was still wearing my nightgown, lounging comfortably in the prominent seat that rightfully belonged to me. She was laughing with Dominic, looking completely at ease, as if she owned the place.

The moment she spotted me, a smirk playing on her lips.

“Are you afraid I’ll steal your spotlight, Sienna? Is that why you took so long dressing up in your room?

“But you know... some blemishes can’t be hidden, no matter how much you dress them up.”

She was mocking the scar on my forehead. I clenched my jaw, refusing to let my smile slip.

“Perhaps you’ve grown too accustomed to living in the slums, Elena, because you clearly don’t understand the protocols here. At a mafia family banquet, the Donna wears formal attire. It isn’t a beauty pageant; it’s a statement of the family’s power and discipline.”

I swept a cold gaze over her attire.

“Since you’re so desperate to sit at the head of the table, you should at least wear something respectable. My wardrobe is full of clothes I’ve already worn out; you’re welcome to have them.”

My words shattered her composure.

Elena slammed her hands on the table and stood up, clutching her chest as she coughed violently.

“Sienna, you stole my life! You took my throne without my permission! You should be thanking me for dragging you out of that pathetic rental shack in the first place!”

I set my wine glass down calmly, watching her display.

The sheer irony of it was hysterical. Had she forgotten that she was the one who abandoned our family to run away with a painter?

She hadn’t given a damn whether the family lived or died back then.

“Did I steal it? You’re the one who abandoned your family to follow a man, leaving everyone at death’s door.

“You got to pack up and leave whenever you pleased, while I was forced to clean up your mess. I had to take bullets for this family, launder their money, and endure the humiliation of being kidnapped by rivals in your place.

“I am completely sick of it. You want this wretched estate? Keep it. You want the title of Donna? Take it. I don’t want to spend another miserable second looking at any of you toxic bastards!”

Dominic slammed his hands down and stood up, his rage exploding through the room. The crystal glass in his hand shattered completely, blood mixing with the spilled wine and staining the tablecloth.

“Sienna! Do you really hate me this much? So this is how you truly feel!”

His voice roared through the hall, trembling slightly with rage. In a flash, he drew the pistol from his waistband, aiming it directly at my chest. His finger was already locked tight against the trigger.

My parents gasped in terror, quickly pulling Elena back out of the line of fire.

I took a step forward, grabbing the barrel of his gun and forcing the muzzle tight against my heart.

“Pull the trigger,” I said, my voice completely steady.

I hadn’t planned on walking out of this compound alive today anyway. Dominic was a volatile madman. If he wanted to murder me, so be it.

Dominic’s eyes were bloodshot. “You think I won’t?!”

My mother rushed forward frantically. “Sienna, stop! Your sister only—”

“Stay back!” I barked, drawing my own firearm and pointing it directly at my mother. I was utterly done listening to her suffocating favoritism.

Elena lunged forward instantly. “No!”

She grabbed my hand, deliberately forcing the barrel away from my mother and adjusting the trajectory toward her own shoulder. Before I could pull back, she forced my finger against the trigger, and a deafening gunshot echoed through the hall.

Through the chaos, I caught a fleeting, twisted smirk on her face.

“Elena!” My parents shrieked, rushing forward to support her.

Blood poured from Elena’s shoulder as she collapsed into Dominic’s arms, her voice fading weakly. “Sienna... no matter how much you hate me... Mom is innocent.

“Dominic, I shouldn’t have come back. Knowing you still care is enough for me. Please... don’t let anyone else get hurt because of me.”

I stood frozen, completely numb to the theatrical absurdity of it all.

With bloodshot eyes, Dominic stood up and delivered a vicious slap across my face.

The force threw me off balance, and my lower back slammed violently against the sharp edge of the dining table. A searing wave of agony flared from my cheek straight down to my spine.

“Sienna! I never realized you could be this deeply malicious!”

I stared back at him, struggling to breathe through the excruciating pain.

Dominic had completely convinced himself that I was a monster. But of course he did. When it came to Elena, his trust in her was absolute and unconditional.

“Believe whatever you want.”

I didn’t even care enough to offer an explanation.

Dominic scooped Elena up, roaring for the family’s private doctor. Because Elena was wounded, the entire room scrambled to cater to her every need, completely ignoring me.

Pressing a hand against my agonizingly injured back, I looked at his retreating figure.

“Let’s get a divorce. I’ve already had my attorney draft the papers. I played an equal part in rebuilding this empire over the last eight years. Half of the Cross family assets belong to me, and I am taking every dime of it with me.”

Dominic didn’t answer me right away.

He merely cast a look of sheer, utter disbelief in my direction.

I forged ahead. “We established the rules the very night I entered the Cross family—it was a marriage of convenience for both parties. Sign the divorce papers, and we can both walk away from this with some shred of dignity.

“Or are you planning to cheat me out of what’s rightfully mine, too?”

His eyes grew entirely bloodshot, and he opened his mouth to speak.

Elena, practically hanging on by a thread, cut him off weakly. “You really are delusional, Sienna. But then again, you were ready to murder our own mother. There’s nothing you won’t do.”

The slight movement caused her to cough up fresh blood.

Panicked, Dominic scooped her up in his arms, desperate to soothe her. “We’re getting you into surgery right now. Don’t say another word.”

A heavy silence descended upon the grand hall, broken only by my mother’s frantic weeping.

The private doctor arrived at the exact moment my attorney called. I instructed him to mail the finalized divorce agreement directly to the Cross estate.

Overhearing this, my mother sobbed, throwing bitter accusations my way. “Sienna, how did you become this twisted? How could you bring yourself to shoot your own sister?”

“She pulled the trigger herself,” I countered.

My words carried absolutely no weight. My mother lunged forward, gripping my arm tightly.

My father finally barked out:

“If you want a divorce, then get one! You didn’t bring a single cent into the Cross family when you married him. How the hell do you have the audacity to demand half of his empire?!”

My mother chimed in, “You enjoyed eight years of absolute luxury and power as the Donna entirely because of your sister’s sacrifice. Demanding money now is a pathetic, classless move!”

The sheer irony was hysterical. I shot them a cold look and violently shook my mother’s hands off my arm.

Without me, the Cross family would never have built this empire. Demanding half of the assets wasn’t a favor; it was my right.

Before leaving the estate, while Dominic was still waiting outside the private surgical room for Elena, I turned to face my parents one last time.

“To me, you two were nothing more than stepping stones to get me to the top.”

My father erupted in absolute fury, while my mother broke down into hysterical, breathless tears.

I had never felt a shred of genuine affection for them anyway.

If they hadn’t forced me into that substitute marriage, I would still be living in my rundown rental shack, pursuing the things I actually loved.

I would have spent the last eight years living a carefree, peaceful life, instead of looking over my shoulder in constant terror every single day.

For that, I utterly loathed them.

After I walked away from the Cross family estate, the divorce papers were delivered straight to Dominic. Yet, days passed, and he refused to sign them.

While staying at a high-end hotel, a text message from Elena lit up my phone.

Elena was completely unhinged, unleashing a barrage of insults:

“You pathetic bitch! Where do you get the nerve to demand his money?

“If I hadn’t handed it to you on a silver platter, you would never have tasted what it’s like to be the Donna. If you’re going to get lost, do it quietly.

“What’s the matter? Did spending eight years in my seat make you actually believe you’re the mistress of that house? Dominic only took you in because you look like me.

“After what happened tonight, he will never forgive you for shooting me.”

Shortly after, a message from my mother popped up:

“Sienna, no matter how much you hate us, you need to come home. Let’s sit down and handle this divorce like a family.”

Then came Dominic’s text:

“Come back so we can talk. I’m not signing the papers.”

I powered down my phone completely. Their sudden desperation was transparent—they were only panicking because I was about to bleed Dominic’s empire dry.

My attorney advised me, “Since he refuses to sign the papers, our only option now is to file a formal lawsuit.”

“Proceed with it,” I replied, handing my phone over to him. “Go to the Cross estate, and make sure Dominic gets this as well.”

I had already packed my bags. I was completely exhausted, and I desperately needed to disappear for a while to clear my head.

However, the moment I arrived at the airport terminal, my attorney phoned me back.

His voice was laced with sheer panic, his words flying out at a frantic pace. “Ms. Vance, something went terribly wrong!”