Chapter 4 The Fight in Her Eyes

POV Carina

I never thought heartbreak could evolve into fuel, but it does.

By the time I step out of the apartment, it's already dark-inside and out. The city hums like it doesn't care that my world is burning down. I hail a cab with trembling fingers and mutter Vanessa's address to the driver. He glances back at me once, like he sees something wild in my eyes, then drives without a word.

Dante's words keep echoing. You weren't fast enough.

I want to scream. I want to go back in time and scream at myself to speak sooner, run faster, tell him everything. I should've told him I was pregnant the night we made love. When he traced my collarbone like I was a poem he was trying to memorize. When he mentioned my name like it hurt to say. But instead, I let fear steal my voice.

Now Vanessa has him. And I have nothing... except the truth. And Emily. And something else. Something I haven't used in years.

The cab screeches to a halt in front of a building that screams power. Gold-framed glass doors. Security. Cameras. The kind of place you only walk into if you're either rich or dangerous.

I am neither. But I'm angry. And sometimes, that's enough. "Stay," I tell the cab driver. "I might need a quick getaway." His eyes widen. "Ma'am, are you..."

I slam the door before he can finish.

As I walk inside, I pull out the flash drive from my coat pocket. The one Leo gave me months ago. "Just in case," he'd said. I didn't ask questions. I didn't want to know. But now?

Now I want everything. Vanessa's assistant tries to block me at the front desk. "Miss, you need an appointment..."

I shove past her like I own the place. Rage has made me invincible. I storm into the elevator and hit the penthouse button with the kind of certainty only desperation can give you.

By the time the doors open, I've replayed every possible scenario in my head. But nothing prepares me for what I see.

Dante. Sitting on a couch. Dazed. His wrists bound to the armrests, and Vanessa... perched beside him, her hand on his thigh, smiling like a queen in her kingdom.

"Carina," she says sweetly. "How nice of you to join us." He lifts his head slowly. His eyes are glassy. Dilated. Drugged.

Oh God. "What did you do to him?" I demand.

Vanessa pouts. "Just a little something to keep him compliant. Don't worry, it wears off... eventually."

I folded the flash drive in my fist. "Let him go." She laughs. "And why would I do that?"

I take a step forward. "Because I'm not the same girl you used to bully." Vanessa tilts her head. "No?"

I hold up the flash drive. "This contains every transfer, every shell account, every stolen design. Leo traced them all back to you. I leak this, your entire empire burns."

She is smiling and suddenly her smile falters for just a second.

"That's cute," she sneers. "But if you really had that kind of evidence, you would've used it already." I walk to the nearest laptop and plug it in. The screen lights up with files. Dozens of them.

"You think I didn't come prepared?" Her face drains of color.

"Leo never trusted you," I say coldly. "Neither did Dante. He had someone look into you before the gala. Guess what they found?"

Vanessa lunges at me, but I dodge her. "You think you've won?" she spits. "You're still just a poor, knocked-up nobody!" I don't flinch. "Maybe. But I'm the mother of his child. And I'll burn the world down before I let you hurt him again."

Dante groans from the couch. "Carina..." His voice is thick with haze, but he sees me now. Really sees me, and something in his eyes breaks.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't believe you." Tears sting my lashes. "I didn't give you a reason to. But I'm here now. And I'm not leaving without you."

Behind me, Vanessa grabs a glass shard from the broken vase and lunges again...but this time, I'm ready.

I twist her wrist and she drops the shard, screaming. Security bursts in seconds later... thanks to the panic button I hit when I entered. Vanessa thrashes and yells as they drag her away.

But all I see is him. Dante. Bleeding from his lip, eyes rimmed with betrayal and regret.

I fall to my knees beside him. "I should've told you about Emily. I was scared. You were everything, and I was nothing. I thought you'd walk away if you knew the truth."

His brows knit. "Carina, I didn't leave you because of the baby. I left because I thought you didn't love me. That night... you looked at me like I was just a mistake."

"No," I breathe. "You weren't a mistake. You were the only thing that felt real."

His hand reaches out, trembling, and I place mine over his.

"I love you," I whisper. "Even when I shouldn't." He closes his eyes like the words physically hit him. "Say it again."

"I love you." His lips twitch. "I love you too, I said." The air around us stills.

I lean in and kiss him, soft at first, then with all the years and pain and longing wrapped into one breathless moment. But just as I pull away, the door bursts open again.

This time it's Leo, and he doesn't look relieved. He looks terrified. "Carina," he pants. "There's a problem." I freeze. "What?"

He tosses a file on the floor. "Vanessa... wasn't working alone." I look down, and the photo that stares back at me nearly knocks the wind out of my lungs.

My sister. My own sister...smiling beside Vanessa in a blurry club photo, holding the same vial I saw tonight. Everything inside me goes cold.

Dante hold my hand tighter, and for the first time, I feel truly afraid.