Chapter 4
Later that night, she called Luca to her private quarters. The loyal man stood at attention as she laid out her instructions.
“I need you to follow him,” she said, her tone leaving no room for argument. “Everywhere he goes, everything he does—I want to know. And I especially want to know if he’s with her.”
Luca hesitated for only a moment before nodding. “Consider it done, Mrs. Venetti.”
As he left, Carmen sat in her chair, staring out at the darkened estate grounds. The moonlight illuminated the garden, but the shadows loomed larger than ever.
…
**Three days later**
The air in Carmen’s private study felt heavy, suffocating even. She sat at her desk, fingers drumming the surface as she stared at the clock on the wall. The minutes crawled by, each one stretching her fraying nerves thinner. When the door finally opened, she straightened, fixing her composure as Luca entered.
He closed the door quietly, his expression serious. “Mrs. Venetti,” he greeted with a respectful nod.
“Sit,” Carmen said curtly, gesturing to the chair across from her. She folded her hands, trying to project calm, though the tension in her shoulders betrayed her. “Tell me what you’ve found.”
Luca sat down, his movements deliberate. He placed a small notebook on the desk, flipping it open. “I’ve been following Mr. Venetti as you asked. He’s visited Arianna De Luca’s estate four times in the past three days. Each visit lasted several hours.”
Carmen’s jaw tightened, but she said nothing, urging him to continue.
“On two occasions,” Luca added, “they left together in his car. No guards, no advisors—just the two of them.”
Her hands clenched into fists under the table. “Where did they go?”
“I wasn’t able to follow closely enough to determine their destination,” Luca admitted. “But the fact that these meetings were private is… unusual for Mr. Venetti.”
Carmen’s voice was cold. “Unusual is an understatement.”
Luca hesitated, his brows furrowing slightly. “Mrs. Venetti, if I may—there’s no indication that these meetings were romantic. They didn’t appear overly friendly, but… there’s a closeness there. An understanding.”
“Close is bad enough,” Carmen said sharply. She leaned back in her chair, exhaling slowly as she tried to rein in her anger. “Thank you, Luca. That will be all for now.”
He rose, nodding again. “If you need anything else, I’m at your service.”
As the door closed behind him, Carmen pressed her fingertips to her temples. The image of Marco and Arianna alone, secluded in her car or her estate, burned in her mind. Whatever this “understanding” was, it had no place in her marriage.
…
Carmen spent the next day buried in work, not for the Venetti family business, but for her own. She reached out to contacts she hadn’t spoken to in years—people who owed her favors, people who thrived on secrets. The information she sought came in bits and pieces, each fragment painting a more damning picture of Arianna De Luca.
Her hands trembled slightly as she flipped through the pages, each line more shocking than the last. Arianna wasn’t just dangerous—she was a master manipulator, capable of unraveling entire empires for her gain. Carmen’s instincts had told her Arianna was trouble, but this? This was worse than she’d imagined.
It started with whispers from Carmen’s network of informants, fragments of stories about Arianna’s past. Carmen had followed every lead, piecing together a timeline that exposed the woman’s true nature.
Years ago, Arianna had orchestrated a cyberattack on the De Luca family, one of the most powerful mafia clans at the time. The attack had been elaborate and convincing, designed to look like the work of an external rival. But in truth, Arianna had funneled millions from the family’s accounts into offshore banks she controlled.
The betrayal had been catastrophic. Without their funds, the De Lucas had been left vulnerable, their alliances shaken. Rival factions pounced on the opportunity, sparking infighting that split the family in two.
What shocked Carmen most was the sheer audacity of Arianna’s next move. As chaos erupted within her own family, Arianna had positioned herself as a neutral party, offering support to both sides while feeding them just enough information to keep the conflict alive. It was a delicate, dangerous game, but she had played it masterfully. By the time the dust settled, she had slipped away unscathed, her reputation somehow intact and her pockets overflowing.
Carmen’s stomach churned as she read about the aftermath. The De Luca family had been devastated, their power severely diminished. Several key members had been killed in the conflict, while others had been forced into exile. Arianna, meanwhile, had vanished, reappearing years later with a fortune she claimed to have earned through “savvy investments.”
It was clear to Carmen now that Arianna wasn’t just dangerous—she was ruthless. She had no loyalty to anyone but herself, no hesitation to destroy anyone who stood in her way.
And now she was here, on Venetti territory, weaving herself into their lives.
