The Past Is a Wound That Won't Heal

Isabella's POV

I turned, and my eyes met Ricardo's deep blue gaze.

Lucia clung affectionately to his arm, standing at his side as if they were the real couple.

"Ecco, for you," Ricardo said as he handed me a small red velvet box.

Inside was a tiny silver stud earring.

I looked at Lucia. Around her neck was a dazzling purple diamond the size of a pigeon's egg. Sneering, I pushed his hand away.

Seeing that I was about to leave, Ricardo hurried after me, whispering an explanation.

"Lucia is pregnant, so I gave her the necklace to keep her happy. Once she has the baby, you can raise it as yours. What's a little grievance now? Don't be unreasonable."

I looked at him, my emotions a tangled mess.

"Ricardo, we're already divorced. Stop giving me gifts."

I turned to go, but Ricardo's face suddenly darkened.

"Basta, Isabella! As the Donna of the Gambino Famiglia, stop harping on about a divorce! You're embarrassing the Gambino name!

"I've never once held the fact that you can't have children against you. I even let Lucia carry one for you. Why can't you understand where I'm coming from?"

His eyes were red, as if I were the guilty one here. Meanwhile, next to him, Lucia looked at me tauntingly, her eyes gleaming with smugness.

Sophia couldn't stand it anymore. She stepped forward, ready to reveal the truth. "Don Ricardo, you're falsely accusing Isabella. There's nothing wrong with her. The real problem lies with—"

But before she could finish, Lucia suddenly—and deliberately—stumbled, crashing into me.

I lost my balance, and my lower abdomen slammed straight into the edge of a curbside trash can. A shriek of pain escaped me.

Startled, Sophia rushed to steady me, only to see blood flowing from between my legs.

When he saw that I was hurt, Ricardo's face went pale. He moved to pick me up, but Lucia suddenly screamed.

"Don Ricardo! My stomach hurts so much! Our baby… Will our baby be okay?"

She clutched her belly, feigning an expression of agony.

Ricardo looked at me, then at her. In the end, he scooped Lucia up and carried her into the car.

"Isabella, wait for me. Once Lucia's baby is safe, I'll come back to save you…"

The words had barely left his lips when the car door slammed shut. I watched the car speed away before everything went black, and I fainted.

…

When I woke up again, I was lying in a hospital bed.

"My baby?" I asked instinctively.

The nurse by my side answered softly, "Don't worry, the baby is fine."

I exhaled in relief.

"Is the director here?" I asked quietly.

The nurse looked up, smiling. "Do you mean Dr. Valentino? He's on leave, preparing for his wedding. I heard his girlfriend is pregnant…"

She sighed, then continued. "Dr. Valentino is one of our hospital's finest. So many people adore and admire him. I wonder which woman is lucky enough to be marrying him…"

Hearing that, I secretly smiled to myself.

The checkup showed that everything was fine, so I checked myself out of the hospital.

I planned to collect Mamma's black opal pendant from the antique shop, which should have been restored by now.

But when I arrived, the display spot for the pendant was empty.

The antique shop owner looked at me, puzzled.

"Signora, we already delivered the pendant to the Gambino estate two hours ago. Didn't you receive it?"

Isabella's POV

A sudden wave of dread surged through me. I turned and rushed out the door. Without wasting another second, I hailed a cab and headed straight for the Gambino estate.

The moment I stepped inside, the scene before me stopped me cold. On the gray marble floor lay Mamma's black opal pendant—shattered into three pieces.

I never imagined that the only keepsake Mamma had left me would end up broken like this.

I stood frozen, as if all the blood had been drained from my body in an instant.

In the living room, Lucia was sitting in Ricardo's lap.

"My mother's pendant… What happened to it?"

I was furious, and my voice quivered as I demanded an answer.

Lucia's eyes widened in mock fear when she saw me.

"Mi Dispiace, Signora. I accidentally knocked it onto the floor earlier… I didn't mean to…"

She walked over hesitantly, her expression so pitiful it would make anyone feel sorry for her. But as she neared me, she whispered in my ear, "Actually, I did mean to. I'm carrying the Gambino heir now, and you're nothing but an abandoned stray. And you still want to stick around?

"This useless stone? I can do whatever I want to it!"

Enraged by her words, I lunged at her. "Lucia! Give me back my Mamma's pendant!"

But before I could get close, Ricardo grabbed me.

"Isabella, are you done making a scene yet? Lucia's already apologized. What more do you want? It's just a lousy pendant. Is it worth you getting so angry over it?"

His expression was dark, and his brows were tightly furrowed. The way he glared at me was as if he were looking at a hysterical madwoman.

"What are you saying, Ricardo? You know very well that's the only memento I have of my Mamma. Yet you allow her to destroy it? Do you even have a heart?"

A flicker of guilt crossed his deep blue eyes, but it vanished quickly.

"It's just a piece of opal. The Gambino Famiglia has anything you could ever want."

He thought it was just another stone. I laughed bitterly. The pendant was something Mamma had given me on my wedding day—the only piece of warmth she'd left behind, the light that had kept me going.

Tears fell onto the floor. I felt like a chunk of my heart had been viciously ripped out.

Seeing me like this, Ricardo felt a momentary pang in his heart. He paused, his eyes reddening as his voice softened.

"I promise I'll have someone make you an exact replica… Va Bene?"

I looked at him, and whatever lingering hope I'd held for him died.

"No need. What I wanted… is long gone."

I sank to my knees. With my fingers, I slowly gathered every shard of the broken opal into a velvet pouch, not even leaving the tiniest speck of powder behind.

Once they were all collected, I clutched the pouch tightly against my chest.

"Andiamo, Mamma. We're never coming back to this place again."