Chapter 10

The last few lines were written in the same familiar handwriting that Elena had once admired countless times.

She is the wife my parents always wanted for me.

Since the marriage has already been arranged, the least I can do is fulfill the role expected of me.

The note slipped from her trembling fingers.

She didn't realize she was crying until a tear landed on the yellowed paper.

With unsteady hands, she unfolded another.

The wedding is over.

Elena looked happier than I've ever seen her.

But every night I lie beside her, all I can think about is how different my life would've been if I'd married Celeste.

If Elena had never entered my life... maybe my parents would've accepted her.

Beneath those lines, another entry had been added months later.

I keep my distance from Elena.

Strangely, she never complains.

She keeps her distance too.

Sometimes I can't understand what she's thinking.

Elena stared at the faded ink until the words dissolved behind the tears clouding her vision.

After a long while, she carefully folded every note exactly as she had found it.

One by one, she placed them back inside the hollow wooden bear.

She fitted the carved pieces together with painstaking care, leaving no sign that anyone had ever discovered its secret.

It felt painfully familiar.

For years, she had devoted herself to protecting a marriage that had already been broken before it even began.

Only after locking the bedroom door behind her did she finally sink onto the floor.

She wrapped her arms around herself as silent sobs echoed through the empty room.

All those years...

She had believed that if she loved him enough, one day Sebastian might love her back.

Now she finally understood.

She had been the only one living inside that dream.

**

Sebastian didn't return for another two days.

When he finally walked into the estate, Elena was opening a sealed envelope that had just arrived by private courier.

Inside was a travel authorization issued by the Ravenwood family's headquarters, along with the documents clearing her departure from the Vieri territory.

Before Sebastian could glance at the papers, she calmly folded them and slipped them back into the envelope.

She had just reached for her coat when his voice stopped her.

"Elena."

She turned.

"Yes?"

Sebastian remained silent for several moments before speaking.

"It's about Celeste."

His expression looked unusually troubled.

"She tried to take her own life."

He paused before forcing out the rest.

"She overdosed on sleeping pills."

"The doctors managed to save her... but it was close."

Elena listened quietly, never interrupting him.

After a long silence, Sebastian finally looked at her.

"I need your help."

She walked over and took the seat across from him.

"What do you need?"

He lowered his eyes.

"I think..."

His voice caught briefly.

"...we should file for a temporary separation."

He slowly continued.

"Celeste needs me right now."

Elena looked at him for several seconds.

Then she nodded.

"Alright."

Her answer came so quickly that Sebastian couldn't hide his surprise.

She asked only one question.

"Will we need to appear before the family council?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go."

**

Neither of them spoke during the drive to the headquarters where the Commission overseeing disputes between the city's mafia families handled legal matters involving marriage contracts and family alliances.

The paperwork was completed with remarkable efficiency.

Once both signatures had been witnessed and officially recorded, their temporary legal separation became effective.

As they walked down the courthouse steps, Sebastian found himself strangely unable to meet Elena's eyes.

"This is only temporary," he said after a long silence.

"When Celeste gets better..."

He hesitated.

"...we'll cancel the separation."

Elena simply nodded.

While he was speaking, she quietly sent a message confirming her seat on a private convoy leaving for Ravenwood territory before sunset.

Everything had fallen into place.

If she left that afternoon, she would be gone before nightfall.

When they reached the parking area, Sebastian stopped once more.

"There's one more thing."

Elena waited patiently.

"The rumors have spread farther than I expected."

He exhaled heavily.

"I need you to tell everyone our marriage had already been falling apart long before Celeste came back."

His voice became noticeably quieter.

"They can't think she's the reason."

Elena lowered her gaze to the separation agreement in her hands.

After a long moment, she smiled.

It was a gentle smile.

The kind that carried more sadness than tears.

"Alright."

She gave him nothing more than that single word.

Sebastian drove her back to the estate before leaving immediately for Celeste's house next door.

He never noticed that every suitcase in Elena's dressing room had already been packed.

She checked each one carefully, making sure every important document, family heirloom, and personal belonging had been accounted for before handing them over to the Ravenwood security team waiting outside the gates.

A little while later, Clara arrived.

She insisted on accompanying Elena to the private airstrip where the Ravenwood family's jet was waiting.

When it was finally time to say goodbye, she wrapped Elena in a tight embrace, holding on far longer than usual.

Only after watching Clara disappear behind the security checkpoint did Elena board the aircraft.

As the engines began to roar, she unlocked the encrypted network shared by the city's most powerful mafia families one final time.

With steady fingers, she typed a brief message addressed to every syndicate head.

Don Sebastian Vieri and I officially separated some time ago.

I wish him happiness in whatever future he chooses.

The message was delivered instantly.

Just before deleting her account from the network forever, Elena added one final line.

Goodbye. May we never meet again.