— Chapter 10 Maya’s POV The hospital corridor was cold. The white fluorescent lights hurt my eyes. “Miss Cross. You can leave now.” Marco stood in front of me, his face blank. “How is Luciano?” | asked. “That’s no longer your concern,” his voice was ice. ” The boss said he never wants to see you again.” Never wants to see me again. Hours ago, in that cathedral, he’d called me a sewer. A toy. Something to be used and discarded. Now he couldn’t even be bothered to look at me. “l can wait for him to wake up-” “Miss Cross.” Marco cut me off. Two bodyguards moved to his side.
“Please leave immediately. Or we’ll have to use force.” —- | looked into their eyes. They were cold, unfamiliar. These were the same men who used to bow to me, because | was the boss’s woman. Now they looked at me like | was garbage. | turned and left the hospital. It had started to rain. A cold, biting October rain. | didn’t have an umbrella. The rain quickly soaked my hair, running down my face. Rain or tears, | couldn’t tell the difference. It all felt the same. | walked down the empty street, with nowhere to go. My apartment in Miami? Luciano’s men had already taken it back.
My old friends? They all knew | had betrayed Catherine. No one would take me in. This city was so big, but | suddenly realized | was completely alone. Before, Catherine was the only one who would —- always take me in, no questions asked. Without thinking, | found myself at that alley. The place where our fates had changed. Ten years ago, | was riding a stolen motorcycle when | saw three punks cornering a girl. The girl was in a neat school uniform, with an expensive backpack. A rich kid. | was going to just drive past. That kind of thing happens all the time in New York.
Getting involved is just asking for trouble. But then | saw her eyes. No fear. No begging. Just… trust. She was looking at me like she knew I’d save her. A total stranger. | thought, This little princess must be crazy. But | got off my bike anyway. | grabbed my chain lock. “Get lost,” | told the punks. They saw my tattoos, my leather jacket, the fury in my eyes. They left. —- “Thank you,” Catherine said, her voice trembling but sincere. | thought she’d be scared of me. We were from two different worlds. But she wasn’t. She asked for my name, my school.
She even invited me to her house for coffee. At first, | thought it was an act. The rich girl playing savior. But she wasn’t playing. It was real. She really saw meas a friend, as family. Every time | got into trouble, she would fix it. When | was broke, she would secretly slip cash into my bag. When | was sick, she would skip school to take care of me. She never asked for anything in return, never made me feel like | owed her. She treated me like a real sister. | got used to it. And then… | got jealous. —- Jealous of her family, her purity, everything she got so easily.
Including Luciano. The first time | saw Luciano, | knew he was one of my own. Dark, dangerous, violent. We were both beasts who had crawled up from the underworld, with blood on our hands. Catherine was different. She was light, pure. She didn’t belong in our world. But Luciano chose her. Because she was cleaner, better suited to be his queen. And me? | was left to hide in the shadows, to be the tool for his darkest urges. | hated Catherine for stealing the man who should have been mine. | hated how her perfection made me feel dirty. —- | hated how her kindness made me feel my own ugliness.
But | couldn’t help myself. Every time | saw them together, jealousy gnawed at my heart like a snake. | told myself Catherine was the one who had come between us. That Luciano and | were the ones who belonged together. Sinners. Fallen. She didn’t belong. But now, standing in the rain, | thought of Catherine’s broken sobs. The look of betrayal in her eyes. The tremor in her voice when she said, “We’re not sisters. We’re nothing.” For the first time, | felt regret. | pulled out my phone, wanting to call her. To apologize, to explain, to tell her how sorry | was. But she had blocked me.
—- | thought of the Sterling family’s butler, old Peter. He had always been kind to me, treated me as Catherine’s friend. Maybe he could help me reach her. | dialed his number. “Peter, it’s me, Maya. | want to-” “Maya Cross. You have some goddamn nerve calling this house.” I’d never heard him so angry. “Peter, | know | was wrong, but-” “You know you were wrong?” His voice trembled with fury. “Do you have any concept of what Catherine sacrificed for you?” “What?” “The Paris College of Art and Design! The head designer of Chanel personally invited her!
It was her dream!” My hand started to shake. —- “She threw it all away-for you. To save your worthless ass.” | thought it was a simple case of self-defense. | had no idea Catherine had done so much to save me. “And you?” Peter’s voice rose in anger. “How did you repay her? With betrayal! By hurting her! By ruining her wedding!” “Peter, |-” “Don’t ever call here again!” he roared. “Miss Catherine never wants to hear your name again!” Beep. Beep. Beep. The line went dead. | stood in the rain, clutching my phone, as tears streamed down my face. Paris. Catherine’s biggest dream.
She gave it up for me. And what did | do? | repaid her with betrayal. The rain fell harder, soaking me to the bone. But | didn’t look for shelter. —- Let it rain, | thought. Let it wash me away. It’s what | deserve. It hit me then, a punch to the gut. Catherine wasn’t the intruder. | was. | was the poison. | was the one who destroyed everything.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
