I should have realized it long ago.
Gemma was the one Salvatore truly treasured.
She was the woman he was afraid to see hurt, the woman whose tears could make him abandon everything, the woman whose smallest discomfort mattered more than anything else in the world.
And me?
I was nothing more than a name written on a marriage contract, a sacrifice made to strengthen the bond between two Families.
A wife by title.
A tool by purpose.
Nothing more.
For years, I had endured everything in silence. I had convinced myself that patience was love, that tolerance was devotion, that turning a blind eye could somehow protect the fragile marriage between us.
But lying there in the hospital bed, with the sharp pain of contractions still tearing through my body, with the ache spreading from my lower abdomen, and with the faint cries of another newborn drifting from the room beside mine, I finally understood.
The truth had been in front of me all along.
"Adriana, you're the reason this happened."
My fingers curled tightly into the sheets as tears blurred my vision.
"It's because you were too weak. Because you kept forgiving him. Because you kept giving him another chance to hurt you... that you lost your own child."
The words were cruel, but they were the only ones left in my heart.
I forced myself to swallow the pain, picked up my phone with trembling fingers, and dialed the only person who could help me end this.
"Consigliere Greco."
My voice was hoarse, but my decision had never been clearer.
"Prepare the severance agreement. I want to leave the alliance."
Three days after my child's death, Salvatore finally came.
When the door opened, I saw him standing there in the same clothes he had worn while accompanying Gemma.
Even after three days, I could still catch the faint scent of her perfume lingering on him.
"Adriana."
He walked toward me quickly, reaching for my hand.
His expression carried guilt, the kind of guilt a man showed when he knew he had failed, but still believed a few gentle words could make everything disappear.
"I saw your calls too late."
His thumb brushed unconsciously over the scar on his palm.
"I was pulled into a meeting regarding a mission. Then I was preparing for surgery. I didn't have time to check my phone."
I stared at him quietly.
Before my delivery, both the Family's medical team and I had tried reaching him countless times.
Not once did he answer.
A man like Salvatore never truly lost access to his phone.
Not when enemies were watching from the shadows.
Not when wounded men needed his hands to save their lives.
Not when every second could mean survival or death.
The truth was much simpler.
He had seen my calls.
He just hadn't cared enough to answer.
Because at that moment, Gemma needed him more.
The young nurse standing beside me was changing my IV when her hands suddenly froze.
Her lips trembled.
She wanted to tell him the truth.
She wanted to tell him that when his child was fighting for life, he had not been there.
But before she could speak, I reached out and gently held her wrist.
"Don't."
My eyes met hers.
"It's nothing."
I gave her a small smile.
"My water broke suddenly, and they rushed me here."
The nurse looked at me with pity, but she finally stayed silent.
The baby was already gone.
There was no point in forcing him to face the truth now.
Let him continue believing he had done nothing wrong.
Let him continue going back to Gemma, the woman he had never truly let go of.
As the Surgeon of the Family, Salvatore knew better than anyone what a ruptured amniotic sac meant.
He knew how dangerous it was.
He knew every second mattered.
Yet he still chose not to come.
The guilt in his eyes grew heavier.
"Adriana..."
His voice softened.
"Is our baby okay?"
I looked toward the window.
Outside, the leaves drifted slowly to the ground, one after another.
For years, Salvatore had always been like this.
Whenever I needed him most, he was never there.
But after everything was over, after the damage had already been done, he would return with a few gentle words and expect me to forgive him.
Once, I had used those words to deceive myself.
I told myself he cared.
I told myself he just didn't know how to love.
But now my child was gone.
And when my baby was fighting for life, Salvatore had been in the chapel beside Gemma, praying for her and the child she carried.
I could no longer lie to myself.
"The baby is fine."
The moment he heard my answer, the tension disappeared from his shoulders.
Relief flashed across his face.
"Then you should rest."
He smiled faintly.
"If you want something to eat, I'll make it for you."
I said nothing.
No anger.
No accusation.
No tears.
Only silence.
Salvatore sighed and sat beside me, pulling me carefully into his arms.
"Adriana, you know Gemma is someone from my past."
"She's scared. She's pregnant, and she's alone. I only took her to the chapel because she needed someone beside her."
His explanation continued.
But all I could think about was myself.
When I was seven months pregnant, my body had been exhausted from carrying his child.
I spent countless nights awake because of the pain.
I endured every fear alone.
Not once did Salvatore kneel beside me and pray for our child.
Not once did he look at me the way he looked at Gemma.
Love and indifference.
The difference between them had never been clearer.
I lowered my eyes, feeling the bitterness spread through my chest.
When I remained silent, Salvatore mistook it for acceptance.
He continued gently.
"You're pregnant too. You should understand how Gemma feels, shouldn't you?"
"Yes."
I nodded slowly.
"I understand."
I turned my face away, pretending to wipe away the cold tears slipping down my cheek.
"When I was in my early months, I couldn't eat either. I know how difficult it is."
I paused.
"I'm fine here."
My voice was quiet.
"You should go take care of her."
"There is no need to stay with me."
There was a trace of despair hidden beneath those words.
A final, foolish hope.
A small part of me was still waiting.
Waiting for him to notice.
Waiting for him to realize that something was wrong.
Waiting for him to hold me and refuse to leave.
But Salvatore only smiled.
He stood up from the bedside, gently touched my head, and looked relieved.
As if my understanding had finally made everything easier.
As if my pain was nothing more than another problem he no longer had to face.
