A Crown Made of Scars

Meanwhile, over at the Romano family's sprawling estate, the place was nothing like a swanky estate. Rather, it felt more like a fortress bristling with security.

High walls were laced with live barbed wire, and armed guards were posted every 30 feet.

The servants, clad in black, moved with heads down and without a sound, like ghosts drifting through the halls.

Upstairs, in the master bedroom, the door was left ajar, letting out a heavy stench of blood that even overpowered the room's fancy cedar scent.

A man sat in a wheelchair among the broken ceramics and bloodstains, fiddling with a scalpel still wet with blood.

Next to him, a traitor shivered on his knees, his throat cut, twitching as death crept closer.

"Another one comes to meet their end?"

His voice was gritty and dark, laced with a sinister delight for bloodshed.

I shut the door with a flick of my wrist, turned the lock, and shut out the prying eyes.

"Don Romano, I'm Elena," I announced. "Here's a token from the Deluca family."

The wheelchair turned slowly to face me.

Even prepared, I caught my breath for a split second at the sight.

His face was a study in contrasts. The left side was chiseled perfection, but the right was hidden behind a silver mask, with burn scars creeping out like red, twisted centipedes.

It was truly a horrifying sight, a mix of the divine and the monstrous.

Wade Romano lifted his hand.

In a flash, the scalpel streaked by my ear, snipping a lock of hair with deadly precision before sinking deep into the wooden door behind me.

He chuckled, his one good eye gleaming with malice. "You didn't flinch?"

I yanked the scalpel from the door, cleaned the blade, stepped forward, and leaned in close.

The blade's point rested lightly on the pulse of his throat.

"Don, the knife work was lethal. If you'd truly meant to kill me, I wouldn't be here breathing."

A flicker of madness in Wade's eyes froze for a split second before he erupted into a wild laugh.

His laughter twisted the scars on his face into something even more sinister.

Out of nowhere, he lunged and clamped down on my wrist. His grip was so strong I thought my bones might snap as he tried to shake me off.

However, the moment his fingers brushed the inside of my wrist, he froze.

There, an ugly burn scar marred my skin. It was an old wound, shaped like a scorched butterfly.

Wade's eyes were glued to that scar.

The fury in his eyes suddenly swirled into confusion, shock, and a tremor so faint it might be missed.

"Where'd you get this?" he rasped, his breath heavy.

I tried to wrench my hand free, but his grip was punishing.

"Ten years back, in the old Milanex City, during a nasty clash." I recounted with a detached air, as if it were someone else's story.

"I was just passing by when I heard some noises under the debris. I was young and reckless, and thought I could play the hero. Got a nasty burn from a beam that came down."

Wade's pupils shrank, as if I had hit a nerve. "Did you manage to save anyone?"

I let out a bitter chuckle.

"Nah, the blaze was too fierce. All I saw was this 'little dirty dog' pinned down. He was nearly gone, and I was about to pass out from the smoke. I tossed him the only thing I had: a strawberry candy.

"Told him it'd make the pain go away if he ate it. Then the firefighters showed up and dragged me out. I heard later that the whole place came down. That kid probably turned to dust."

The air hung heavy.

Wade's gaze bore into mine, swirling with emotions I could not read.

Shock, wild joy, the madness of finding something once lost, and a possessiveness fierce enough to set the world on fire.

He held on for a moment before letting go, his calloused fingers brushing over the scar with the tenderness one might use for a priceless artifact.

"So… It was you."

His voice was a whisper, and then he fished out a black and gold card from his jacket, a card that held the Romano family's highest authority, and tossed it into my lap.

The harshness in his voice was gone, replaced by a chilling command.

"Pay your family a visit tomorrow. If it's you, then I'll make the Deluca family pay back what they owe you, a thousand times over."

I blinked in surprise. "You know who I am?"

Wade's lips twisted into a smile that was both devilish and gentle, his scarred face strangely captivating.

"Elena, you once gave a Swisswell strawberry-flavored candy to that 'little dirty dog'. I never eat sweets, but I've remembered the taste of that candy for ten years. It was the only sweetness in hell."