Dumped at Noon, Settled by Night

Everyone in the Rossi family knows that their Don, Giovanni Rossi, loves me, Rebecca Costa, more than anyone else. Ever since we got together, he has stopped attending any social events that involve other women. We promised to marry once he returns from negotiating a dangerous arms deal in Aelfana. He was supposed to come back a week before the wedding, but instead, he returned on the eve of the wedding with Rosa Bianchi, his stepsister, in his arms. Rosa was unconscious, and traces of intimacy were visible on her skin. Giovanni kneeled before me, his expression remorseful. "Rebecca… I was drugged. I never meant to betray you. When Rosa threw herself at me, I thought she was you." And I believed him. At least, I did until I overheard a conversation in the changing room backstage at our wedding. One of his men asks, in disbelief, "Did you really mistake her for Rebecca?" "I did for the first night. But for the rest of the week… well, a man ought to have his bit of freedom before getting married." My fingers clench around my phone. In my inbox sits an unopened message—a marriage invitation from Angelo Calavaro, the most enigmatic Don in southern Ilya's underworld. I know what I have to do. Chapter 1 Everyone knew that Giovanni Rossi, the Don of the Rossi family, loved me the most. Before he left for Aelfana on a dangerous arms deal, we promised to get married once he came back. He was supposed to return a week before the wedding. Instead, he returned the night before the ceremony—carrying his stepsister, Rosa Bianchi, in his arms. He had kneeled in front of me and begged for forgiveness. I forgave him, but my wedding day brought an even bigger betrayal. I stood backstage for a while before finally walking back to the main hall. Giovanni saw me and immediately beamed. However, I saw a flicker of worry in his eyes. "Where did you disappear to?" he asked, reaching for my waist and leaning in to kiss me. I turned my head to the side. His hand hung in the air for a moment before catching my wrist. "You're still mad about Rosa, aren't you? That night was complicated. I swear it was just that one time." I stared at him silently. The man I once believed in had been replaced by the man I had overheard joking in the dressing room about how a groom deserved to indulge himself before the wedding. It was sickening. "Call off the wedding," I said. Giovanni's expression shifted. "No! Rebecca, after everything I've done for you? I even replaced my female secretary with a man after we got together, just to respect you! Without Rosa's help with the poison, I'd be dead. Would you rather have watched me die?" As I looked into his saddened gaze, I felt how absurd the situation was. I opened my mouth to speak, but Giovanni grabbed my arm. "Don't do this. We've waited too long for today. At least see the ceremony through." Then, his phone buzzed. The man who had just been so insistent on the importance of the wedding glanced at the screen. His eyes softened to the way they used to when he looked at me. "Give me half an hour," he said, letting go of me and fumbling for an excuse. "There's something urgent at the docks… I'll be back soon and we'll finish the ceremony!" He left in a rush after that. The priest, who was still holding the Bible, hesitated. I waved my hand, signaling to end the ceremony. I ignored the guests' murmurs and stepped out onto the terrace, letting the night wind dry the few tears clinging to my lashes. I stood there for an unknown amount of time before pulling out my phone and opening the marriage proposal from Angelo Calavaro that had been sitting in my inbox. Should I accept? I had never even met him. Who could guarantee that he wouldn't turn out to be another Giovanni? A chime broke my thoughts. It was a message from Rosa. I hesitated before opening it. A rush of ragged moans spilled from my earbuds. "Gio, are you going to stop loving me once you marry Rebecca? I'm so afraid." Giovanni murmured, "Calm down. Don't think about it. Isn't it enough that I'm yours right now?" Then came the unbearable sounds of flesh colliding and moans. I felt the blood rush to my face. I opened my inbox again without hesitation. "I accept." A reply came almost instantly. "Thank you for your consent. Don Calavaro will return within the week to escort you himself." Chapter 2 I was in a deep sleep when a loud, relentless knock on the door pulled me out of my dreams. My head throbbed from the noise. "Rebecca? Are you awake?" Giovanni asked. I didn't bother to answer. Moments later, the bedroom door swung open. Giovanni walked in. Rosa trailed behind him with a few girls she hung out with. Giovanni frowned. "Rebecca, Rosa insisted on coming to apologize." "Apologize?" I pushed myself up and pressed a palm to my pounding head. Rosa rushed to the bed and grabbed my hand. "Becca, I'm so sorry… I know what I did was wrong, but—" she trailed off, clutching her stomach with tears in her eyes. "The baby is innocent. Please… let me keep it." Her words snapped me awake. I turned to Giovanni. "Baby?" "I forgot protection… that night," he murmured, his gaze flitting to the side and avoiding mine. A humorless laugh escaped me. That night? It seemed like more than one night to me. Rosa's little entourage immediately chimed in. "Oh, what's done is done. Why keep bringing it up?" "Come on, if they conceived that easily, it must mean they're meant to be together!" One of them gave me a pointed look. "Maybe they're the real perfect match, unlike some people." "Shut your mouths!" Giovanni shouted. "Say one more word like that and you're out of the family. Rebecca is my wife, and Rosa will always just be a sister." The ladies fell silent. Rosa clutched her chest and looked at him with a wounded gaze. Giovanni turned to me, softening his tone. "Rebecca, my feelings for you haven't changed. But the child is innocent. If my family finds out, Rosa will be punished, and the baby won't survive." I raised an eyebrow. "So?" He steeled himself, reached for my hand, and pleaded, "Once the baby's born, we'll raise it together. You won't have to go through the pain of childbirth. You always said you were afraid of that, didn't you?" I stared at him. It felt like I was looking at a stranger. How had I never realized how shameless he could be? Before we got engaged, I had been upfront that I might never want children. He had agreed without hesitation. Now, after sleeping with his stepsister, he was acting as though it were all for my benefit. "Rosa," I called out, turning to her instead. "Are you willing to let your own child grow up calling you their aunt?" Tears welled in her eyes as she nodded meekly. "If… if that's what you want, then I have no regrets…" Giovanni's expression softened at her words. I felt sick to my stomach. Angry words rose to my throat, but I forced them back down. There was no point in wasting my breath. Angelo's proposal was already settled, and he'd be here in six days. "Fine," I said flatly. "Keep it." Relief washed over Giovanni's face. He stepped forward as if to embrace me. "Thank you, Rebecca. I knew you'd be reasonable!" I dodged his arm. His smile faltered, but he pressed on as if nothing had happened. "Rosa needs to rest. Could you look after her for a while, Rebecca?" "Gio, I don't want to bother her. Besides, I can't sleep in just any bed. I'm so used to the master bedroom," Rosa piped up with a sweet voice. Giovanni spoke up without thinking. "Then stay in the master bedroom." I snapped my head upward. The master bedroom had a custom-made mattress and chandelier that Giovanni had chosen to ease my exhaustion after years of managing family affairs. "And where exactly am I supposed to sleep?" I asked. Rosa whimpered, "I remember there's a servant's room in the master suite." "Are you out of your mind?" I shot back. That so-called room was barely 50 square feet. Giovanni frowned. "That room's too small. Rebecca's back isn't great, so she should at least have the guest bedroom." Rosa bit her lip and exchanged a look with one of her friends. A short-haired girl stepped forward. "Don Rossi, there's no room closer to the master bedroom than that one. If Rosa needs anything, it'll be easier for Rebecca to respond." I remembered the girl. She was a former secretary whom Giovanni had reassigned for poor performance. She'd always blamed me for it, convinced I was the reason Giovanni kept women at arm's length. Her smile at me was laced with pure mockery. "Besides, you've been so busy lately. Shouldn't the lady of the house be more understanding?" she said. Giovanni hesitated, then put an arm around my shoulder. "Rebecca, you said you'd take care of her. Once the pregnancy is stable in six months, you can move back. Alright?" "No, absolutely not," I rejected, my voice rising in anger. Rosa's eyes turned red again. "Becca, you don't want to take care of me?" Another girl snorted. "Don Rossi's practically begging you. Shouldn't a proper wife be more gracious?" "Exactly! What's so wrong with helping your regnant sister-in-law?" "Enough!" Giovanni barked, annoyed by their bickering. "It's settled. "Sebastian, move Rebecca's things to the servant's room. He then looked at me, trying for a gentler tone. "Take good care of Rosa. Once the baby's born, we'll have a proper wedding." Screw the wedding at this point! Their smug smiles burned into my back as one of them reached for my arm, trying to pull me up. "Get off!" I shoved her away and dragged myself to that cramped little room. I shut the door, and just as I was about to lie down to relieve my headache, Rosa's syrupy voice drifted through the door. "Becca, I'm a little thirsty. Could you bring me some warm water? It has to be exactly 104 degrees Fahrenheit, please." Chapter 3 I ended up barely sleeping the next two nights, for Rosa kept me up with her endless demands. First, she insisted that her water be exactly 104 degrees Fahrenheit, then she complained that the pillow was too hard. She even complained that the room was too stuffy. If I ignored her, she'd make an even bigger fuss. Around three in the morning, I finally managed to fall into a decent sleep while she was out of the room. That peace didn't last as the bedroom door crashed open. Giovanni stormed in, grabbed a fistful of my hair, and yanked me upright. "Rebecca! Was it you?" he screamed, eyes bloodshot. "How could you be so vicious?" I hit the floor hard, still groggy. "What?" "Don't play dumb!" He hauled me up by the collar and shook me. "My parents had Rosa taken away! They said that despite the lack of blood ties, they couldn't allow the scandal to continue. They want the baby gone!" He shook me harder. "It had to be you! Who else would have told them? You promised to let her keep it, but you couldn't stand her behind my back. That child is yours, too. How can you be so jealous?" The rough shaking made my aching head feel like it was going to split open. "I didn't do it…" I gritted my teeth as tears sprang to my eyes. "You didn't?" For a moment, something in his anger faltered as he saw me crying. It was almost as if he realized he had gone too far. Just then, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen, then immediately took the call. His voice sounded urgent. "Dad? How's Rosa? You can't…" Whatever came through the line made his expression darken further. He shoved the phone into his pocket and grabbed my arm. "Come with me. You're going to tell them that you agreed to let Rosa have the child as our firstborn!" "Let go!" I tried to pull back, but I was unsteady on my feet. He dragged me out of the room. "You don't get a choice in this." His strength was frightening. I stumbled repeatedly as my knees and elbows slammed into the sharp edges of the stairs, making them burn with pain. Giovanni didn't so much as glance back. His entire world at that moment was Rosa. The car tore through the streets, speeding past red lights. Every sudden brake and jolt slammed me against the cold window, each impact sending spikes of pain through my already throbbing head. The car screeched to a halt in front of his parents' estate. Even before we reached the door, I heard Rosa's frantic screams from inside the house. "No! Let me go! Gio, help me!" Giovanni dragged me inside and threw me at his parents' feet. My knees hit the floor with a sharp crack. "Giovanni!" his mother cried out in shock. "That's your wife!" "Say it!" he barked, his voice trembling but relentless. "Tell them that you agreed to let Rosa keep the child and you'll accept him as the heir!" I lay on the floor, ears ringing. My body felt as though it had splintered apart. I couldn't even see his parents' expressions clearly anymore. I didn't bother arguing and simply nodded. Giovanni let out a sigh of relief. The rise and fall of his chest slowed. Only then did he see, to notice how battered I looked. A hint of guilt crossed his face, and he moved to help me up. "Rebecca, I lost my cool earlier…" Just then, Rosa's piercing scream came from the next room. "Rosa!" Giovanni immediately left me and bolted inside the room. "What happened? Did they force you to take any medicine?" he demanded. Rosa's voice trembled. "No… I didn't… But my stomach hurts so much. I only drank the coffee Rebecca made for me last night…" She didn't finish her sentence, but the accusation was clear enough. "Rebecca!" he roared, reappearing in the doorway before grabbing me again. "Wasn't it enough to tip off my parents? Did you have to poison her, too?" I weakly shook my head. I was too weak even to speak. "It wasn't me." "It wasn't you?" he repeated, pointing a finger toward the room where Rosa lay moaning in pain. "She's in agony! Who else would want to harm her and the baby but you?" He didn't hear a word of my denial. He even ignored the uneasy looks his parents exchanged. "You need to learn your place!" he snarled. He then dragged me down the hall toward the dark, cold confessional room. "Stay in there and think about what you've done!" The heavy door slammed shut behind me with a sharp clang, the lock sliding into place with a merciless click. "Giovanni!" his father's stern voice rang out. "She nearly killed Rosa and the baby!" Giovanni's angry reply faded as he stalked away. "She needs to reflect on her actions. Rosa's my sister, and this is my child!" The cold seeped into my bones. My throat burned with thirst, my stomach cramped in protest, and my headache felt like a hundred needles stabbing into my skull. I didn't know how much time had passed, but when I was close to passing out, I finally heard footsteps outside the door. Giovanni appeared in the doorway and stared at me in silence as I huddled in the corner. Chapter 4 Giovanni silently held a glass of water to my lips. "Rebecca, why can't you just behave?" He sighed and frowned at me the way a parent might look at a stubborn child. "How long has it been?" I asked in a hoarse voice. "Three days," he answered, his voice heavy with exhaustion. I did the math in my head. There was just one more day until Angelo would be here. Relief loosened every last thread of tension in my body, and my vision went black. … When I came to, the hard wooden floor in the servant's room had been replaced by a soft mattress. Giovanni was sitting at the bedside with a glass of water in his hand. He let out a breath of relief when he noticed my eyes open. "This was just a lesson," he said gently, holding the glass to my lips. "As long as you don't try to hurt Rosa again, I won't leave you." I let out a bitter smile and tried to push myself up with shaky arms. "I told you I didn't hurt her." I braced myself against the mattress to get up, but the moment my feet hit the floor, I was hit by a wave of dizziness and crumpled to the ground. Giovanni didn't help me up. He snorted coldly and slammed the glass of water down on the nightstand. "You still haven't learned your lesson. I've brought Rosa back with my parents' approval. To keep you from trying anything else, I've injected you with a muscle relaxant. "It lasts for 24 hours," he said as he stared at my pale face. "I'll administer the injection to you myself every day until Rosa delivers the baby safely." If he really meant to keep me drugged for the next 8 months, I would probably be crippled by the end of it. My whole body trembled with rage at the thought. Giovanni noticed my distress, and he paused for a moment before realizing something. "You haven't eaten in days. Your blood sugar's crashing." He lifted me into the bed, then rummaged through the medicine box for glucose tablets. Just then, Rosa's voice sounded from the doorway. "Gio… My stomach hurts…" Giovanni stopped what he was doing and hurried to the door to steady her. "Where does it hurt?" She leaned into his chest and glanced in my direction. "Maybe it's a reaction to that coffee from the other night. Becca looks so weak. You should take care of her first." "You're being ridiculous!" Giovanni barked as he guided her away. "The baby's still at risk. You come first. She just needs some sugar, and she'll be fine." With that, he summoned a housekeeper and escorted Rosa out of the room. I was force-fed nearly half a cup of glucose water before sleep dragged me under again. I didn't know how long I'd been out before someone shook me awake. Giovanni stood at the bedside. He looked strangely uneasy. "You've slept enough. Rosa's been throwing up everything she eats. She says the only thing she can keep down is your cake." She was only a month pregnant, yet she was already experiencing morning sickness. I gave a weak, mocking smile. "Aren't you afraid I'd poison her again?" His expression darkened instantly, and his hand shot up. I flinched and turned my face away, bracing for impact. But the pain didn't come. Instead, his palm lightly ruffled my hair as it came down on my head. "Don't say things like that," he murmured with a flinch of annoyance in his voice. "I know you're not that kind of woman." I jerked away from his touch. He stubbornly caught my hand. "I was too harsh before. After calming down these past three days, I finally see that you did all those things because you love me." "First of all, I didn't do anything to Rosa. I just don't love you anymore!" I spat. He shook his head and spoke to me as if he were humoring a child. "If you didn't love me, why would you get jealous of Rosa carrying my child?" I snorted at his delusions. Giovanni went on. "After Rosa has the baby, we'll have our wedding properly this time. We'll adopt the child as ours. I know you won't mistreat your own child. Now stop sulking and make that cake. Don't starve our baby." I was too exhausted to argue. I just wanted to make it through the day. "I can't stand up," I said honestly. "I can't bake it." His gentle expression gave way to disappointment. "You're unbelievable." He grabbed my arm and hauled me to the kitchen. "Don't test my patience. I don't want to send you back to the confessional." I forced myself to stay upright despite the dizziness and trembling. I somehow managed to make the cake and handed it off to the housekeeper to deliver it to Rosa. Back in the room, I finally let out a shaky breath and began mentally listing what I needed to take with me when I left. My papers, my mom's necklace… Just then, a high-pitched shriek split the air. Before I could react, the bedroom door burst open. Giovanni's face twisted in rage as he dragged me to Rosa's room. "You've broken my trust again!" he snapped. Chapter 5 Blood soaked the sheets beneath Rosa. She raised a trembling hand and pointed at me. Her eyes were wide with terror and accusation as she said, "The cake… she poisoned it." Before she could finish, her head lolled to the side, and she went limp. I stared in shock, struggling against Giovanni's tightening grip. "Giovanni, calm down! I have no reason to poison her!" "Shut up!" Giovanni roared. "You murdered our child with your own hands!" I felt my patience snap, and the words tore out of me. "Stop calling it our child! That was the cursed fruit of your affair with your stepsister!" He released me and stumbled back. His expression was a tangled mess of shock, disappointment, and unfathomable pain. "So that's why you've been trying to hurt Rosa all this time?" I tried to deny his words, but he wouldn't listen. He motioned to two housekeepers, who forced me to kneel. "Believing you was the most foolish thing I ever did. Stay here until Rosa wakes up and forgives you." I sank onto the cold floor and watched him walk away. My knees quickly went dead beneath me. Rosa finally stirred awake after a few hours. The two of us were left in the room. Her face was pale, yet a gleam of triumph shone in her eyes. There was no sign of a woman grieving for her lost child at all. "They all say Gio dotes on you and trusts you completely, but that clearly isn't true. Otherwise, why would he always suspect you first whenever something happens?" I lowered my gaze and stayed silent. Thinking she had crushed me, her smile widened. "Here's the truth. I took the abortion pills myself. The drug from that night was too strong. The doctor said the baby would've been deformed anyway. "As for how my parents found out," she said, arching an eyebrow. "I told them, of course. If I didn't stir up a scandal back home, I wouldn't have been able to get those pills. How else could I use that doomed child to get rid of you then?" I lifted my head. "Aren't you afraid I'll tell Giovanni the truth?" "Tell him? You really think he'd believe you after all the times you've hurt me?" Rosa laughed, almost doubling over. "Besides," she continued, wiping the tears her laughter brought to her eyes. "I won't give you the chance. You 'killed' our child, and yet he still won't even think of breaking off the engagement. That means I have to take matters into my own hands." She clapped her hands. "Come in!" The door flew open, and two burly men entered. "Throw this wretch out of the house while Gio's not around." "Let go of me!" I thrashed with what little strength I had left, but my weakened body couldn't put up a fight. They dragged me across the floors and tossed me out into the mud beyond the gates. Rain pelted down in sheets, blinding me as it streamed over my face. Damn it. Was I going to freeze to death out here before Angelo arrived? I lay sprawled in the mud, gasping for air. I fumbled in my pocket until my fingers closed around the phone. The screen lit up, showing it was midnight. Headlights cut through the curtain of rain. A black armored car stopped in front of me. The door opened, and a pair of polished leather shoes stepped into the waterlogged earth. A tall figure slowly stepped toward me beneath the shelter of a black umbrella. I could only make out his jawline and a pair of tightly pressed lips. "Rebecca Costa?" … Giovanni had wrecked everything in the room before he finally calmed down. The thought of his child being gone because of me made his chest ache. I never wanted children, but he was the Don. He needed an heir. He wondered when I had turned into a monster. "What am I supposed to do with you, Rebecca?" he muttered, staring at the smiling picture of me on his phone's lock screen. A few hours later, he sighed. "She has kneeled enough. Bring her back to her room." The child was gone, and punishing me further wouldn't bring it back. "She's suffered enough," he told himself. "I'll make it up to Rosa, then Rebecca and I can start over." He strode out of the house, bought Rosa a few gifts, and even stopped at a jewelry store to pick out a new ring. He returned home by noon. He was already picturing how my eyes would light up when he showed me the wedding magazines he had brought. "Rebecca!" he called as he pushed open the bedroom door. He was met with an empty room. Dread hit him, and he stormed into Rosa's room, shouting, "Rosa! Where's Rebecca? Did you see her?"