The incisions across her chest and abdomen felt like they’d torn open all over again. The pain was severe enough to numb her entire body.

How had things gotten to this point?

There had been a time when Alessio would panic over the smallest bruise on her, hovering close, checking her vitals, refusing to settle down for hours afterward.

He’d gone into medicine because of her. Entirely so he could take better care of her.

Matteo and Dario had been exactly the same.

She’d been sick for as long as she could remember, one illness bleeding into the next, never given a break. More than once, doctors had told the brothers to prepare for the worst.

They lit candles at the cathedral every single day, praying for her recovery. They’d even commissioned a custom St. Jude medallion for her, convinced the patron saint of lost causes would keep her safe.

When she finally recovered, Matteo and Dario, neither of whom had ever taken life seriously before, transformed overnight.

Matteo threw himself headfirst into the underworld, fighting and killing his way to power to rebuild the Lazzari name from nothing, all to fund her treatment.

Dario pursued pharmacology because she couldn’t stand the taste of her medicine. He wanted to create something she could take without breaking down in tears.

They had even saved Rafe for her sake, dragging him out of a blizzard half-frozen after he’d collapsed.

Everyone across New York said the same thing. The Lazzari princess was the luckiest girl in the city. Three brothers who treated her like she’d personally hung the moon.

And she’d found Rafe, heir to the Bellandi family, before anyone else got the chance. He would have done anything she asked of him.

Since their parents passed away, the four of them had only had each other. Being loved that completely was everything she’d ever wanted.

When her mission concluded, she’d turned down the reward entirely. All she wanted was to remain here, with Alessio, Matteo, Dario, and Rafe.

Then Gianna arrived.

The day they brought her home, Alessio, Matteo, and Dario had pulled her close and made a promise.

“Nina, she looks exactly like Mom. And she has the same heart condition Mom had. We can’t just send her away.”

“Don’t worry. Welcoming her in is good for you too. You’re still our girl, Nina. Our only one.”

She’d believed every word of it. She genuinely wanted to welcome Gianna in.

She gave up her own room to help Gianna feel at home.

Whenever Alessio, Matteo, or Dario returned from a trip, she’d remind them to bring something back for Gianna as well.

Gianna’s heart condition kept her confined indoors often, so out of sympathy, she’d bring her along whenever she and Rafe went out together.

Slowly, Gianna wove herself into the family.

She learned exactly how to charm Alessio, Matteo, and Dario into buying her whatever she wanted.

She’d tease Rafe, start little arguments with him, laugh whenever he played along.

She hadn’t noticed exactly when things began to shift. But they had.

The moment Gianna stumbled in front of her, Alessio turned on her instantly. “What did you do to her?”

On the rare occasions Matteo cooked, he only prepared what Gianna requested.

Dario redirected his entire research focus toward curing Gianna’s heart condition.

Even Rafe started saying things during their arguments.

“Why can’t you be more like Gianna? She doesn’t constantly act like a victim!”

And even after everything…

They had conspired together to cut out her heart and give it to Gianna instead.

The grief came in waves. Her chest felt hollow all over again, an ache where something used to live.

She needed to escape this room.

But she moved too quickly and her legs gave out beneath her. She hit the floor hard.

The stitches across her chest and abdomen tore open everywhere, and the pain doubled her over completely. She curled into herself on the ground.

The pain consumed everything until she could barely form a thought. Their names slipped from her lips before she could stop them.

“Alessio, Matteo, Dario…”

Her vision was fading when she saw them, all four men sprinting toward her.

Alessio reached her first. He lifted her off the floor, his voice striking like a hammer.

“Nina! You saw us with Gianna and did this to yourself? Is this just another twisted move for attention?”

After they brought her home from the hospital, the private nurse received strict orders to watch her constantly and ensure she didn’t harm herself again.

Her body was too weak to support itself. She lived confined to a wheelchair, needing assistance even to use the bathroom.

Gianna, meanwhile, was already walking freely.

She danced through the garden in a pristine white sundress, spinning and leaping as if she’d never known a day of illness.

Rafe had his phone raised, recording her every movement. Alessio, Matteo, and Dario watched her too, completely transfixed, all three wearing the same delighted smile, as though she were the most wonderful thing they’d ever witnessed.

Something heavy settled in her chest. She gripped the wheels of her chair and began turning away.

“Ouch!”

A thud sounded behind her. Gianna was on the ground.

“Gianna!” All four men rushed to her side.

She turned back around.

Gianna was pointing at the ground, at a heavy metal footrest that had somehow come loose and fallen from her wheelchair.

Her voice was already starting to break.