Chapter 4 - The Shattered Diamond|
The silence that followed was heavier than a gravestone.
Vanessa looked around the room, searching desperately for an ally among the wealthy patrons and syndicate associates.
Every single person looked away from her, lowering their eyes to avoid Luca’s blinding wrath.
"Darling, please," Vanessa begged, taking a tentative step forward with outstretched hands.
"I loved you."
"I took care of Ava when no one else knew how to handle her sorrow."
"You didn't take care of Ava," a small voice spoke up from beside the table.
Ava wiped her cheeks with the back of her dirty sleeve, stepping out from behind her father.
"You told me that if I cried in front of Daddy, he would send me away to boarding school in Switzerland."
"You told me that Daddy only kept Copper because he felt sorry for me."
"And you said that after the wedding, you would make sure this house had no room for ghosts."
Luca looked down at his twelve-year-old daughter, his heart visibly fracturing behind his chest.
He knelt before Ava, taking both of her cold hands into his own.
"Did she say those things to you, sweetheart?" he asked softly.
Ava nodded, a fresh tear tracking through the dust on her cheek.
"She said it every time you went out of town on business."
"She told me that if I told you, she would have Copper put down while you were away."
Luca closed his eyes for three long seconds, breathing in the agony of his child.
When he opened them, the man kneeling on the floor was no longer just a father.
He was the ruthless boss who had conquered Chicago’s underground with an iron fist.
Luca stood up slowly, towering over the dining room table.
He looked directly at Vanessa’s left hand, where a five-carat emerald-cut diamond ring caught the chandelier light.
"Take it off," Luca commanded.
His tone was so devoid of warmth that two women at the neighboring table shivered.
"Luca, don't do this here," Vanessa pleaded, tears of humiliation finally spilling over her mascara.
"Not in front of everyone."
"Take it off before I have my men take it from your finger," Luca repeated, not blinking.
With shaking hands, Vanessa twisted the massive diamond ring off her finger.
She placed it on the white linen next to the muddy leather halter.
Luca picked up the ring between two fingers, inspected it with utter disgust, and dropped it into a half-empty glass of red wine.
The expensive diamond sank to the bottom, stained in deep crimson.
"Marco," Luca said without turning his head.
A tall, broad-shouldered man in a dark charcoal suit stepped out from the shadows near the entrance.
"Yes, Boss?" Marco answered.
"Escort Miss Bellini off my estate immediately," Luca instructed coldly.
"Pack every garment and piece of jewelry she brought into this house and throw it onto the front lawn."
"If she is ever found within ten miles of Ava or this property again, do not bother asking for my permission to handle it."
Vanessa gasped, clutching her silk gown as Marco gripped her upper arm with uncompromising force.
"You'll regret this, Luca!" she hissed, her voice turning shrill as she was dragged toward the double doors.
"The Bellini family won't let you disgrace our name like this!"
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"My father will bring an army to your gates!"
The heavy oak doors slammed shut behind her, cutting off her hysterical screams.
