Chapter 4 - The Spilled Wine
The private VIP dinner service progressed, but the tension at the table was thicker than blood.
Tessa returned from the kitchen carrying a heavy silver tray loaded with steaming plates of veal and truffle pasta. She moved with practiced, cinematic grace, completely ignoring the venomous glares Isabella was shooting her way.
Gabriel watched Tessa closely. As a man raised in a violent underworld, he was highly observant. He noticed the way she walked—not like a terrified civilian, but with the quiet, restrained discipline of a soldier. He felt a strange, undeniable instinct to protect her from his mother's impending wrath.
As Tessa stepped up to Isabella’s side to serve her plate, the cruel matriarch made her move.
Isabella deliberately and viciously shoved her elbow backward, knocking her full glass of red wine directly into Tessa.
The dark red liquid splashed violently across Tessa’s crisp white apron and black uniform.
The glass shattered on the floor.
"You clumsy, idiotic rat!" Isabella shrieked at the top of her lungs, jumping up from her chair to create a massive, humiliating scene. "You ruined my dress! You did that on purpose!"
Tessa stood perfectly still. The red wine dripped from her apron onto the floor. Her facial micro-expressions betrayed absolutely no fear, only a cold, calculated patience.
"I apologize, madam," Tessa said quietly.
"Apologize?!" Isabella screamed, pointing to the restaurant manager who was rushing over. "Fire her! Throw her out into the street! I want her banned from this establishment immediately!"
Gabriel shot up from his chair, his jaw locked in anger.
"Mother, stop it!" Gabriel ordered, stepping between Isabella and Tessa. "I saw you hit her arm. She didn't do anything wrong. Sit down before you embarrass this family any further."
Isabella gasped, completely shocked that her golden son was defending a servant.
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Before Isabella could retaliate, the heavy thud of Salvatore's silver cane hitting the floor echoed through the room.
👉 What detail will Salvatore notice that will change the family forever?
