The Mafia Heir Who Came Back from the Grave

My heart seized up, freezing me in place.

Mia pushed Vincent away and shrank back. "I just found out a few days ago. It won't be a big deal to terminate now. I'll leave with nothing. Just... make it up to Elena."

With that, she turned and bolted for the door.

Vincent’s face changed instantly, and he chased after her.

Instinctively, I blocked his path, demanding answers, but he shoved me away hard.

"Elena!" His eyes were filled with pure loathing. "No matter how much you kick up a fuss, it’s between us! Ever since you scared Mia six years ago, she’s had severe persecution delusions. She does crazy things when she’s triggered. Are you really so vicious you want to destroy her? If anything happens to her, I’ll never forgive you."

His shove sent me stumbling backward. My neck landed on the shattered glass on the floor. Warm blood gushed out instantly.

As I blacked out, I heard Sonny and Vincent talking.

"Vincent, Elena is losing a lot of blood!"

"Call an ambulance. Dump her at our private hospital in Queens. Clean this mess up. Mia’s pregnant; she can't stand the sight of blood."

When I came to groggily, two nurses were whispering in the hospital room.

"Miss Rossi only had a minor scare. Mr. Castellano moved her into the top VIP floor and hasn't left her side, terrified she'd be upset."

"This patient... isn't she the one who... You know, six years ago..."

"Shh! Are you trying to die? She's fine. Let's get out of here."

As the door clicked shut, I slowly opened my eyes and laughed at myself.

I touched the gauze on my neck, tears sliding down my cheeks.

I wiped them away and struggled to my feet, ready to sort out the bills.

The moment I stepped outside, Vincent stormed out of the elevator, grabbed my wrist with bruising force, and snarled,

"Elena, what the hell is wrong with you? The fake death was my idea, Mia had nothing to do with it! Why are you smearing her online? She saw those posts and got so worked up she almost jumped off a building, do you know that?!"

His grip was like a vise, crushing my wrist.

I shook him off with all my might, shouting back, "Vincent, I didn't do any of that!"

He scoffed, shoving his phone in my face.

The screen was filled with vile rumors about Mia being a homewrecker. There was even a long exposé detailing how Vincent faked his death for her, deceiving his girlfriend for six years. It had even affected the Castellano family's underground business.

The media outlet that published it was owned by my blind date, Leo Christopher's family.

Vincent’s eyes were glacial, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Still denying it? The owner of that news site is the guy who's obsessed with you."

"Whenever it involves you, that news site is always the first to report it."

I stood there stunned, explaining with a mix of frustration and exhaustion, "I hadn’t had any contact with him before..."

"Don't you dare lie to me!" Vincent cut me off, his eyes full of disappointment. "Elena, how did you become so calculating? You used to be so kind. Now you're trying to drive Mia and her baby to their deaths."

He paused, his voice softening slightly, but every word was a dagger to my heart.

"Have you forgotten how painful it was to lose our child?"

I jerked my head up, locking eyes with him.

It felt like a blunt knife was slicing through my heart, tearing open a wound that had barely scabbed over.

I suddenly remembered six years ago. The day I found out I was pregnant, I had walked in on Vincent and Mia tangled together.

Back then, I knew he was cheating, but I hadn't confronted him yet.

I ran at him like a madwoman, but he shielded Mia and shoved me away hard. I fell heavily to the ground.

A sharp pain shot through my abdomen, and I felt a warm wetness between my legs. Our baby was gone. Right then and there.

Later, he staged the suicide attempt, the fake death, and my desperate compromise. It was all a sham.

I forced a bleak smile, my voice hoarse and broken.

"Vincent, your reputations are ruined forever."

"And you have no right to mention my child."

"Elena, shut your mouth!"

Vincent snapped, his brows furrowing. His eyes were ice-cold, devoid of any remorse.

"This is between you and me. Mia has nothing to do with it."

He leaned down, lowering his voice to a bare whisper, a naked threat in his tone.

"All these years, you've been killing yourself working, just to pay for your adoptive mother's heart surgery in Chinatown, right?"

"I heard they finally found a donor match?"