The Don’s Throwaway Wife Chapter 11

The Don’s Throwaway Wife Chapter 11

Five years had passed since I’d last seen my family.

Mom burst into tears the second she pulled me into a hug, her trembling fingers brushing the faint

scars lining my arms.

“My poor baby… what did they do to you?”

Dad kept his composure, only patting my shoulder gently.

“You’re home now. That’s all that matters.”

Later, Luca told me Dad had smashed two punching bags in the basement that night after hearing

everything I’d endured.

They’d left my bedroom exactly the way I’d abandoned it five years prior. Every item sat in its

original spot.

“We missed you,” Mom whispered softly. “We came in here every single day, just to feel close to

you.”

A lump swelled in my throat, and I broke down crying.

Mom wrapped me in her arms, rocking me gently back and forth.

“It’s all over now. We couldn’t protect you back then, but we’re here for you now. Your dad, Luca

and I-we’ve always got your back, no matter what.”

I buried my face against her shoulder and sobbed.

“I’m so sorry.”

My family signed me up for therapy to process everything I’d lived through. My doctor said I was healing remarkably well.

I reconnected with old friends and classmates I’d lost touch with after moving to Brooklyn.

Luca showed up every afternoon with fresh flowers, waiting for me outside the clinic.

Walking toward him in the golden sunset, soft wind brushing my cheeks, I realized –

I was alive again, truly alive.

A month later, the whole family flew north with me to finalize the divorce paperwork.

Mom shivered against the cold wind, staring at me with watery eyes.

You’ve always hated winter. How did you survive out there all those years?”

I smiled, unable to find the words to answer her.

Luca kept men posted to watch Dante’s every move.

Within a single month, the Maranzano Family teetered on the brink of collapse, clinging to survival by a thread.

Dante arrived sharp on schedule, gaunt and pale.

Mia came with him, her belly now rounded and obvious beneath her coat.

Dante had been staring blankly at the floor, but the second he saw me, he lurched forward and grabbed my wrist tight.

“Elara… I regret every single day. I miss you more than anything. I’m so sorry.”

I pulled my icy hand free of his grip.

“Quit crying and sign the papers. Luca’s waiting for me.”

The legal proceedings wrapped up fast.

Clutching my divorce certificate as I climbed into Luca’s car, I felt lighter than I had in five long

years.

“Freedom at last!” Luca cheered, buckling my seatbelt for me.

As we pulled away, I glanced in the rearview mirror. Dante stood motionless on the sidewalk.

Mia slapped him hard across the face, dragging him roughly back to their own vehicle.

Then they were gone.

Listening to Luca ramble happily beside me, I couldn’t stop smiling.

From this day forward, the name Dante would mean nothing to me ever again.