Chapter 108: This Is Your Fault!
Isabella and Carmella were shoved out of the premises like gate crashers who had been caught.
"I said you didn’t have to push me!" Carmella shouted at the top of her lungs, but the guards simply stood like a barricade in front of the entrance.
She ground her teeth, glaring at them. "Do you even know who I am?!"
"Mom!" Isabella screamed from her side, snapping Carmella out of her growing rage.
When Carmella turned, all she saw was the deep frustration on her daughter’s face. Isabella’s eyes were red, her hands clenched tightly at her sides, her teeth grinding.
Seeing that, Carmella’s shoulders sagged as her voice softened. "Isabella..."
But Isabella only whimpered before storming away.
"Isabella!" Carmella shouted after her, following behind, but not without glaring at the guards. "Remember this! You don’t know the people you just offended! You’ll regret this!"
After spitting out the empty warning fueled by rage, Carmella hurried after her daughter. As for the guards, they simply watched the mother and daughter walk away after humiliating themselves.
"Should we be worried?" one man asked the other. "They’re still from the Di Carpios, and knowing that man, he’s going to settle the score."
The guards exchanged glances until one of them said, "The Di Carpios might be the shallowest people I’ve ever heard of, but don’t forget whose territory this is." He turned to his colleagues, brows raised. "Dominion wouldn’t let that happen."
Although hosting a party in the center of Dominion’s territory was risky in itself, they were also not the type to let anyone tarnish their name.
"Still, it’s better to inform Madam Shyaan just in case," another guard suggested. "They wouldn’t dare do anything here, but once we’re outside this territory? These are the Di Carpios."
*****
Meanwhile, Isabella and Carmella sat in the limousine on their way back to their hotel in complete silence. Carmella tried to speak to her daughter, but Isabella was inconsolable. In the end, she gave her space until they arrived.
Once they stepped out, Carmella called after her, "Isabella, dear—"
Much to her surprise, Isabella—who had been stomping ahead—suddenly stopped and looked back.
"What?!" Isabella snapped, her anger now fully apparent.
Carmella sighed and approached her. "Isabella, sweetheart, I know this is ridiculous. We fell into that bitch’s trap—"
"We?" Isabella slapped her mother’s hand away and stepped back. "Mom, I didn’t fall into anyone’s trap. You did!"
"What?"
"I told you to stay out of it! But you insisted! If you hadn’t overdone it, it wouldn’t have escalated like this! Now, not only was I humiliated along with you, but Lucian had to see that!" Isabella was practically screaming, her frustration spilling over. "God!"
Hissing, she stomped her foot and stormed inside the hotel, wiping away her tears.
As for Carmella, she reached out, but stopped midway. This was the first time she had seen her daughter this upset. It wasn’t surprising. This was also the first time Isabella had experienced something like this. Carmella, on the other hand, was used to it, especially back when the Di Carpios were still building their name.
The elites would humiliate her, shun her, and treat her like dirt.
It was why Carmella had sworn her daughter would never experience the same. And so, she did everything to shield Isabella from the ruthless and savage reality of their world.
"Tsk!" she clicked her tongue bitterly, Ashley’s face flashing in her mind. "That little whore. How dare she..."
Her chest rose and fell heavily, her hands balling into fists. "That bitch... I’ll teach her a lesson."
A glint flickered in her eyes as she marched toward the elevator. Her anger only grew stronger with each step.
Carmella halted when she saw Marshal already inside the room. Her expression twisted instantly.
"Marshal! What are you doing here?!" she snapped, her voice sharp and piercing. "Do you even know what happened back there?! You said you were just going to take a phone call, but what is this?! How could you just leave your wife and daughter in that place—"
Her voice was cut short as a hand struck her cheek.
Carmella stumbled back, caught off guard, falling onto the floor.
She raised a trembling hand to her cheek, wide-eyed. Her mind went blank from the throbbing pain as she stared up at her husband.
"Dear—" her breath hitched as her body shuddered.
Marshal flexed his palm, hissing as he glared down at her.
"You stupid bitch," he spat, restraining himself from hitting her again. "I told you a hundred times—I don’t care how you scheme your way into things. But if you’re going to do it, do it properly! Not only did you fail, you dragged our entire family into this! Even Isabella! How humiliating!"
Thinking about it only fueled his anger further. "Do you have any idea what kind of problem you just created for me?!"
Marshal looked ready to strike again, but held himself back. He rubbed his nape and walked over to a chair, his head throbbing.
It was true he had stepped out for an important call. There were issues with their shipping to another territory, and he needed to handle it personally. But when he returned, all he heard was someone mentioning body cams.
The moment Marshal saw the expressions on Carmella’s and Isabella’s faces, he chose to leave, refusing to be humiliated alongside them.
"These bitches," he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose as he sat down. "You should be grateful that’s all Lucian did to the two of you."
He glared at Carmella, his face filled with bitterness. "He could’ve had you executed right there! Do you think I could’ve saved you if that happened in his territory?!"
"You’ve been part of this family for years, and you still don’t understand the underground code!" he continued. "Carmella, is the money I give you not enough to educate yourself? You even dragged Isabella into this—what kind of mother does that?!"
Carmella’s breath hitched, her neck stiffening. But seeing how enraged her husband was, she could only lower her head.
Still, her eyes burned, not with anger toward him or Isabella, but toward Ashley.
How dare that girl stand up for herself... when she should’ve stayed beneath them.
"Ugh... my head. What would you do without me?" Marshal grumbled. "In the end, I still have to fix this and secure our foothold in the industry. Dominion is making a move, and we can’t afford to fall behind."
Hearing that, Carmella stiffened. She glanced at him, realizing he misunderstood the situation.
It wasn’t Dominion leading this.
It was Ashley.
But she couldn’t say that. If she did, Marshal might truly cast them aside, and Isabella would suffer for it.
"Husband," she said carefully, her voice strained as he raised a brow. "Don’t worry. I’ll fix this."
Marshal snorted, watching her crawl closer.
"I’ll fix everything," Carmella repeated, clinging to his arm with a smile. "It’s my fault this happened, and that Isabella got dragged into it. But don’t worry... I can make it right."
"..." Marshal clicked his tongue and looked away. "You’d better, Carmella. Otherwise, I’ll send you away before you ruin my daughter completely."
"Yes," she smiled desperately, her grip tightening slightly as a glint flashed in her eyes.
The corners of her lips curled into a smirk as she began plotting her revenge, already thinking of how to make Ashley pay.