Chapter 1

There were two women in Manhattan who were famous for spending money.

One was my mother, Elena Marchetti.

The other was my godmother, Sofia Castellano.

Whenever they were in a good mood, they might casually give a younger relative a limited-edition sports car—or simply buy an island and disappear there for a change of scenery.

No one dared say a single unkind word about either of them.

That was because my father, Lorenzo Marchetti, was the head of Manhattan’s Marchetti family and controlled the money flowing through Manhattan’s underworld.

My godfather, Dante Castellano, not only controlled several casinos in Las Vegas, but also controlled some of the most lucrative concert, film, and streaming ventures in North America .

Outside the home, both men inspired terror. In private, they indulged their wives without limit.

“We make the money. They get to be happy.”

Then one day, I dragged them both to a concert by Brianna, the hottest pop star in the country.

During a backstage meet-and-greet, Brianna immediately noticed the pigeon-blood ruby ring on my mother’s hand.

My mother refused politely. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. My husband commissioned this ring when he proposed. It cost thirty million dollars, and there is only one in the world. It isn’t for sale.”

Brianna’s expression darkened instantly.

“It’s just a red rock.” She snatched up a crystal glass from the table and smashed it against my mother’s forehead. “Who knows whether it’s even real? I’m offering to pay because I’m doing you a favor.”

Blood immediately ran down my mother’s brow.

I froze in shock.

Someone in Manhattan had actually dared to make Don Marchetti’s wife bleed.

These idiots had no idea what they had just done.

Brianna’s private bodyguards surrounded us. They seized my mother’s wrist and tried to force the ring off her finger.

I immediately pressed the emergency pendant hidden beneath the collar of my shirt.

It would take only one second for the distress signal to reach my father’s private phone.