Don, I Left as You Wished Novel – Chapter 1 I was ten when my mother remarried into the Messina crime family in New York. My stepbrother Carlo was the family heir. He always mocked me for being a stray orphan, and he once even pushed me into the backyard pool. He stood on the edge, watching coldly as I choked and struggled. “Your mother is just a homewrecker,” he sneered back then. “Don’t think you’ll ever be a real Messina. I’ll kick you both out one day!” He burned my dolls, poured red paint on my dresses, and led the crowd to mock me, calling me a bastard. I stayed quiet, but his malice never faded. Then came college. His best friend, Damiano Barone, confessed his love to me. Damiano was the heir to an allied family. After that, Carlo stopped tormenting me. I saw Damiano as my savior. I gave myself to him on my twentieth birthday. The next morning, I woke up and overheard him talking to Carlo. Their voices dripped with mockery and amusement. “Did you record her first night?” Carlo asked. Damiano smirked. “Of course. High-def and in vivid detail.
I wouldn’t do something this dirty if it wasn’t to get even for you.” Tears flooded my eyes, but I didn’t dare make a sound. The boy I thought was my light was just another weapon Carlo used for his revenge. But Carlo didn’t know something. I had already applied to study abroad. I would never get in his way again. In the lounge, Carlo casually flicked his cigarette ash. “Once her purity is ruined, she won’t have the nerve to stay with the Messinas.” “What if she can’t take the blow?” Damiano asked. Carlo scoffed with pure disdain. “You’re so worried about her. Did you actually fall for her?” Damiano quickly shook his head. “No way. I know where my loyalty lies. An easy girl like her isn’t worth my time.” “Diana is coming back soon anyway. I don’t have time to waste on a nobody.” Diana Ricci was their childhood friend. She was Damiano’s ultimate dream girl. And everyone knew Carlo hated me. He blamed my mother for his own mother’s fatal overdose, shifting all that hatred onto me. After I started dating Damiano, Carlo still gave me the cold shoulder, but the active torment stopped.
I thought he finally tolerated my existence. I even hoped we could coexist peacefully. Instead, it was just a setup for a deadlier revenge. They grew up together. I was a fool to think Damiano actually loved me. I overestimated this relationship. Worse, I overestimated myself. I wiped my tears and rushed out of the hotel. The second I got home, I called my academic advisor. “Professor, is that study abroad program you mentioned still open for me?” He was a renowned figure in research. With his help, my departure would be effortless. I used to work myself to the bone to be perfect, hoping to finally get my family’s attention. But no one ever cared. Not my mother, and certainly not Carlo. I hung up. I collapsed onto my bed, utterly drained. A nightmare dragged me awake, leaving me drenched in a feverish sweat. I tried to go get medicine, but my bedroom door burst open. Before I could speak, my mother hurled a stack of photos at my face. “Celeste Costa! How did I raise such a shameless daughter? You’re barely an adult, and you’re already throwing yourself into men’s beds.
Disgusting!” The photos were intimate shots Damiano took while I was asleep. An icicle of pure agony pierced my chest. Only one night had passed, and they had already leaked them. Just two days ago, Damiano held my hand and swore to me. “Don’t worry, Celeste. I’ll marry you the moment we graduate.” He plied me with drinks, whispering sweet words to keep me happy. He wore me down until I finally consented. He kept dragging my hazy body back into bed, losing himself in lust. I was naive enough to think he loved me. My silence only enraged her further. “Answer me, Celeste! Which bastard took these? If anyone else sees this, the entire Messina family is disgraced! How do I explain this to the Don?” From start to finish, she only cared about herself. But the moment I whispered Damiano Barone’s name, her explosive fury vanished into dead silence. After a long pause, she snapped at me again. “How could you get involved with the Barone heir? We can’t afford to cross someone like him.” “Besides, you two were dating. Even if you have proof he did it, his family will protect him.
You shouldn’t have given in.” I stared at my mother in utter disbelief. She avoided my eyes. “I’ll handle the photos. No one will remember this.” Damiano’s power was something the Messina family simply couldn’t touch. The door shut, leaving Carlo standing nearby with a smug, triumphant grin. He had anticipated this outcome all along. The truth didn’t even matter anymore.