“I married the ruthless mafia Don, Zane Falcone, at seventeen to pay off my father's blood debt. For three years, I played the obedient wife, secretly hoping my childhood love would thaw his cold heart. But on our third anniversary, he left me dining alone, openly flaunting his cartel heiress mistress to the entire underworld. The final blow came when my father was dying in the hospital. I called Zane, begging for a car. "I am in the middle of entertaining our southern allies, Aria. Stop being dramatic." He hung up on me. Through the receiver, I could hear him dancing with his mistress. By the time I rushed to the hospital, my father was already dead. At the funeral, Zane abandoned me in the pouring rain to answer his mistress's phone call. When he finally came home, he didn't offer condolences. Instead, he ordered me to pack his mistress's bags. I handed him the divorce papers, telling him the debt was paid, but he tore them to shreds. "Nobody leaves the Famiglia! You are mine until you are dead!" Looking at his unhinged rage, a switch flipped inside my chest. I didn't understand why I had wasted my youth hoping to change a monster who saw me as nothing but a breathing contract. The next morning, I grabbed my fake passport, snapped my SIM card in half, and disappeared.”