Leaving the Don, Crowning Myself

Vincent,the Don of the Mafia,and I had just exchanged our vows in church when he brought home an orphan.

He said it was to repay a life debt.

From that day on,whenever it came to that girl,Lila,I always came second.

Lila framed me.She claimed I forced her to touch drugs.In a fit of rage,Vincent locked me in the Family's underground water dungeon for three full days and nights.

"The freezing water of the dungeon will teach you what mercy means!"

The bone-chilling cold was absolute torture.My heart completely died.I begged him through a high fever and pure despair.

Yet Lila just nestled into his chest,her voice dripping with fake concern.

"Elena is the Donna of the Family,after all.When she suffers,your heart hurts too.I really can't bear to see you like this."

Later,just to coax a smile out of Lila,Vincent publicly handed over my West Coast smuggling docks to her—a clueless little brat who couldn't even read a ledger.

This time,I didn't say a single word.

I simply took off my wedding ring.

A few days later,on the verge of a breakdown over my complete disappearance and tearing the city apart like a madman looking for me,he finally got the news.

I had been accepted into an Ivy League medical research institute,directly joining their highest-level,top-secret,closed-off medical program.

And I was never coming back.

He completely lost his mind.

The day the medical institute sent me the full scholarship and the offer for the closed-off program,my best friend Alicia stared at me in shock.

"Fully closed-off?Elena,this means you're stepping away from the Family completely.Leaving Vincent?"

I shook my head,my voice soft."It's just for five years.I want to learn the best surgical and trauma care techniques.When I come back,I'll be able to save more of Vincent's men during gang wars."

Alicia sighed and didn't try to persuade me otherwise.

She knew the truth.Everything I did was for one man—Vincent.

I said my goodbyes and hurried back to the estate.I was in a great mood.Five years was a long time,but to be able to help Vincent more,it was worth it.

I couldn't wait to tell him.I could even picture the scene—he would yank me into his arms,hold me fiercely,and tell me in that deep,husky voice of his that he couldn't stand me leaving his side for even a second.

My flight was in three days—exactly on our one-year wedding anniversary.

Maybe,in these last few days,he would be like he was on our wedding night. Claiming me roughly yet obsessively,over and over again.

But when I pushed open the doors to the estate,the brightly lit grand hall smashed all my fantasies to pieces.

It was Lila's coming-of-age debutante ball.

The scale of it was ten times more extravagant than our"wedding of the century."

My heart sank to the bottom of my stomach.

Vincent was ordering his men around,entirely focused on watching them build a massive champagne tower.He didn't even spare me a glance.

"Vincent,"I walked over,forcing down the tremble in my voice."I need to talk