Chapter 28
Dante
I sat alone in my villa as I watched multiple women come and go from their house. Even after he abused her and left her alone in a hotel room to sulk in her misery, he still slept around as if nothing had changed. He didn’t deserve to breathe as far as I was concerned.
How could she love him? How could she even remotely feel the slightest speck of affection for this dissolute sack of shit? Desperate times called for drastic measures, and the time had come for her to see the truth. This had gone on for far too long, and I was sick of it. I couldn’t take another day of this. Being away from her for so long was driving me mad.
My every waking moment, all the hours, all the minutes, and all the seconds of each day, was consumed by thoughts of her. With that said, my love for her could not overshadow her suffering. To see her suffer killed a piece of me. It chipped away at my heart until nothing was left. I loved her, beyond anything I could ever fathom.
To see her like this was intolerable. I’d thought I would be able to sit back in the shadows and wait for her to discover the truth for herself, but no. The time had come. When she’d looked me in my eyes and asked me if I loved her, I’d seen something there — something, any grown man would long for his entire life.
I knew she had fallen in love with me, and all my heart’s desires had descended into a cocoon of bliss at that moment. How I adored her. I loved her so much, well beyond the physical. No longer would I sit on the sidelines and wait for her to discover the kind of man she married. No longer would I wait for him to abuse her again. No longer would my heart be a prisoner to the whims of our next business meeting or her crying and suffering. It was time to tell her what I had seen, what I had heard. Perhaps I should confide in Maya so she could help me with what I had to do.
That’s when the doorbell rang, pulling me from my thoughts. It was two o’clock in the morning. Who would be at my door this late? I made my way downstairs, hoping Isabella was on the other side of the door. I knew that couldn’t be true, however. I glanced at the security camera and found a petite woman wrapped in a robe. Probably one of his playthings he’d decided to abandon looking for help. I went to the door and opened it slightly.
“Can I help you?” I couldn’t help but notice this woman looked like a mixture of Isabella and Maya with subtle differences in her nose and lip features.
“Hi. My name is Valentina. Do you mind if I use your phone to call a taxi or an Uber?”
I looked her up and down. “You mean to tell me you don’t have a cell phone?” This woman gave me a suspicious vibe.
“The battery died,” she claimed. I scanned the area to make sure this wasn’t a trick.
“Just one moment,” I said before closing the door. I went to look at my security cameras to ensure no one else was out there. Debating whether I should let her in, I peered through the peephole and the security camera once more. She seemed harmless. I opened the door and sighed. “Sure, come in. But only to use the phone.” Her appearance was so much like Maya’s; I couldn’t help but think my eyes were playing tricks on me.
“Where are you coming from?”
She didn’t answer. She only stared me in the face for a moment. The same look Isabella had given me when we first met.
“Are you here alone?” she asked.
I took a seat on the couch. “I thought you just needed to use the phone. Here.” I tossed her my cell. Without another word, she took off her robe, revealing her red-and-black silk lingerie. I jumped up out of my seat and took a few steps back.
“I need you to help me,” she said.
I backed away. “Please leave right now before I have my security team escort you out,” I demanded. She stood there laughing. This was the last thing I needed right now—some strange woman showing up at my door, wearing lingerie. This had to be a dream.
“Are you going to help me?” she asked, putting her hand on my shoulder, moving her body closer to mine. I stepped back again and made my way to the front door.
“What is it that you want? My phone is right there.”
“I want you inside me,” she said, smiling.
“Leave . . . Now,” I said forcefully. Was she insane? She walked over to the door and pushed it closed.
“I just want you to help me, that’s all.”
“You’re one of my neighbor’s girls, aren’t you? What happened? Did he kick you out and now you’re looking for someplace else to stay?”
“What do you know about your neighbor?”
“I know he’s a fiend that I want nothing to do with. I also know his wife. If you’re not going to call an Uber, then perhaps I should call her to come pick you up,” I said firmly. She backed away, mouth gaping. Putting her robe back on, she rushed to the door but I blocked her way. “You’re hiding something, aren’t you? Tell me the real reason you came here.”
“You asked me to leave, so I’ll leave,” she said. I continued to block the door with my arms. Something was suspicious about this, and I was going to find out what.
After she backed away from the door, I sat on the chair next to the couch. She sat on the couch across from me “The only way you’re opening that door is through a code. And until you tell me the real reason you came to my door, you’re stuck in here,” I said politely with undertones of suspicion.
“If I had known you knew Isabella, I would never have come here.” I could tell she was nervous.
“I’m going to ask you one last time. Why did you come here?”
She looked at me, then down at her feet, seemingly refusing to speak.
“Fine, I guess I’ll just give Isabella a call. Maybe she might know why you’re at her house at 2 a.m. with her husband.”
“No, please don’t,” she said. “I’ll tell you everything.” She tightened her robe and adjusted her sitting position. I sat there, waiting for answers.
“I’m Isabella’s cousin,” she said. I was stunned. Nathan was fucking his wife’s cousin. The bastard had no shame. I’d thought she looked like Maya, but this was ridiculous.
“Do you know a woman named Maya?” I asked.
“Yes. She’s my sister.” Again, I sat there shocked. Words couldn’t explain the shit-storm that would occur if Isabella knew about this. I knew Nathan had no morals, but to cheat with his cousin-in-law was beyond reprehensible. I put my face in the palm of my hand and shook my head in disbelief. Maybe moving into this villa was a mistake. Now I was caught up in Nathan’s mess all because this woman decided to come to my door unannounced.
“Why the hell did you come here? I’m not much for passing judgment, but to fuck your cousin’s husband is just . . . Never mind. Just tell me what you want.”
“Promise me you won’t tell Isabella any of this,” she pleaded.
I sighed. “Tell me, and I’ll have one of my security team drive you home safely.”
“All right . . . all right.” Relief flushed her face. “Nathan, your neighbor, kicked me out and told me to walk home. He won’t give me my car keys, and I don’t want to involve the police for obvious reasons.”
“So why try and seduce me? Why not make your call and leave?”
“That was my plan. Until, of course, you answered the door. You’re Dante Alonso, aren’t you? I read Forbes and the Wall Street Journal. I know who you are. You’re the most desired bachelor there is. I thought I’d take a shot. Besides, why are you living here, anyway? You could have an entire beachfront of villas if you wanted them.”
I rolled my eyes. “You can leave now. Tell your little boyfriend to give you the keys to your car back. Threaten him if you wish. Just get out of my house.” I moved aside creating a pathway for her exit.
“Wait a second. I can’t go back there. He’s insane,” she bellowed.
“You’re both insane. Please leave,” I said remorselessly.
“I can’t go back into the house. He kicked me out because I wouldn’t consent to his pain-room treatment.”
My brows curled. “Pain-room treatment? He has a pain room?”
“Yes.” She lowered her gaze.
“Do I even want to know what that is?” I was afraid to ask, but I was also worried he may have subjected Isabella to whatever lied within this room of his. Crossing her arms and embracing her gut, she went on to describe some of the most sickening acts of sexual gratification I had ever heard. When she started to explain to me what he had done to her in that pain-room chamber he created, I almost vomited. I felt nauseated and ashamed of having to listen to it.
“Stop. Please, just stop,” I said.
She got on her knees. “Can you come over there with me and help me get my keys from him?”
I stared at her as if she were nuts. “There’s no way in hell I’m going over there. I’m not getting involved in this nonsense.”
She stood up. “Please.”
“Absolutely not.”
She dropped her head. I still had no sympathy for her. This was all her doing anyway. “Do you know if he ever did that to Isabella?” The question that would determine whether or not I would beat Nathan to near death.
She curled her lip and smiled. “Hell no, he hasn’t. Why do you think he fucks me? Isabella would never be able to satisfy his sexual urges. I’m pretty sure she’d divorce him if she knew what kind of man he truly is.”
Relief purged my torment. Picturing Isabella with him as she’d just described would have broken my heart. I ran my fingers through my hair and squinted at her in disgust. “I don’t understand how you could sleep with your cousin’s husband, knowing what type of man he is.” I shook my head.
Once again, she didn’t reply. She only gave that expressionless stare as if I were in the wrong for even asking such questions. I picked up my phone. “I’m calling Isabella. She has to know about this.”
Her mouth dropped open.
Of course, Isabella didn’t know I was living in the next villa over, and giving her this knowledge was the last thing I wanted to do. Despite the emptiness of the threat, Valentina stood up and stopped me.
“Wait! Please don’t. Promise me you won’t call her, and I’ll tell you everything,” she begged.
“Everything about what?”
“About their scheme.”
“Scheme? What scheme?” I laid my phone down and gave her my full attention. She had my interest now.
“Look, I’m not fucking him just for pleasure’s sake. Things are in motion you can’t begin to understand. Regardless, after what Nathan tried to pull on me, I’m convinced he’s not going to let me in on anything. He’ll probably just disappear once they have the money.”
“The money?” I raised an eyebrow. “Tell me everything.”
“They’re going to siphon all of Isabella’s and Aerial & Kam Cosmetics’ assets. They’ve been planning this for years. I wanted in, so I lied to Nathan about being pregnant. But after he strapped me to the floor of his pain room and put a dagger to my stomach, I knew he was crazy,” she confessed. I tried to maintain my composure as best as I could.
“Who are they?” I hissed.
“Nathan and Oliver.”
Like whiplash, it hit me without warning. I couldn’t believe it. If she hadn’t come to my door tonight . . .
I slammed my hand on a nearby table, which caused her to flinch. “That fucking piece of shit,” I murmured. What the hell made them think they would be able to get away with this? They knew my team of forensic accountants would eventually find out.
Now, here this woman Valentina was, giving me all the information I needed to bring this destructive marriage to its end. One thing I’d learned about Isabella was that her company was one of the most important aspects of her life. She would give her all to make sure the business maintained its success. This woman coming to my doorstep was a blissing just as much as it was a curse.
“Do you have any idea what this means?”
She scoffed. “Yes, I know exactly what this means. But I have no other choice. The second I entered your home, I was screwed. You were going to tell her I was here, and from there, the dominoes would have fallen, leading to her finding out everything anyway. I think it’s better she hears it from you than me. You don’t know her—she’s insane.”
I shot her a confused gaze. “How is she insane?”
“Isabella is emotionally unstable. She beats her husband and treats my sister like a slave. There’s no telling what she’ll do when she finds out about this. When she does, I want to be as far away as possible.”
I almost busted out laughing. She couldn’t be serious.
“Who told you such nonsense?”
“Nathan. He has the scars to prove it. He told me Isabella put a couple of billiard balls into a sock and hit herself in the face and chest. Now, she wants to paint him as an abusive husband so she can divorce him, leaving him with nothing,” she confessed. I sat there mesmerized. Her gullibility knew no bounds.
“And you believed that bullshit? After what he tried to do to you? Even after he told you he was going to steal all her wealth, you still believed him? She’s your cousin. You don’t know your own damn cousin?” I started to become frustrated by her obliviousness. She said no words. Perhaps having said these ridiculous claims aloud made her come to her senses. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair once again. “Here’s what I want you to do. I want you to call Isabella and tell her everything you just told me about Nathan’s plan to suck her dry. Say you got an anonymous tip or whatever.”
She stood up, shocked. “I can’t! She’ll kill me if she finds out . . .”
“Don’t tell her about your involvement. Just focus on Nathan and Oliver. You can gather whatever dignity you have left by leaving town before she finds out you were in on it.” She shook her head as I held out my phone. “The number to her hotel room is in this phone. The call will be anonymous and the number can’t be traced. Don’t tell her where you are.” Backing away, she continued to shake her head. “Take the damn thing and call her,” I demanded. She slowly reached for the phone, and I put it into her hand. I pressed the call button for her. It rang once and she hung up swiftly. Tears were rolling down her face. The phone landed on the floor as she dropped to her knees.
“Please don’t make me do this. My family will disown me,” she begged. I was puzzled as to why she would ask me not to do this when I had done nothing. This was all her doing. Hers, Nathan’s, and Oliver’s—they’d devised this plan to take what Isabella worked so hard to earn.
The begging did nothing but build on my anger and wear on my patience. In a last-ditch effort to win my sympathy, she confessed that all she’d ever wanted was a way out of a life of mediocrity, which was why she’d lied to Nathan about being pregnant. She saw him as a way out, a way to get enough money to get far away from here. Isabella never trusted her enough to give her a job in her company, as she saw her as nothing but a gold digger, willing to use her looks, and not her brains, to get ahead.
With that rejection, she’d decided to start sleeping with Isabella’s husband, something she now viewed as a colossal mistake. The more she talked, the more sickened I became. It seemed she and Nathan were made for each other. I picked up my phone again and handed it to her. “You either call your cousin and tell her what they’re planning, or I’ll call her and expose you in the process. It’s your choice,” I threatened. She wavered but took the phone from me. Dialing the number, it rang three times before Isabella answered. She put it on speaker so I could hear what Isabella said.
“Valentina? Why are you calling so late at night? And how did you get this number?”
Valentina bit her lip, and then sighed into the phone. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
I sat on the couch and stared daggers at her as she confessed Nathan’s plan. Isabella began to shout over the phone. I could hear the anger, disgust, and betrayal in her voice. Despite Valentina’s efforts to calm her, Isabella continued to scream in revulsion. It tore me up inside to hear her go through this, but the truth had been hidden long enough.
Isabella threatened to kill both Nathan and Oliver before hanging up the phone. To my surprise, Valentina had also described Nathan’s sexual deviance in rich detail. While I told her only to divulge information about Nathan’s scheme, she went ahead and outed herself. I couldn’t believe it. Valentina handed me the phone and walked over to my front door.
“Why? Why’d you tell her about your affair with Nathan?” I stood there perplexed.
“Because . . . I couldn’t live a lie anymore. I don’t want what happened to me to happen to her. It’s obvious Nathan only cares for himself. If I can’t get what I need then neither should he.” She opened the door and was about to walk out. I was stunned by her crisis of conscience.
An Uber was waiting outside for her. “That’s for you. I called them before I ever opened my door.” She gave me a slight smile before climbing into the car. With her gone, I was now more worried about Isabella.
I could only guess she was on her way home to see Nathan, and it was anyone’s guess what she would do once she got there. Nathan had a collection of people over there already. If Isabella saw him for who he truly was in rich hedonistic detail she might do something she’d regret.
Worried about what Isabella may do, I called Maya in the hopes that she’d answer so she could meet Isabella there to calm her down. I knew once she was calmed, I would have to tell her everything. The time for secrets was over.