Chapter 2 Kidnapping

Luna curled up on the couch, sitting in silence the entire night.

By morning, she had finally pulled herself together.

She stood up and began packing everything she owned into suitcases, determined to leave this place behind.

But just as she stepped out of the bedroom, she ran straight into Liam.

He was coming up the stairs, carrying a fainted Elena in his arms. The moment he saw Luna, he froze mid-step, eyes darkening with alarm. "Honey, what are you doing?"

Luna lifted her eyes coldly. Her gaze swept past the love bites on his neck and landed on the fragile woman in his arms. A bitter smile twisted in her heart.

"I'm going on a trip. A change of scenery might cheer me up," she said calmly, choosing not to tell him the truth.

Liam opened his mouth to question her further, but Elena coughed weakly in his arms.

Panic instantly clouded his expression-an emotion Luna had never seen on him before. He mumbled a quick "Okay," then hurried off with Elena without another glance back.

Dragging her suitcase, Luna whispered to herself to stay strong. Only then could she stop the tears from falling.

She checked into a hotel and got to work on three things.

First, she sold the estate Liam had given her and had the funds transferred to her own account.

Second, she had the tattoo of his name removed from her body.

And third, she went to the sea and threw in the family heirloom bracelet Liam had once gifted her.

There was a time when Liam Moretti-the man both feared and worshipped in the underworld-had knelt on one knee to put high heels on her feet. When he had kissed her forehead so tenderly, placing that sacred family bracelet into her hands as if offering her his entire world.

But now, he would never do that again. Because he didn't love her anymore.

The waves devoured the bracelet instantly, sending out ripples that quickly faded.

Luna turned away without looking back. As the sea breeze tugged at her dress, she lowered her head to smooth it, only to be suddenly grabbed from behind and thrown into a van.

The air inside reeked of something strange. Within moments, Luna's head started spinning.

Just before she lost consciousness, she vaguely heard someone in the front seat mutter, "Step on it. Miss Rossi said we need to be there before three."

Her head slammed against the car window. Everything went black.

When she came to, she was in an abandoned warehouse.

She and Elena were tied to chairs on opposite sides of the room.

Luna stared at her, disgust flashing through her eyes.

They were close enough that Luna could clearly see the bruises and love marks scattered across Elena's skin.

Even the collar mark around her neck, etched deep from the personalized choker Liam had given her.

Elena noticed Luna had woken up and shot her a smug little smile.

"I saw you in the basement last night, Luna. Since you heard everything, I won't bother pretending anymore. I planned this whole kidnapping. Now when Liam gets here, why don't you guess-who do you think he'll save?"

Luna lowered her gaze. Would Liam really choose to save her?

The kidnappers used Luna's phone to call Liam, demanding he come alone with money, or they'd kill his wife.

His voice sounded frantic on the other end. Ten minutes later, he arrived.

With a loud crash, he kicked the warehouse door open. The moment his eyes landed on the two of them tied up, he froze.

"What the hell? Why is she tied up too? I thought it was just Luna!"

Luna's heart clenched, as if a knife had been driven straight through it.

"Well, Mr. Moretti," one of the kidnappers sneered, snatching the cash from his hand, "that's a problem, isn't it? You only brought enough for one. So... who's it gonna be?"

Elena looked at Luna like a victor.

And in the next second, Liam opened his mouth-