“I don’t know if this information is useful or-”“Just say it, Cavendish!” George hissed while gripping Natalie’s jaw. His gaze glared fiercely. He was almost out of patience.Natalie closed her eyes, then whispered, “I heard that the ship carrying Dante’s belongings was badly damaged. So, it’s stuck at the port. But I don’t know where the port is or what goods they’re referring to.”George’s eyebrows rose after hearing that. That was definitely interesting information. A sly smirk appeared on his face. “Do you know where he went?”“No.” Natalie lied. She suspected Dante’s departure to Las Vegas was to take care of the matter of the ship and his belongings. Maybe the port Ricky Goodman and Dante had talked about that night was in Las Vegas. Who knew?“Are you sure?” George stroked Natalie’s hair. He didn’t trust her easily because Natalie was a lying woman. Suddenly, he grabbed her hair with such force that she winced in pain.“Are you sure you don’t know?” The man asked once again.“
“Dante ....” Natalie muttered in a trembling voice. Dante and Alex were wearing all-black, covered clothing, but she could see that one of them, or even both of them, was injured.Dante carried Alex to the sofa. Lizzy, whose reflexes were quick, rushed over to them. “What happened?” she asked worriedly.“Help me take care of his wound!” Dante ordered without answering Lizzy’s question.“Okay.”Lizzy ran to get the first aid kit. Meanwhile, Natalie stayed frozen in place. She tried to calm down and act naturally, not letting Dante suspect her.She hurried over to the man and asked, “Are you hurt, too?” She held Dante’s arm and scanned his body.“Just a minor injury,” Dante replied. He let go of Natalie’s hand and helped remove Alex’s coat and shirt. The man’s right chest looked bloody with a bullet hole. Although it wasn’t deep, the blood kept flowing.Natalie, who saw that, could only gulp with a shaky feeling. “I... I’ll get a towel,” she said, quickly turning around and going to the
Natalie released her embrace and looked into Dante’s eyes. “I’m so sorry for you,” she said softly.Dante wiped the tears from her face. “Why sad? Death and loss are common in the underworld. The lives of subordinates are just like cannon fodder.”“Do you think of them that way?” Natalie asked.The man was silent. Natalie sighed. “It seems like the underworld is indeed a terrible place,” she muttered before finally stepping away.Dante watched Natalie walk away. His eyes were closed, and his hands were clenched into fists. After a moment, he got up and walked over to Alex and Lizzy. The girl was already bandaging the gunshot wound.“Rest in the guest room,” Dante told Alex.“I want to talk to you.” Alex’s gaze was serious when he said that. But Dante was tired and needed some time alone.“We can talk about it tomorrow,” Dante replied.Alex shook his head disapprovingly. He asked Lizzy to leave him alone with Dante. The girl obediently stepped away.“What’s so urgent? You’re about to p
Lunch was ready. Natalie invited Alex and Lizzy to join her and Dante at the table. Lizzy refused at first, but Natalie persuaded her to sit at the table. The chicken noodle soup was perfect for the cold weather that day. Natalie gave each of them a bowl of soup. “Please try it,” she said. “Thank you,” Lizzy said with a smile. Without hesitation, she tasted Natalie’s cooking. Alex also did the same. Natalie looked at them curiously. “Is it delicious?” Lizzy nodded quickly. “Miss, I didn’t know you could cook. It’s delicious!” Natalie smiled widely, happy to hear the compliment. She glanced to the side and saw that Dante was looking at her. “What?” she asked. “You’re not that happy when I compliment you,” Dante said. “When did you compliment me?” “Wasn’t it just now in the kitchen?” Dante replied as he looked at her with a furrowed brow. Natalie laughed mockingly. She finally asked Alex, “Does he think mockery is a compliment?” Alex smiled. “I guess so.” Dante gave Alex a sar
Natalie had only been in the room for a few moments, and someone was already knocking on her door. She opened the door, and Dante immediately pulled her out. “My grandfather’s here,” he said.“Uh, that’s surprising.” Natalie feigned surprise. “What’s he here for?”“About my condition, of course,” Dante said as he led Natalie by the hand down the stairs.“You look better now.”Dante looked at Natalie and her sexy lips. He smiled. “But I don’t think I can play in bed to the fullest today. Maybe we can do it tomorrow. You can be patient, right?”“Who the fuck wants to play in bed with you?!” Natalie glared. The man just smiled and grabbed her waist. However, his lips immediately grimaced as their bodies collided.Natalie snorted. “See? You’re even still in pain.” She immediately moved away from Dante’s body, which, although it looked big and muscular, was actually weak and full of bruises.Dante just sighed grimly. He finally brought Natalie to see his grandfather, who was sitting at the
Over the next few days, Natalie focused on taking care of Dante until he was fully recovered and able to return to work as usual. The man was also kind enough not to cause her any trouble. However, somehow everything seemed to change.In the morning, while they were having breakfast, Natalie expressed her wish. “Dante, I want to go back to Los Angeles,” she said, looking at the man eating pancakes.“Do you want to see your grandma?” Dante asked casually. He wasn’t surprised since they had discussed the matter before.“Yes, if you let me,” Natalie replied.“Okay. I’ll accompany you to LA tomorrow.” Dante decided without much thought.Natalie stared at her plate of pancakes with a complicated feeling. Dante had agreed so easily and even arranged to accompany her. “Won’t that inconvenience you?”“I have a trip in the same direction tomorrow. So we can go together,” Dante said.“Oh.” Natalie nodded. “Where are you going?”Dante looked at her deeply. The corners of his lips turned up. “On
Dante couldn’t shake the image of Natalie in his head. He kept thinking about why she was lying on his bed and acting pathetic. Should he call her?“No.” Dante shook his head. He suddenly thought of something else and quickly called Alex.“Natalie’s going to Los Angeles tomorrow. Take the opportunity to install surveillance cameras in the penthouse. Don’t be conspicuous! I don’t want her to notice,” Dante told Alex.“Are you sure?” Alex asked. Inside Dante’s luxurious and expensive penthouse, there were no surveillance cameras. Why? Because Dante had rarely occupied it in the past and the building’s security was good.There was nothing particularly valuable or important that Dante wanted to protect in the penthouse. If he suddenly wanted to install surveillance cameras, the reason was definitely not because of the treasure. And that was true. The reason he suddenly wanted to install surveillance cameras was because he wanted to keep an eye on Natalie.“Yes, just do as I ask!” Dante lo
“Come to my office if you miss me.”Dante’s words rang in Natalie’s head. She looked at the piece of cake on the plate with complicated feelings. Her face flushed slightly.“How stupid,” Natalie muttered. She shouldn’t have said she missed Dante. What was he thinking right now? Was he laughing at her?Natalie closed her eyes, thinking it best to return to the penthouse. She wasn’t going to go see Dante.As she got up, she saw a waiter shooing away a middle-aged man dressed in dirty clothes, like a bum. The commotion caught her attention.“Please, I just want to buy your food. I have money to pay,” the homeless man pleaded, showing a few coins.“We don’t accept bums like you. Get out of here! You’re an eyesore!” the waiter shouted with a look of disgust.Natalie, who saw that, sighed tiredly. She picked up her shopping bag and walked over to them. “What a bad cafe. Even a waiter can’t respect a customer,” she said sarcastically.The waiter looked at Natalie with a furrowed brow. He tri
“What happened to you, sis?” Kelsey let go of the hug. She cupped her hand on Natalie’s cheek and gently wiped away her tears. A complicated look filled her eyes.They had been separated since Kelsey was in middle school. Even before Natalie was imprisoned, they rarely saw each other. Even so, Kelsey used to see Natalie’s face either on the internet or in magazines. She knew her sister’s appearance wasn’t like that and shouldn’t have changed that much.Natalie shook her head and smiled. “Nothing. I just had surgery to change my identity. Call me Cavendish in the future, okay?”Kelsey didn’t say anything. She pulled Natalie’s hand towards her dorm room. She lived alone there, so she had more freedom to bring guests in.“Sis, I missed you.” Kelsey hugged Natalie after they entered the room. She burst into tears. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be a good sister,” she said through tears.“No, Kelsey.” Natalie shook her head. “You’ve suffered a lot over the years. Living alone isn’t easy, but you’ve
Natalie sat near the plane window. Her seat was only economy class, but she didn’t complain or mind. Just being able to go to London was good for her.Moments later, the plane took off. Natalie stared out the window in silence. She tried not to think about anything, including Dante. Since yesterday, she had always distracted her mind from thinking or remembering anything about him.Meanwhile, Dante was in the first-class seat. He wasn’t worried that Natalie would escape his watchful eye. They were on the same plane, after all.The trip took a while. They arrived in London at midnight. Natalie got off the plane and immediately looked for a money changer at the airport. Luckily, she had experience flying to London, so there was no confusion.She exchanged her dollar bills for British currency and then left the airport to find a place to stay. Somehow, she felt that someone was following and watching her. She quickly turned around and looked around, but no one looked suspicious.Natalie
The next day, Aland went to Dante’s penthouse without Natalie knowing. He sneaked out and pretended to be mysterious when leaving the hotel. George, who had been watching them since last night, frowned.“Where is he going?”George quietly followed Aland. He became even more curious after realizing Aland was going to Dante’s penthouse. “What’s he planning?”Aland was asked by Dante to pretend to steal. So, he acted mysteriously and carefully. He knocked on the door. It wasn’t long before Cedric opened it.“Aland, you—”“I want to see Mr. Vittorio,” Aland said.Cedric let him in and closed the door again. Then Aland went straight to Dante. It turned out that the man had already prepared the items he would take.“Here are Natalie’s passport and wallet. She has to leave tonight,” Dante said seriously.“Are you really going to just let her go? What if she runs into trouble in London?” Aland asked cautiously.Dante smiled. “You don't need to worry. I’ve already arranged everything.”Aland c
Dante lay in the coffin comfortably. The lid was not closed, so he could see Alex looking at him flatly. “Looks like you’re quite happy living in a coffin,” Alex quipped.The smile on Dante’s lips grew. He heard the sound of approaching footsteps and signaled Alex to be quiet. This time, he wanted to know how his younger brother would respond.Anthony stared at the black coffin in the living room with narrowed eyes. Roberto, who saw his arrival, immediately asked, “Why did you come here?”“Grandpa, I heard about it,” Anthony said without removing his gaze from the coffin. He hadn’t gotten close enough to it to see Dante’s face or body.“Why do you have to hide things like this? Is my brother really dead?” Anthony asked his grandfather.Roberto took a deep breath. “Anthony, how many people expected his death? If our enemies find out about it, they will immediately take advantage of the situation,” he replied seriously.“Why did you come here? You haven’t answered my question,” the old
That night, Natalie ran out of the apartment building looking like a mess. Her long hair was tangled and messy. She was only wearing pajamas, so her arms, bruised from Dante’s whipping, were visible to others.Her cheeks were red from the man’s slap, and there were even traces of his fingers. She looked down and covered it with her hands because she didn’t want others to see it.Barefoot, Natalie ran on the sidewalk. People might notice her, thinking she was crazy or homeless. However, she didn’t care. Her feelings were completely shattered, and she just wanted to escape as far as possible.Snowflakes fell onto her body, making her even colder. Her lips turned pale and blue. She hugged her body in the hope that no one would chase her.Unknown to Natalie, someone was watching and following her from afar. It was George who was always watching the apartment building. He wanted to approach her to find out if the information about Dante’s death was true.Just as he was about to approach Na
Natalie was really sick. That whole day, she just lay in bed with a weak body. Even the next day, she had trouble getting out of bed. Lizzy, who knew about her situation, became worried.“Mister, don’t you want to do something? She’s really sick, not just pretending,” Lizzy said to Dante. She hoped he would call a doctor or do something to treat Natalie.Dante was lazing around in his room. He was pretending to be dead, so he couldn’t do any work outside. When Lizzy spoke, he only glanced at her. “Just let her be sick. I won’t bother her,” he said.“Don’t you still need her existence? If she’s sick, how will she get to London?” Lizzy continued to persuade her employer.“Why do you care so much about her? You’re better off here, keeping me company,” Dante said as he patted the bed beside him. He smiled sweetly at the girl.“Sir, no kidding!” Lizzy gave Dante an annoyed look. She knew he wasn’t serious.“Alright. I’ll see her later,” Dante said indifferently.Lizzy finally stopped bothe
That night, Natalie was too tired from crying until she fell asleep sitting on the floor and leaning against the side of the bed. She woke up when someone suddenly opened the door in the morning.Lizzy came in carrying a tray of breakfast. She placed it on the table and stepped closer to Natalie.“Miss...” The girl looked at Natalie sadly. What happened last night really saddened her. She hadn’t expected Natalie and Dante’s relationship to suddenly fall apart.Natalie looked down and tried to stand up. She looked at her own horrible-looking reflection in the mirror. Her eyes were puffy and red. Her lips were pale, and her appearance was a mess, but she didn’t care.“I want to talk to Dante,” Natalie said hoarsely. She had been crying for so long that her voice was almost gone.Lizzy sighed. “Miss, he wants you to leave America immediately.”“Leave America?” Natalie was surprised to hear that.“Mr. Vittorio wants you to go to London. He doesn’t want to see you again or have anything to
In the middle of the night, Roberto was about to fall asleep when Marco suddenly knocked on the door and entered his room. “Sir, Alex wants to see you. He has urgent news,” Marco said seriously.Dante’s grandfather frowned. He finally sat up. “In this middle of the night?”Marco nodded. Roberto sighed. “Let him in,” he said.Before Marco left the room to call Alex, Alex had already barged in. His face looked pale and worried. “Sir, I have some bad news,” he reported.“What is it?”Alex swallowed. He looked down and said, “Something happened to Dante. He’s...”Roberto looked at him sharply. “What happened to my grandson?!”“Someone badly injured him. He’s... dying,” Alex replied quietly, without daring to look at the old man.“No way!” Roberto shook his head in disbelief. Suddenly, he held his heart and looked in pain. “What... has happened?”Alex raised his gaze and panicked at Roberto’s pale face. Had he lied too much to the old man to cause a relapse of his heart disease?“Sir, calm
In the car, Alex waited uncertainly. Dante still hadn’t called him, so he was worried. Was everything okay?He held his cell phone uncertainly. After some consideration, he finally decided to call him. The phone rang for a long time, but Dante didn’t answer.“Ah, too long. I’d rather go up to the penthouse,” he muttered.Finally, Alex grabbed the gun from the dashboard and exited the car. He had to carry a weapon, just in case. After that, he hurried up to the penthouse.Arriving at the penthouse floor, Alex pressed the bell several times. Unfortunately, no one would open the door for him. He sighed and barged in with his access card.The first sight he saw surprised Alex. The penthouse was a mess. Rose petals and small crushed candles were scattered on the floor. Some glassware, such as vases, was also broken and scattered.Alex immediately went deeper and saw Dante sitting quietly at the dining table. Lizzy and Aland, who were standing in the corridor, immediately looked at Alex exp