Part 3I Refuse To Be Their Blank Chip

"Miss Aurora isn't lying!"

Elena’s frantic voice suddenly rang out. "Miss Sofia hurt herself on the yacht! I heard it with my own ears—"

Pin-drop silence outside.

"Drag her to the foyer," Isabella ordered coldly.

The sound of fabric dragging on the floor. Then, a vicious slap.

"We pay you to lie for this psycho?" Isabella snapped.

"I'm not lying! Mrs. Marchetti, go ask the yacht crew..." Elena cried.

Slap! Another heavy hit cut Elena off.

The code of silence. Even the maids knew the penalty for breaking it.

I slammed my body against the door. "Let her go! Isabella, come after me!"

Heels clicked closer. Stopped at my door.

"Flip the chip to the blank side. Admit your guilt." Isabella spoke through the wood. "Admit you lied, and I'll let her go."

My fingers shook against the doorframe. "I'm not sick. I didn't hurt anyone. I won't confess."

"You'd rather watch her bleed than submit." Isabella's words were knives. "Aurora, you really are heartless."

"Don't do it, Miss Aurora!" Elena screamed from the foyer, before a guard violently muffled her.

Click. The deadbolt unlocked. The door opened.

I charged out without a second thought, but Nico grabbed my arm and slammed me hard against the hallway wall.

Isabella stepped aside, making sure Mrs. Marchetti got a good look at me.

"See?" Isabella pointed at the dried blood on my forehead. "This is one of her episodes. Completely out of her mind."

Mrs. Marchetti stepped back in disgust. "Julian certainly can't handle this. We'll do the marriage your way."

I glared dead at her. "I caught them cheating! And now they're locking me away!"

Mrs. Marchetti's face darkened.

Isabella stepped up and grabbed my jaw, forcing my mouth shut. Nico pressed harder, making my shoulder bones pop. "Shut up," he hissed. "Are you trying to get us all killed?"

In the foyer, Elena was on her knees on the marble floor. The left side of her face was swollen. She was bleeding from the mouth, trying to crawl toward me.

Isabella shot her a cold look. "Encouraging a psycho. She's done. Fired. Throw her off the estate."

"Leave Elena alone!" I thrashed violently.

Isabella didn't even flinch. She looked at Nico. "Get the family chips. We vote."

The wooden box was dropped on the round table. Nico dragged me over. I grabbed a chip, crest-side up, and slammed it onto the table.

The front door swung open. Marco walked in.

A guard gave him a quick whisper. My father didn't even look at me. He reached into the box. Pulled out a chip. Tossed it onto the table. Blank side up.

"Father!" I grabbed his sleeve. "Elena did nothing wrong!"

Marco ripped his arm away without an ounce of pity.

"Mind your own business. The vote is final." He dropped the words and walked straight into his study.

The guards dragged Elena out the front door. Tears streamed down her bruised cheeks.

I tried to run after her, but Nico grabbed me around the waist. He carried me back to my room and threw me onto the rug.

The door locked again.

The familiar wooden box slid in from under the door.

"Four blanks. One crest." Nico’s voice echoed through the wood. "In our house, that means you lose."

I sat on the floor. I took out the four chips and lined them up on the windowsill. All blank-side up.

In my palm, I held the single, lonely crest chip.

When I was ten, Isabella put these chips on the table for the first time.

"The chips mean fairness," she promised, stroking my hair. "Mommy will always make sure you get justice."

Her 'fairness' was a lie from the very beginning.

Chapter 3

Elena was gone. I had to get myself out.

I found a letter opener in my desk drawer. The bedroom door had a new lock, but the French doors to the balcony were old.

After sundown, I pried the latch open and slipped onto the balcony.

Sliding down the drainpipe, my left foot twisted when I landed. A sharp pain shot up my ankle. I bit my lip to keep quiet, limping along the estate's stone wall to the back gate.

Two guards stood at the iron gate.

"Open it," I said, keeping my voice steady. "Donna Isabella sent me on an errand."

They took one look at my torn dress and bloody forehead. They turned and hit their radios.

Minutes later, blinding headlights swept across the lawn. A golf cart rolled up. Nico and Julian got out.

Nico grabbed my wrist. "Where do you think you're going to embarrass us?"

I twisted away and clung to the iron gate. "I'm not marrying him. Let me go. I won't touch a single cent of Vitali money."

Julian stepped closer, faking concern. "Aurora, don't talk like that. It's dangerous out there. Where would you even go?"

"Anywhere is better than here."

Nico raised his hand. Smack. He slapped me across the face.

"Ungrateful bitch," Nico spat. "This family gave you everything. Now we need you to secure our territory, and this is how you repay us?"

I tried to run. Nico grabbed my hair from behind and yanked. My head snapped back in pain.

"Give me a hand," Nico looked at Julian.

They grabbed me by the arms and dragged me back to the manor. My ankle screamed. Every step felt like walking on glass.

They kicked the double doors of the study open. I dropped to my knees on the rug.

Isabella sat at her vanity, leisurely trying on diamond necklaces for tomorrow's gala. Sofia was helping her pick earrings.

When she saw me thrown in, covered in dirt, Sofia flinched back. Faking fear.

I stayed on my knees in front of Isabella. "Let me go. Keep your justice. I won't fight anymore. Please."

Isabella took off the diamonds and turned to me. "Running away right before the gala? Are you trying to make a fool out of me?"

"If I'm gone, your problem is solved."

Isabella slammed her hand on the vanity. "You're throwing away your family for a man? You are a disgrace to the Vitali name!"

I looked up. I felt like a joke.

"Last night on the yacht. You saw them. With your own eyes. Didn't you?" I asked. Every word deliberate.

The study fell dead silent.

"What did Elena lie about? How am I the crazy one?"

Isabella stood up.

She walked over, looking down at my torn dress and bleeding ankle.

For a fleeting moment, a mother's raw pain cracked through her cold mask.

She crouched down, her hand trembling slightly as she gently brushed the dirty, blood-matted hair from my forehead.

"Why must you always fight me, Rory?" she whispered, a suffocating mix of love and frustration in her eyes. "You are my flesh and blood. If you would just lower your head and yield to your sister this once, I could protect you."

I stayed on my knees. "Tomorrow? Tomorrow you’re telling everyone at the gala that I’ve lost my mind. What else is there to say?"

Isabella froze. Her fingers stiffened against my cheek.

Sofia suddenly burst into tears. "I won't marry him! Rory is trying to kill me! I'll just go to a convent tomorrow!"

Isabella ignored me. She let go of my face. She walked to Sofia. Pulled her into a sweet, gentle hug.

"Don't say that, my sweet girl. Mommy's here."