Page 3 of The Godfather's Black Rose

What Vincent didn't know was that on the very night he was being intimate with Scarlett in Los Angeles, Lucia received a

multimedia message from an unknown number.

The message contained only one photo.

In the picture, Scarlett was beaming as she leaned against Vincent's chest, wearing a revealing nightgown with her bare shoulders

exposed. Vincent wasn't resisting—he held a wine glass in one hand while his other arm wrapped around her waist, a faint smile

playing on his lips.

Below the photo was a line of text:

"Miss Moretti, after seven years with Vincent, you should be able to feel that his heart is no longer with you. Be smart and bow

out gracefully."

Lucia knew this was Scarlett's provocation, trying to get the "old flame" to disappear quickly so the "new woman" could take her

place.

She stared coldly at Vincent in the photo for a long time, a frigid smile curving her lips.

Sweet words were indeed the most unreliable things in the world.

Just the night before, Vincent had held her with bloodshot eyes, crying as he promised to be with her forever, saying he could

never leave her.

The very next evening, he was calmly embracing another woman.

She didn't reply to Scarlett or call Vincent to confront him. She simply quickened her pace in packing her belongings.

For the entire following week, Vincent remained in Los Angeles.

He would text Lucia as usual, sharing his daily life, sending her photos from the film set, even photographing roadside

wildflowers to send to her.

It seemed intimate and unchanged from before.

But they both knew everything was different.

In the past, when Vincent traveled for work, he couldn't sleep without talking to her for at least a day.

But this time, he never initiated a single phone call. After discovering that Lucia hadn't called him either, Vincent pretended

not to notice, and they both tacitly maintained a superficial calm.

Finally, on the morning of the eighth day, Vincent called excitedly.

"Lucia, I've finished everything here and I'm ready to come back! Let's go out for dinner tonight—I'm craving that French

restaurant downtown."

Lucia looked at her nearly empty walk-in closet and nodded with downcast eyes.

That evening, Vincent went straight from his private jet to the restaurant. The moment he saw Lucia in the private dining room, he

rushed over and buried his head in her shoulder.

"Lucia, I missed you so much. We've never been apart this long."

He nuzzled against her neck, thinking he was being affectionate, not realizing that from this angle, Lucia could clearly see a

telltale hickey on the back of his neck.

Against his pale skin, that dark red mark stung her eyes.

Lucia's smile didn't reach her eyes. After sitting down, she asked casually, "Are the mosquitoes in Los Angeles particularly

vicious?"

Vincent froze with a confused expression, and she reached up to gently touch the back of his neck.

"There's a red mark here."

Vincent's knife and fork clattered to the floor.

Despite the air conditioning running at full blast in the private room, Lucia could clearly see beads of cold sweat forming on

Vincent's forehead.

The air fell silent for several seconds. Vincent spoke somewhat stiffly: "Yeah, that's right. There are lots of bugs in

California—probably got bitten without noticing."

Lucia didn't expose his clumsy lie, simply replacing his utensils with clean ones. "Let's eat."

Throughout the meal, Vincent was clearly distracted.

The lively atmosphere that once filled their dinner table was gone, and they finished eating in silence.

Back home, Vincent took the initiative to shower, then lay in bed waiting for Lucia.

When she emerged from the bathroom with steam still clinging to her skin, he reached out to untie the sash of her silk robe,

trying to kiss her in a placating manner.

The room began to heat up with tension. The next second, a jarring phone ringtone shattered the mood.

Lucia glanced at the phone on the nightstand, where "Scarlett" flashed across the screen.

She pulled away, avoiding Vincent's kiss, and looked at him with indifferent eyes: "The phone keeps ringing. Aren't you going to

answer it?"

Before Vincent could reach for it, the ringing stopped.

He breathed a sigh of relief as if he'd been granted a reprieve. Just as he was about to say something, the phone rang again.

And this time, it was the special ringtone Vincent had set for Scarlett.

Now Vincent could no longer maintain his composure. He fumbled for the phone and headed outside, not forgetting to turn back and

explain: "Lucia, there might be an emergency with the family. I'll step out to take this and be right back."

He deliberately put on an annoyed expression as he answered the phone: "I know, can't whatever it is wait until tomorrow... Fine,

I'll get there as soon as I can."

Vincent ran back barefoot, threw on his jacket, and headed for the door.

"Lucia, there's an emergency meeting I have to attend personally. If it runs too late, I won't come back—I'll stay overnight at

the downtown apartment."

"Tomorrow, I promise I'll make it up to you properly."

It wasn't until he was about to leave that he noticed Lucia hadn't said a word the entire time, just quietly watching him.

When their eyes met and he looked into her deep gaze, Vincent's heart skipped a panicked beat.

Something felt off. Lucia's look made him inexplicably anxious.

But soon, Lucia smiled naturally, waving him off and telling him to hurry so he wouldn't delay important business.

Vincent hesitated for a few seconds, repeatedly confirming she seemed normal before hastily closing the front door.

Lucia watched him leave, not missing the flash of relief in his eyes as he turned away.

She curved her lips slightly, then reached up to remove the necklace Vincent had given her—the one she'd worn for seven years—and

placed it on the table.

Since she'd decided to leave, she would leave everything behind, returning it all to him exactly as it was.

After Vincent left that time, he didn't return for a very long time.

He seemed to be deliberately avoiding her, sending no messages, making no calls, as if pretending nothing had happened would make

it so.

In all their seven years together, Lucia had never experienced such profound silence.

She looked at the photo of the two of them together, gently caressing Vincent's face in the picture with her fingertip, then

smiled as she tore away her half of the photograph.

The floor was covered with picture frames, and she treated every photo the same way.

After handling the last photo together, she twisted her stiff, aching neck and realized dawn had already broken.

It turned out they had so many photos together that it took an entire night to completely clear them all out.

Lucia lit the fireplace and threw all the photo fragments into the flames.

As the fire blazed up, she noticed several unread messages—provocative texts from Scarlett.

"Bet you didn't see this coming—Vincent isn't at some meeting, he's here having a candlelit dinner with me. He even complimented

my steak." The message was followed by several intimate photos.

Lucia didn't even lift an eyelid as she casually deleted the messages. She began calling people to come over and replace all the

dark-toned furniture and curtains that reflected her personal style throughout the estate, switching them out for the bright,

modern aesthetic that Vincent preferred.

Over the next few days, she personally worked to completely transform the home into something that belonged to Vincent alone.

Standing at the entrance, seeing that not a trace of her remained in the house, Lucia smiled with satisfaction.

Just then, Vincent called. Perhaps overwhelmed by guilt, or unable to bear the pressure of their cold war any longer, he was the

first to give in.

His voice carried a note of grievance: "Lucia, I've been away for so long, and you haven't called me even once. Don't you love me

anymore?"

Lucia smiled softly but said nothing.

Hearing her low chuckle, Vincent's heart instantly clenched with unease.

"Lu... Lucia... what are you laughing about?"

Looking at the completely transformed home before her, Lucia said with a cryptic smile, "A while back was our seven-year

anniversary, and I sent you a gift. Did you look at it? Besides that, I prepared another surprise for you."

Vincent paused: "The gift... I've been so busy lately, I haven't opened it yet. I'll look at it as soon as I get home tonight!"

"Lucia, what do you want for dinner? I'll buy ingredients—it's been so long since I cooked for you..."

"No need," Lucia interrupted coolly.

She was planning to tell him that her people would come for her tonight. After this, there would be no "after" for them.

But there were people talking constantly around Vincent. He glanced helplessly at the chattering Scarlett and said apologetically,

"Lucia, it's a bit noisy here. Let's talk when I get home—I'll be back soon anyway."

With that, he hurriedly hung up.

Lucia looked down at the darkened screen and laughed softly.

Dinner together tonight? No need.

All her luggage had already been moved out. Lucia stood outside the estate and took one last look back.

The warm light glowing from inside matched his preferred style perfectly.

That was good.

The thunderous roar of rotor blades echoed overhead as a black helicopter circled down through the night sky.

The helicopter landed on the estate's helipad, and Lucia walked toward it without hesitation.

At the same time, Vincent, having bought fresh ingredients, was driving his Ferrari back home, just entering the estate's main

gate.

He glanced up casually and saw the helicopter bearing the Moretti family crest, his eyes instantly widening.

The next second, he caught sight of Lucia boarding the helicopter.

The gas pedal slammed to the floor, the sports car roared, and he raced frantically toward the estate.

Panic flooded his mind, as if something vital was being torn away from him, his heart pounding so violently it felt ready to burst

from his chest.

But he was still a step too late.

When he rushed up to the rooftop helipad like a madman, he could only watch helplessly as the black helicopter roared overhead and disappeared into New York's glittering night sky...