Chapter 2

Gemma POV

The harsh fluorescent lights of the ICU flickered overhead.

My father opened his eyes for a brief, agonizing moment.

His frail hand reached out and gripped my wrist with surprising strength.

"Go home, Gemma." His voice was a dry rasp. "Go to a house that isn't this Family's."

He closed his eyes again as the machines beeped in a steady, terrifying rhythm.

He knew.

He had sold his legitimate bakery to buy me a safehouse because he thought Enzo was an honorable man.

Now he knew the bitter truth.

Heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway.

It was Enzo's Consigliere, flanked by two armed guards.

He didn't even glance at my father. Instead, he handed me a leather-bound folder.

Inside was a Syndicate Debt Acknowledgment form.

The total at the bottom was staggering: $417,840.

"This includes last night's fines, plus retroactive penalties for every minor infraction over the past four years," the Consigliere stated flatly.

"Sign it, Donna Gemma. The Boss says it is just a formality to teach you discipline."

I looked at the cold, hard numbers, my blood running icy.

"Does Enzo track Valentina's time with this much precision?" I asked.

The Consigliere's eyes shifted away in quiet confirmation.

At nine o'clock that night, Enzo arrived.

He was carrying a takeout container of premium seafood porridge from my favorite restaurant.

He opened the lid and carefully laid out the utensils.

"You haven't eaten all day, have you? Eat first, then sign the ledger."

"My father just had major surgery," I said, my voice hollow.

"That is exactly why I waited until now to come." Enzo pushed the pen toward me.

"Sign it, and I will transfer fifty thousand for his medical fees. I won't just stand by and watch your father suffer."

"You want me to acknowledge a debt of over four hundred thousand dollars in exchange for fifty thousand?"

"Do you really think I will chase you down for four hundred thousand?" He frowned, clearly losing patience.

"What I want is for you to respect the rules. Acknowledge them, and we move past this."

Suddenly, my father began to cough violently in his sleep. The monitors screamed.

I jumped up in a panic, but my legs gave out.

Enzo instinctively reached out and caught my waist.

"Careful," he murmured. "Did you not sleep at all last night?"

Once the doctor confirmed my father was stabilized, Enzo checked his luxury watch.

"Nine forty-seven. Go home, pack some things, and get some sleep. If you arrive before ten, I won't fine you for being late."

Before I could answer, a woman's whining voice drifted from the end of the hallway.

"Enzo, I have been waiting for you for seven minutes. It is freezing."

Valentina.

Enzo turned around and walked over to take her umbrella. Her designer coat was slightly damp.

He pulled a tissue from his pocket and gently wiped the raindrops from her shoulder.

"My fault. I am sorry for making you wait."

A second later, Valentina's phone chimed. She looked at the screen and giggled.

"Three thousand five hundred dollars for seven minutes? I was just complaining, you didn't actually have to pay me."

Enzo handed the umbrella to his guard. "I made you wait. It is only fair I compensate you."

I looked down at the $417,840 debt ledger in my bag.

The sickening realization completely killed my appetite.

I picked up the warm container of seafood porridge and dropped it directly into the trash can.

Enzo caught the movement out of the corner of his eye.

He spun around, seeing the discarded container, his jaw tightening in silent, explosive fury.

I did not look at him. I turned my back and pressed my hands against the cold ICU glass.

I did not go home that night.

At exactly midnight, my payment access to the Family's joint trust was suspended.

At one in the morning, the estate security system deleted my biometric fingerprints from the penthouse locks.

A text from Enzo arrived immediately.

"Submit to my rules, and the doors will open. Starve yourself tonight if you want to throw tantrums."

Clara, who had come to keep me company, frowned deeply as she read the text.

"He locks you out of your own home, cuts off your money, and tells you to starve? He is a monster."

Suddenly, the ICU doors burst open. The doctor rushed out.

"Your father is bleeding again!" he shouted. "We need an urgent transfer, right now!"