Chapter 3 - The Ghost of the Past
Beatrice swallowed hard, her arrogant facade cracking. "I... I assumed Elena used her wages, sir."
Damiano slowly knelt down on the cold marble floor, completely ignoring the fact that his custom Italian suit was creasing. He brought himself down to Lily's eye level. He gently wiped a tear from the little girl's cheek with his thumb.
"Elena didn't pay for the tuition," Damiano said, his voice carrying clearly across the silent ballroom. "I did."
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd of billionaires and mob bosses. Rafael, the loyal bodyguard, closed his eyes, knowing exactly what was happening. The truth that had been buried for three years was finally coming to light.
Beatrice looked like she was going to faint. "You... you pay for the maid’s child?"
"Elena is not just a maid," Damiano stood up slowly, towering over Beatrice with the terrifying authority of a king. "Her late husband, Carlo, was my best friend. He took a bullet meant for my chest three years ago. Before he died in my arms, I swore on my life that his wife and daughter would never want for anything. I promised they would be protected."
Lily looked up at Damiano, her blue eyes wide. "You knew my daddy?"
"I knew him very well, Lily," Damiano said softly. "He was a hero."
He turned his lethal gaze back to Beatrice. "I gave Elena a job here because she refused to take my charity. She wanted to earn her keep. And I gave you strict instructions to ensure they were treated with absolute respect."
Beatrice was hyperventilating now. "Mr. Verrone, I... I didn't know! She never said anything! She just scrubs the floors!"
"She scrubs the floors because you forced her to," a new voice rang out.
May you like
From the servants' corridor, Elena stepped into the grand hall. She was a beautiful, exhausted woman in a faded grey uniform. Her hands were red and blistered, but her eyes blazed with a desperate, protective fire as she looked at her daughter.
👉 What dark financial secret is Elena about to expose in front of the entire underworld?
