The silence in the Moretti estate was suffocating.
Loreley stood motionless in the grand hall, the weight of her father's words pressing against her chest like a crushing vice.
"You are no longer my daughter."
Don Moretti's voice had been cold, void of hesitation, void of love.
He hadn't shouted. He hadn't raged. That would have implied she was still worth his anger.
Instead, he had looked at her with nothing but quiet disappointment, the kind that cut deeper than any scream ever could.
Loreley forced herself to breathe, standing before him in the dim light of his office, his dark wooden desk looming between them like a barricade.
"I was humiliated tonight because of you." His fingers drummed against the desk, slow, deliberate. "Zayden Xandros is the future of this empire, and you dared to challenge him publicly. You have made our family look weak."
Weak.
The word burned like acid against her skin.
Loreley straightened her spine. "He betrayed us first," she said, her voice steady despite the storm raging inside her. "He used me. Lied to me. He—"
"Enough." Don Moretti stood, his towering figure casting a long shadow over the room. "You are an embarrassment, Loreley. An insult to this family."
Her throat tightened, but she refused to drop her gaze. "I did nothing wrong."
"There must have been something you've done to make him think you're a worthless piece of shit.." His lips curled in disgust. "I won't suffer the consequences of your insolence."
She clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms so hard she thought she might draw blood.
"So that's it?" she whispered. "You'd rather throw me out like I never existed than stand by your own daughter?"
"You chose to shame us by being weak," he said. "Now you will live with the consequences."
A cold finality settled between them. Then he turned his back to her.
A dismissal.
The last she would ever receive from him.
Loreley swallowed hard, blinking away the sting in her eyes as she turned sharply on her heel.
Her steps were deliberate as she left his office, but by the time she reached the grand staircase, her breath was coming faster, her heart pounding against her ribs.
She was being erased.
The Moretti staff whispered as she ascended the staircase, as if they knew. The weight of their pity and judgment clung to her like a funeral shroud.
She forced herself forward, step by step, until she reached her bedroom. By the time she closed the door behind her, her hands were shaking.
Her room—her sanctuary—felt suddenly foreign. The gilded mirrors, the silk sheets, the delicate perfume bottles lined up on her vanity. They all seemed to mock her.
None of it mattered now.
She moved like a ghost, shoving clothes into a suitcase with mechanical efficiency.
A soft knock made her freeze. Then, a voice.
"Loreley?"
Liliana.
Loreley turned to see her younger sister standing hesitantly in the doorway.
Liliana was delicate where Loreley was sharp, soft where Loreley had been forced to be steel. But the fear in her dark eyes wasn't for herself. It was for her.
"They're really making you leave?" Liliana's voice wavered.
Loreley let out a short, bitter laugh. "Apparently, I've disgraced the family."
Liliana stepped inside, glancing warily over her shoulder as if expecting their father to storm in at any second. "This isn't right."
"No," Loreley said, zipping her suitcase shut. "It's not."
Liliana hesitated, then reached out, gripping Loreley's hand tightly. "Where will you go?"
Loreley squeezed back, the only sign of comfort she could afford. "I'll figure it out."
There was nothing else to say. Liliana didn't cry. She didn't beg Loreley to stay.
She just nodded once, the way someone does when they realize there's no stopping the inevitable.
And then Loreley walked past her, down the stairs, and out the front door.
No one stopped her.
No one said goodbye.
The city blurred past the window of the cab, neon lights casting long shadows against the rain-slicked streets. Loreley stared out at the familiar skyline, gripping the handle of her suitcase with white-knuckled fingers.
Everything had changed. She wasn't Loreley Moretti anymore. Not really.
She had no home. No family. No future.
She exhaled slowly, forcing the rising panic back down into something cold. Controlled.
She wouldn't break. Not here. Not yet.
"Where to?" the cab driver asked.
Loreley didn't hesitate. "'The Queens'."
* * *
Riley Marino's nightclub was a haven for those who knew how to navigate the underbelly of the city. As soon as Loreley stepped inside, the pulse of music and low chatter washed over her like a balm.
Riley spotted her immediately from behind the bar. The older woman arched a brow, dark eyes sweeping over Loreley's expensive dress, her rain-damp hair, the luggage in her hand.
"Shit," Riley muttered, setting down the glass she'd been polishing. "What the hell happened to you?"
Loreley took a steadying breath. "I need a place to stay."
Riley studied her for a long moment, then exhaled. "Come on, bestie," she said, tossing the towel over her shoulder. "We'll talk upstairs."
The guest room Riley led her to was small but warm. It smelled faintly of whiskey and lavender. Loreley sank onto the edge of the bed, the exhaustion of the night finally crashing down on her.
Riley leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. "You're going to tell me what the hell happened, or do I have to guess?"
Loreley closed her eyes briefly, then opened them.
"Zayden betrayed me." The words tasted bitter. "Announced his engagement to Brooks Bellini. Broke up with me. Then my father disowned me."
Riley let out a slow whistle. "Damn."
Loreley's jaw clenched. "I'm done being used."
Riley studied her, then nodded to herself. "Alright."
Loreley frowned. "Alright?"
"You wanna be stronger?" Riley's lips quirked. "Then we start training tomorrow."
Loreley blinked. "Training?"
"You think you're going to survive in this world by just being pretty?" Riley scoffed. "You want power, you're going to have to earn it."
Something dark and determined settled in Loreley's chest.
"Then let's start," she said.
Riley grinned. "That's the spirit."
And for the first time that night, Loreley felt something other than loss.
She felt ready.