Chapter 3

After that, Alessio comes up to the attic every morning and evening to drag me downstairs.

A black memorial tablet bearing Camilla Rinaldi's name stands in the middle of the living room.

The woman it's meant to honor sits just a few feet away, very much alive.

"Kneel and apologize."

Alessio grips the back of my neck and forces me down onto the cushion in front of the tablet.

Camilla watches from the leather couch, swirling her red wine with a mocking smile.

"Don't be so hard on her, Alessio," she says sweetly. "Miss Ashford is still your lawful wife, after all."

"My lawful wife?"

Alessio lets out a cold laugh and drives the toe of his shoe into my back.

"She doesn't deserve the title."

I stare at Camilla's name on the tablet until something inside me snaps.

I jump to my feet, grab it, and smash it against the floor.

The wooden tablet shatters with a loud crack, sending splinters flying across the living room.

"You're not even dead, Camilla! Are you really that eager to have a memorial?" I scream, my voice echoing through the room.

Alessio's face darkens.

He grabs me by the hair and drags me toward the basement.

Pain tears through my scalp. I struggle to keep my feet under me, but he doesn't slow down.

He throws open the heavy door and shoves me inside.

"If you can't follow my rules, you can stay down here until you learn."

I hit the cold concrete floor hard.

Before I can get up, the metal door slams shut behind me. The lock clicks into place.

The basement is freezing and pitch-black.

There is no food. No water. No one comes when I call for help.

I lose track of time.

My knees ache against the concrete, and my throat gets so dry that it hurts to swallow. Something rustles in the darkness, but soon I don't have the strength to care.

A fever sets in.

My thoughts blur, and I drift in and out of consciousness.

Three days later, the door finally opens, flooding the basement with light.

Alessio walks in and looks down at me.

I can't move.

He nudges my limp body with the toe of his shoe.

Once he sees that I'm still breathing, he says coldly, "You're not even fit to shine Camilla's shoes."

Then he turns and walks away.

By the time he lets me out, I'm so weak I can barely stand.

I start vomiting blood.

I lose weight so quickly that my clothes start hanging off me. Walking across a room leaves me struggling to stay on my feet.

Eventually, I go to the hospital.

The doctor orders several tests. When the results come back, he sits across from me with the report in his hands.

The look on his face tells me everything before he even speaks.

"It's already at an advanced stage."

I look down at the report, but the words blur in front of me.

"You have three months at most."

I hold the diagnosis in both hands. Then I start laughing.

I'm finally going to be free.

...

Before I step back into the Vescari estate, I throw my cancer diagnosis into the trash.

The moment I walk inside, Alessio and Camilla are discussing their wedding.

Alessio looks at me first.

He says, "After everything Camilla has been through, she deserves the wedding she was always meant to have. And I'll give it to her on our fifth wedding anniversary."

I say nothing.

I go upstairs, take out the divorce papers I prepared, and return downstairs with them.

"Alessio, I want a divorce."