Chapter 3 - The Cruel Laughter
Hearing Lucia’s quiet, heartbroken answer, Camille threw her head back and laughed loudly. It was a sharp, grating, and deeply mocking sound that completely silenced the immediate area around the grand marble staircase.
"Oh, your mama made it?" Camille repeated, her voice dripping with venomous, theatrical sarcasm. "Well, your mama is as untalented as she is poor!"
With another swift, vicious motion, Camille reached out and physically lifted the patched hem of the yellow dress even higher, intentionally exposing the frayed stitching and the faded fabric for all the surrounding, wealthy guests to clearly see.
"Look at her cheap clothes," Camille mocked loudly, turning her head to address her sycophantic friends standing nearby. "It's an absolute disgrace. We throw million-dollar parties, and the staff brings their diseased little rats to crawl all over the marble."
Standing near the heavy oak service doors on the opposite side of the massive ballroom was Elena Rossi.
Elena was a thirty-two-year-old woman wearing a crisp, traditional black-and-white maid uniform. She had fair skin, dark hair pulled back into a neat bun, and a heart that was currently pounding violently against her ribs. She was Lucia's mother.
Elena had only taken this grueling, humiliating domestic job two weeks ago out of sheer, absolute desperation to pay for her daughter's mounting medical bills. She had explicitly told Lucia to remain hidden in the servant's quarters, terrified that someone in this specific, highly dangerous mafia stronghold would recognize her.
But seeing her beautiful, innocent seven-year-old daughter being publicly tortured and humiliated by the arrogant fiancée completely destroyed Elena's protective camouflage.
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Elena dropped the heavy silver serving tray she was carrying. She immediately rushed forward, desperately pushing her way through the dense crowd of elite guests toward the grand staircase.
👉 Read Part 4 to discover the terrifying arrival of the apex predator.
