I couldn’t stop staring at the gold wedding band lying in Alessandro Romano’s bloodied hand.
It was impossible.
I had buried my husband with that ring two years earlier.
I remembered the cold rain.
The funeral.
The terrible silence when they lowered his coffin into the ground.
“David is dead,” I whispered.
Alessandro’s eyes remained fixed on mine.
“No, Catherine. David Winters is very much alive.”
My legs nearly gave out.
I gripped the edge of the hospital bed as the heart monitor continued beeping beside him.
My three-year-old son, Logan, sat near the pillow, holding his stuffed bear.
“Mommy, why is the magic man bleeding?”
I couldn’t answer.
Alessandro had been shot three times that night. He was supposed to be dead.
Yet somehow, my son had brought him back.
And now the man was telling me my entire marriage had been a lie.
“You said my husband died in a car accident,” I whispered.
“He staged it,” Alessandro replied.
I shook my head.
“David was an accountant.”
“He was my chief financial officer for five years.”
Alessandro’s voice was weak, but every word landed like a hammer.
“He handled the organization’s money. Real estate. Offshore accounts. Everything.”
My stomach twisted.
David had always been quiet.
He packed the same lunch every morning.
He complained about traffic.
He kissed me goodbye before work.
And he never let me touch his locked leather briefcase.
“He stole fifty million dollars from me,” Alessandro continued.
“Then he disappeared.”
I stared at the ring.
There was a small scratch along the inside.
David had made it himself while repairing an old watch.
I knew that scratch.
I knew that ring.
I knew my husband.
Or at least, I thought I did.
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked.
Alessandro slowly released Logan’s wrist.
“Because the men who attacked me tonight were searching for David.”
My blood turned cold.
“They believe he’s still alive.”
“And if they can’t find him…”
He looked at my son.
“They’ll come for you.”
Logan hugged Captain Bear tighter.
“Mommy, are we going home?”
I opened my mouth.
Before I could answer, a violent crash shook the trauma suite.
The wooden door splintered inward.
Gunfire erupted in the hallway.
The guards reached for their weapons.
Alessandro’s expression changed instantly.
“Enzo,” he ordered.
“Get Catherine and the boy out.”
The massive bodyguard grabbed my arm.
“Move!”
I pulled Logan close and ran.
Behind us, Alessandro shouted one final warning.
“Catherine!”
I turned.
His eyes were locked on mine.
“Your husband didn’t just steal the money.”
“He took something that could destroy everyone.”
Another gunshot echoed through the hospital.
And I realized my old life had ended the moment that gold ring appeared in his hand.
But what David had hidden from me was far more dangerous than fifty million dollars.
This is a fictional story created for entertainment purposes.
