Page 58 of Married to the Ruthless Mafia Heir

"She told me to give this back to you."

Lucia opened her palm, holding out the ring. "Elena looked so anxious when she left. She said the manor wasn't safe, but I don't know what happened to her."

I took the ring. My fingers trembled slightly.

"I asked if she'd told you any of this. She just shook her head. She looked so disappointed." Lucia met my eyes, grief-stricken. "Dante, what happened between you two?"

Elena hadn't told me anything. Because she'd already tried. And I hadn't given her the answer she needed.

The last time we'd seen each other, days ago, she'd asked if I would protect her if Valentina hurt her. I'd thought it was strange, thought she was being paranoid. Now it seemed much worse.

"Check the recent security footage. Find out what Elena went through at the manor." Lucia nodded and rushed off to review the surveillance.

I collapsed onto the sofa, strength drained. An endless wave of regret for Elena crashed over me.

She was a good girl. She'd never chosen to hurt me. I was the one who'd bullied her, provoked her, blamed her for everything Salvador had done.

A dull ache seized my chest. I'd never felt pain like this before.

Soon Lucia returned with exported video files. "This is from a few days ago—Elena almost fell on the stairs. I found evidence someone deliberately poured oil there. They wanted her to slip."

I glanced at Marco. He quickly dragged the culprit before me—an unfamiliar maid.

She dropped to her knees, trembling, too guilty to even look up.

"Talk." I lit a cigar and pressed my shoe onto her hand, grinding down hard. "Who sent you? I'm only asking once."

She screamed. Bones cracked audibly. Her arm shook violently.

"It was Valentina!" The maid sobbed. "She paid me a lot of money to find chances to hurt Elena at the manor... preferably make her lose the baby!"

Perfect. Valentina.

She'd become a monster. That was my child. My wife. And she'd hired someone to hurt them.

In the footage, Elena looked so hurt when she fell. She'd started fearing everything around her. The manor that should have been her home had become a prison full of danger.

No wonder she left.

I tilted my chin up, not bothering with another glance. "Marco, clean this up."

They carried her out. I took long drags on my cigar, trying to numb my nerves with nicotine.

Marco approached. "Dante, what about Valentina? I've already assigned extra men to watch her."

I wanted to flay her alive. My voice turned cold even to my own ears. "Lock her up. Use any means necessary. Make her tell us where Javier is and why he came to New York."

"Don, if we lock her up now..." Marco hesitated. "Javier's cautious. If he notices something's wrong, he'll go underground."

He was right.

But thinking about Valentina using such filthy methods to hurt Elena made me want her to suffer. Still, reason won over impulse. Let her live a few more days. Eventually I'd repay Elena's suffering tenfold.

"Watch her closely. Figure out her communication channels, her meeting times, who she's contacted at the company. Once we trace Javier's location, lock her down immediately."

Marco nodded. "Understood."

I finished the entire cigar. The crystal chandelier light cast down from above, stretching my shadow long and twisted across the floor.