Where a Traitor's Kingdom Falls

As soon as I finished speaking, a wave of utter exhaustion washed over me.

The family's doctor, Dr. Marcus Elliot, hastily administered a shot of adrenaline.

The sharp sting jolted me back to consciousness.

Dr. Elliot wiped the sweat from his brow. "Stay with me, Mrs. Valenti. You have to stay conscious. If you pass out now, you might not wake up."

He added gently, "Think of your husband. Your child. They need you."

The Don's voice cut in, stern and commanding. "You saved my life. That is a debt I will never forget."

"When you recover, you will have everything you deserve. The child you're carrying is now my godchild."

"Hold on. I've sent for Julian."

Hearing the Don's words, I managed a weak smile. I knew better.

The warm gush of blood between my legs during the blast had already told me the truth. My baby was gone.

As for Julian, I knew he wasn't coming.

As if to confirm my thoughts, the Soldato the Don had sent returned alone. He kept his head bowed, not daring to meet the Don's eyes.

"Where is he?" the Don asked, his brow furrowed in displeasure.

The Soldato's voice trembled. "Don Castello, Julian... he refuses to come back. He said... 'Tell that drama queen to cut the act and stop wasting my time'..."

The Soldato was bent over at nearly a ninety-degree angle, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

I knew Julian's actual words were far crueler—the man just didn't dare repeat them verbatim to the Don.

After all, Scarlett had been slandering me for a long time. By now, Julian assumed any pain I felt was just an act for his attention.

In my past life, when I pleaded for his help, he called me vain. Now, when the Don himself summoned him, he called me a drama queen.

If he only cared about Scarlett, then why had he pursued me so desperately in the first place?

A bitter mix of sorrow and rage churned in my gut. I turned my head to the side and coughed up a spray of blood.

Dr. Elliot's expression grew grim.

"Don, she's critical! We're losing her. If we can't give her a reason to live, medicine alone won't be enough!"

The Don's gaze fell on my pale face. He could no longer suppress the fury rising in his chest.

He pulled out his encrypted satellite phone—a privilege reserved for his inner circle—and thrust it into the Soldato's hands. His voice was ice-cold. "Use this to call Julian."

"Everyone in this family knows my number. If he still refuses to answer, he's a traitor."

This time, the Don was truly enraged.

He was normally surrounded by guards, yet during the attack, not a single core security member had been by his side.

I had risked my life to save him, and yet his own Capo wouldn't even answer a summons for his dying wife.

This was more than just negligence. It was an open challenge to his authority.

I was rushed to a private floor of the hospital, where powerful drugs and a web of machines kept me alive as I awaited surgery.

When the Soldato spoke again, I was only half-conscious, but I heard his words.

"Don Castello, Mr. Thorne still refuses to come back. But... he sent an assistant."

I forced my eyes open and saw Brenda Cole, Scarlett's lackey and the woman who had betrayed me.

Brenda used to be my assistant.

But during my pregnancy, Scarlett had bribed her into leaking my architectural designs. The plagiarism scandal that followed nearly ruined my career.

Fortunately, I found evidence to prove my innocence.

I had no intention of forgiving the traitor. Just as I was about to fire her, Scarlett had intervened.

I still remembered that day vividly.

Scarlett had clung to Julian's arm, chiding me in a self-righteous tone.

"How can you be so cruel, Aurora? Brenda is just an assistant. How could she possibly have access to your final designs?"

"Don't try to tell me this isn't some drama you cooked up. Even if you want Julian's sympathy, you should never have dragged Brenda into it!"

Then, she had turned to Julian and cooed, "Julian, why don't you let Brenda be my assistant? I won't lose my temper with her for some ridiculous reason, like some people do."