Chapter 3: The Ultimate Betrayal
Three days later, Harper was sitting by the fireplace in the DeLuca mansion. For the first time, she was wearing soft cashmere, her back treated with the finest medical ointments Enzo’s money could buy. She looked up as Enzo walked into the room, his expression unreadable.
"It's over," Enzo told her gently. "Your father is contained. He will sign over every single asset to your name, and then he will disappear into a hole he will never crawl out of. You are safe. You are free to divorce me and take everything."
Harper stared at him. Then, a slow, chilling smile spread across her face—a smile completely different from the terrified girl in the torn wedding dress.
She stood up, walking toward him with a grace that was no longer hesitant.
"Why would I divorce you, Enzo?" she asked, her voice silky and smooth. "We make such a great team."
Enzo froze, his instinct screaming that something was deeply wrong. "What?"
Harper reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, encrypted flash drive, tossing it onto the table.
"Nathan didn't find those records on his own, Enzo. I gave them to him." Harper whispered, stepping dangerously close to him. "I knew my father would kill him if he found out. I counted on it."
Enzo’s breath hitched. "You... you used my brother?"
"I needed a monster big enough to destroy my father," Harper said, her eyes flashing with a cold, brilliant brilliance. "I knew if Preston killed a DeLuca, you would hunt him to the ends of the earth. I knew you would force a marriage. I knew you would see the scars. I played my part perfectly."
She reached up, her fingers tracing the lapel of his suit.
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"The scars are real, Enzo. The abuse was real. But the helpless little princess? That was a performance. My father is ruined, his fortune is mine, and I am married to the most powerful man in Chicago." She tilted her head, a dark, beautiful villain reborn from the ashes. "So, my dear husband... what are we going to conquer next?"
Enzo stared at his new wife, a cold sweat breaking out on his neck. He had married her to destroy her father—but he had just handed the keys to his empire to the most dangerous woman he had ever met.
