Chapter 16 Mia
MIA
Marco showed up, and I dismissed myself from the study. My hands shook as I gripped the edges of the photograph on the entryway table by the front door. The family resemblance between Catrina and Enrico was undeniable—the same sharp jawline, the same piercing eyes. How did I miss this?
The one person I believed was separate from all of this—my world, his world—had been part of it all along.
My best friend. My only friend. An imposter.
The lies coiled through my veins, and all I could think was how easily she’d laughed with me, confided in me, toasted with me, held my secrets like they meant something.
How long did she think she could keep it up?
Eventually, I would have wanted to know more about her life.
I would have asked questions. But I was too wrapped up in my own chaos to see what had been right in front of me.
I should’ve known better. In this world, everyone wears a mask.
I might as well explore my new “home” while I worked up the nerve to face her. I couldn’t avoid her forever. She lived here… for now. Now that Enrico was married, surely she’d be moving out soon. Right?
The kitchen was massive. Marble counters, a row of copper pots hung above a spotless stove. I opened cupboards until I found the coffee pods and loaded the machine. Small victories.
“Morning.”
Her voice. My stomach dropped. I didn’t turn around. Not right away. Maybe if I stood perfectly still, she’d vanish. No such luck.
“How could you?” I said finally, the words sharp enough to slice through the air.
Catrina’s breath hitched. When I turned, her usually composed face was crumbling—eyes wide, lip trembling, guilt written in every line. She reached for me, but I stepped back, coffee forgotten.
“Mia, I—” she started, voice breaking. “I’m so sorry. Enrico asked me to befriend you. To keep an eye on you.”
The words hit like shrapnel. “Keep an eye on me?” I spat, tasting bitterness on my tongue. “For what? Was I your project? Some kind of charity case? This whole charade was a big fucking lie.”
“It wasn’t like that at first. I swear. He was just…
protective. Suspicious of everyone around you.
He wanted to make sure you were safe. But—” she choked on the word—“but then I started to care about you. You became my friend. That part was real. I’ve never had a real friend before.
They usually only want to hang out because of my name.
You didn’t give two shits about that. And that’s why we clicked immediately. ”
“How much of my life has he manipulated?” I whispered. “How much has he touched without me knowing? I need to fucking know.”
“Mia, please.” Catrina’s eyes shimmered, desperate. “I should’ve told you sooner, I know that. But I was afraid—of losing you, of what Enrico would do if I disobeyed him.”
I laughed, a sound that cracked at the edges. “Afraid of what he’d do to you or to me?”
Her throat worked before she answered. “Both.”
That landed like a punch. For a long moment, neither of us moved. The only sound was the coffee dripping steadily into the cup, filling the room with the smell of roasted beans and betrayal.
“Well, congratulations,” I said finally, voice icy. “You played your part perfectly in his twisted little game.”
“Mia—”
“No.” My voice rose. “You don’t get to ‘Mia’ me right now. I trusted you. I told you things I didn’t tell anyone. And the whole time, you were spying on me?”
Her shoulders sagged, all the fight gone. “If I could take it back, I would. I swear to you, I never wanted to hurt you.”
“Too late.” I muttered, grabbing the coffee cup just to have something to hold on to. The heat burned my fingers, grounding me.
Catrina hesitated, her voice small now. “He only wanted to protect you. Lily… she never cared for you the way I do.”
My body went cold.
“What did you just say?” I turned slowly, cup clinking against the counter. “What do you know about Lily?”
Catrina froze, realizing too late what she’d revealed.
“What do you mean?”
Her lips parted, but no words came. The silence between us said enough.
Lily. My childhood best friend. The one person who had known me before I was a commodity, before I belonged to anyone. She’d died in a car accident years ago.
My stomach lurched. “He did something to her, didn’t he?”
Catrina’s eyes filled again. “He did what he thought was necessary.”
“That’s not an answer,” I snapped, every muscle in my body trembling. “You tell me what he did.”
She stepped closer, pleading. “He thought she might expose things that would hurt you. He wanted to protect you from the fallout. Please understand—”
I laughed again, sharp and humorless. “Protect me by killing the only person who loved me without an agenda? Are you fucking kidding me right now?”
Catrina flinched. “Mia, he loves you. In his way. You can’t imagine the lengths he’ll go to keep you safe.”
“Safe?” I repeated, shaking my head. “You call this safety? I call it a cage. The rest of my life might as well be in a fucking prison.”
“You’re angry, and you should be. But please, don’t let this destroy our friendship. You’ve been like a sister to me.”
Her voice broke on the last words, and something inside me cracked with it. Damn it. I wanted to hate her, but I saw it—the fear, the remorse. The same invisible leash that bound us both to the men in our lives.
I took a breath, slow and shaking. “Forgiveness isn’t easy in our world, but maybe it’s the only thing that makes us human.”
She blinked, surprise flickering through her tears. When I stepped closer, she flinched—not out of fear, but out of guilt. I took her hand anyway.
“You’ve been more family to me than anyone else. And in this world… that has to count for something.”
Catrina’s fingers tightened around mine. “You don’t know what that means.”
I did. Because the truth was, I needed her, too. Even if everything between us was twisted now, it was still something real in a house full of lies.
The quiet settled again, heavy but calmer. Then, a chill crept into the room—subtle, but unmistakable. The kind that came before a storm.
“Enrico,” I murmured. “He’s everywhere.”
Catrina nodded. “His love for you is as fierce as his empire. It’s… consuming. That’s what makes it dangerous. I’m worried about the lengths he’ll go to keep you by his side.”
I thought of his gaze last night—dark, hungry, and yet, so full of something I couldn’t name. The way his touch burned through me. The way he said my name like it belonged to him. That same dangerous tenderness that made me tremble, even now.
“Tell me the truth. How far will he go for me?”
Her answer was a whisper. “As far as he has to. He’s already killed for you… so anything goes.”
The weight of that truth pressed down on me, heavier than any diamond ring or silk gown he could ever give me. “Then I need to hear it from him. All of it.”
I set the cup down. My pulse thundered in my ears as I brushed past her.
“Where are you going?”
I paused at the doorway. “To talk to my husband.”
Her inhale was soft but full of dread. “Mia—be careful.”
Behind the study door, Enrico Di Fiore was waiting. This time, I wasn’t walking into his world. He was going to face mine.