Life Erased, the Mafia Queen Returns Chapter 04

Life Erased, the Mafia Queen Returns Chapter 04

We rode in silence, eventually finding a nearby café. 

Before the coffee even arrived, I got straight to the point, 

almost defensively. 

“Do you still want Jasper?” 

For six years, I had tormented myself imagining a reunion with Vincent. By now, I had learned to feign indifference. 

Vincent glanced at me and, without hesitation, said, 

“Of course I do.” 

I pursed my lips and stared at the street signs outside the floor–to–ceiling window. 

“Okay,” I murmured, standing up. 

“Then remember to pick him up after school. If you don’t have time for parent meetings, just let me know, I won’t-” 

I couldn’t bring myself to say Ivy’s name. I pressed my palm against itself, letting the sharp sting keep me grounded as I 

finished, 

“…I won’t interfere with your life.” 

I glanced at the time and started to leave. As I brushed past him, I caught his voice, low and deliberate. 

“So, now you just want to talk about Jasper?” 

I froze. I didn’t understand. 

Everything between us had been settled six years ago. He had 

another love. I had taken the two million and walked away. 

Simple. 

Apart from Jasper, what was there to discuss? 

Vincent exhaled slowly. His dark eyes locked on me as he 

spoke again. 

“Fine. I don’t want Jasper then.” 

So sure of himself, as if he weren’t the one suddenly changing 

his mind. 

I frowned. “What do you mean?” 

He tilted his jaw, nodded toward the seat across from him, gesturing for me to sit. 

“Literally what I said. You want to raise Jasper? Fine. He’s 

yours.” 

His voice didn’t waver. 

“Considering Jasper’s well–being, I’ll come to your place every Friday night for joint parenting. Monday morning, I’ll drive 

back to the office.” 

I stared at him, incredulous. He was twisting things just to suit himself. I couldn’t help but remind him, 

“We’re divorced.” 

“Are we?” 

Vincent let out a faint, unreadable laugh. 

“I never signed it.” 

It hit me a moment later. That’s what he meant. 

Back then, Seth had made me sign the divorce papers. I 

assumed Vincent hated me so much he wouldn’t even show 

up, so I never questioned it. 

He said he hadn’t signed, but then why only come to me six years later? 

I wasn’t deluding myself into thinking he still had feelings for 

1. me. 

Maybe the papers had been lost. Maybe there was a loophole that required a new agreement. Anything was possible. 

I pursed my lips and nodded cooperatively. 

“Then we’ll sign a new one.” 

Vincent didn’t even lift his eyes. 

“No.” 

I tried again, politely. 

“Signing clears everything between us, isn’t that better?” 

“No.” 

“Are you worried about something? I don’t want any shares or money. I’ll leave clean.” 

“No.” 

Three refusals left me both angry and dizzy. Maybe Vincent 

had forgotten, but the boy I remembered was always like this. 

On his eighteenth birthday, someone had cornered me at a 

party, leering and bold. Vincent had kicked the person straight 

into the pool. 

The commotion was huge. Guests were all prominent figures 

from New York and other mafia families. Several elders had 

frowned. 

When asked why, Vincent had never explained. 

To protect me from rumors and preserve my reputation, he 

had never mentioned me once. 

He hadn’t admitted fault, and Seth had given him a brutal beating for it. 

No one could have guessed that this mafia king had spent his 

eighteenth birthday in solitary confinement. 

The door had been locked tight, not even medicine could get 

through. 

I had curled up outside, whispering softly, ashamed. 

“I’m sorry.” 

Through the door, there was a pause, a soft rustling, as if he 

had sat down on the other side. 

His voice was faint but firm. 

“Don’t listen.” 

I buried my forehead in my knees, muttering to myself, 

“You didn’t have to kick him. You could have waited. He 

wouldn’t have dared do anything to me.” 

“Not waiting.” 

I said nothing more. Maybe my voice had been too muffled, and he misheard. After a moment, he spoke again. 

“No crying.” 

He tapped the door lightly, a sharp little sound. 

“I’m willing. This has nothing to do with you. No crying.” 

I blinked, forcing back the sting in my eyes. It felt like I was hearing his words from years ago, the same command, “No 

crying.” 

Vincent sat in the light, a faint smile playing across his face. 

He lifted his head and raised an eyebrow toward me, 

answering my earlier words without a single sound. 

“Hazel, we can’t clear things between us.”