Chapter 3

Lila Vitale POV

As I drove toward Peace Peak Club, the black highway stretched beneath my headlights, tangled with faded memories.

I remembered Luca proposing to me in the private downtown garden, the look in his eyes that I once believed was true love.

I remembered signing financial agreements for his ambition, handing over my family’s wealth, connections and reputation entirely to him.

I remembered countless nights standing beside him — negotiating deals, clearing paths, cleaning up his messes.

I was the one who lifted him to the position of Don of the Vitale family. I watched him climb to the peak of power, shining brighter every day, while I faded into the shadows, the woman who held his entire world together.

I once told myself that was enough.

Peace Peak Club hid deep inside a vast forest, an exclusive private estate only open to the elite. No public cameras, no media scrutiny — the safest haven for power and secrets.

Ron had built it all himself. Private villas lined the lake, surrounding a central courtyard and outdoor party space, luxurious yet discreet.

He waited for me in a secluded villa.

His expression was unusually serious when he walked in.

“Caroline is on her way.” He tried to lighten the mood. “She brought supplies. Enough tequila to get everyone wasted.”

I forced a faint smile.

Ron had always been restrained, respectful, never crossing lines.

He led me to a villa across the lake, hidden among pine trees with an unobstructed view of the entire main party area.

From there, I could see everything Luca and his friends were doing.

I sat on the balcony and watched them.

Laughter, alcohol, music, reckless flirting. Luca and Sofia stood at the center of it all, shining and arrogant, as if the entire world revolved around them. Everyone else was just background noise.

Night fell, lights flickered on, and they started another game.

Sofia volunteered to play Blind Hunter.

“I’m going to catch you, Luca!” She laughed, her eye mask slipping loosely as she stumbled through the crowd with her arms outstretched.

The guests teased and misled her, yet she walked straight toward him as if guided by instinct.

In an instant, she lunged and grabbed his shirt.

“I caught you!”

“Alright, alright, you win.” Luca laughed softly, pretending to struggle.

“Truth or dare, Don!” Marco shouted.

“Truth.” Luca answered at once.

Marco smiled knowingly.

“Do you have feelings for Sofia?”

The question fell like a bullet, killing the lighthearted atmosphere instantly. Everyone waited for his answer.

Sofia stayed pressed against him, arms wrapped around his neck, pretending to be shy yet burning with anticipation.

“Stop it, Marco.” She pretended to protest. “You’ll embarrass him.”

But her longing was impossible to miss.

“Everyone can see it anyway.” Someone joked.

She buried her face in his neck.

Their eyes met.

A silent understanding passed between them — the secret language of two people who shared a world I was never allowed into.

“I bet you won’t kiss that scar again!” Someone yelled.

The crowd erupted.

Sofia’s eyes lit up.

“It’s a bet…” Her voice dropped, teasing and provocative. “I never lose.”

Her hand slid down his neck, across his chest, and stopped at his belt buckle.

Luca chuckled lowly. Indulgent. Permissive.

He covered her hand, but did not push it away.

It was not rejection. It was consent.

The mood grew heated — until Sofia slipped on gravel and stumbled backward.

Luca reacted instantly, pulling her into his arms as they fell together onto the grass.

He lay half on top of her, holding her waist tightly to steady her.

Her skirt rode up slightly. Without hesitation, Luca covered her leg and pulled her closer, gentle yet possessive.

A tenderness I had not received from him in years.

They stayed locked together, firelight softening their faces like a perfectly romantic scene.

And I watched it all from the darkness.

The crowd chanted in unison.

“Together! Together! Together!”

The noise crashed over me like waves.

I could barely breathe, as if someone had torn my heart out and left it freezing in the night wind.

I was a stranger watching someone else steal the life that was supposed to be mine.

Ron’s jaw tightened. He stood up, his knuckles white.

“Damn them…” he muttered.

I held him back. “Not yet.”

My hands shook as I dialed Luca’s number.

I needed one final answer. One irreversible ending.

Across the lake, his phone lit up.

He saw my name — and rejected the call immediately.

It rang again. And again. And again.

On the fourth ring, he grew annoyed, still lying on top of Sofia, his hand resting on her waist.

“Who is it?” Sofia asked lazily.

She leaned over, saw the screen, snatched his phone straight from his hand, and hung up — then turned it off entirely.

She tossed it casually onto the grass.

“No outsiders this weekend.” She tapped his nose softly. “That’s the rule.”

Luca smiled slowly, warmly, utterly devoted.

He held her tighter.

“I know the rules.” His voice was low and clear in the night.

“You come before everything.”

In that moment, it was over.

No more fantasies. No excuses. No self-deception.

Only one brutal truth.

He chose her.

My body trembled once, then went completely still.

I turned to Ron. “Do you have full surveillance here?”

My voice held no emotion at all.

He understood at once.

“Every corner. High definition, audio included, backed up to the cloud permanently.”

“Good.” I never looked away from the scene below. “Save all of it.”

My heart was torn apart.

But from the ashes, something new was rising.

He would learn exactly what happens when you betray your wife.

I would destroy every single thing he had built.