Chapter 334: Chapter 334 You scammed my husband?! Dominic leaned back on the couch, a lazy grin curving his lips as he lifted his glass. "I’m Zero Void," he said, winking at Bella.
Jason puffed up his chest, grinning wide. "And I’m K4ne404! The fastest fingers in the system and the most handsome, obviously."
Scarlett snorted so hard she nearly spilled her drink. "Fastest fingers? Jason, last time you tried to bypass a firewall, you accidentally bought twenty boxes of diapers online."
Jason gasped. "That was one time! And it was because you distracted me!"
Dominic chuckled, tossing a peanut at him. "Sure, blame the pretty woman."
Bella giggled softly, her eyes bright. "I can’t believe I’m finally meeting you all in person," she said, looking at them one by one. "You guys sound just like you do online—chaotic."
"Hey! We call it energetically efficient teamwork," Jason said proudly, and Zeke nearly choked on his drink laughing.
Then Zeke turned toward Scarlett. "By the way, is Jace not coming? I thought he was supposed to join us tonight."
Scarlett rolled her eyes and waved a manicured hand. "He didn’t send any message, so forget him for now. He’s probably out there debugging satellites or whatever mysterious thing he does."
Dominic smirked, tipping his glass. "Ah yes, the mighty Jace—the man who disappears whenever there’s fun involved."
"Or whenever Scarlett’s involved," Jason added under his breath.
Scarlett raised her brow. "What was that?"
Jason’s grin faltered. "Uh—nothing! I said he disappears because—uh—uhm, lag!"
Zeke burst out laughing, and Bella joined in, her laughter light and pure, filling the lounge with warmth.
Dominic watched her quietly for a second, the corners of his mouth softening. "You know," he said teasingly, "if I knew our Bellatrix looked this adorable and pretty in person, I’d have shown up with flowers."
Scarlett groaned. "Dom, don’t flirt in front of my drink—it might curdle."
"Bella, you’re really married?" Jason leaned forward, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Who’s the lucky guy? Don’t tell me he’s one of those nerdy tech CEOs who pretend to meditate but can’t survive five minutes without Wi-Fi."
Bella blinked, her cheeks warming instantly. "Um..." she hesitated, fingers nervously twisting the edge of her dress.
Scarlett grinned like a cat who’d found cream. "Oh, you’ll never believe this. Her husband is a MAFIA BOSS!" she announced dramatically, as if revealing a world-ending secret.
Everyone went silent for half a second—then chaos.
Zeke nearly choked on his drink. "WHAT?!"
Jason’s eyes went wide as saucers. "Mafia boss?? Like actual mafia, or like dark suit, wine glass, slow jazz kind of mafia?"
Bella hid her face behind her hands, mumbling, "Scarlett, please..."
Dominic’s mouth fell open. "Wait, wait, hold on." He pointed at her like he was trying to process a crime scene. "You—married into the mafia? What’s his name? Maybe I... uh... might have heard of him."
Bella hesitated before answering, her voice small. "Leonardo Moretti." The name dropped into the air like thunder.
Zeke froze mid-blink. Jason mouthed a silent no way. Scarlett smirked, fully enjoying their faces.
"L-Leo—Leonardo Moretti?" Dominic stammered, feeling cold sweat form on his neck. His mind raced through old files, old scams, old mistakes. No... please no. He gulped, his smile twitching nervously. "Haha... Leo Moretti... good man! Great man! Handsome, rich, terrifying—very generous, I’m sure."
Zeke squinted at him suspiciously. "Why do you sound like you owe him money?"
Dominic forced a laugh. "Owe? Nooo. Not owe. Just... spiritually connected through a business misunderstanding."
Jason leaned over. "How big of a misunderstanding?"
Dominic whispered faintly, "About... three or four—no, I think five million."
Scarlett sprayed her drink across the table, cackling. "WHAT?!"
Bella looked at him in horror. "You scammed my husband?!"
Dominic threw his hands up. "It wasn’t scamming! It was temporary financial borrowing! I was gonna return it! Someday!"
Jason laughed so hard he nearly fell off the couch. "Bro, you literally robbed her husband and you’re sitting here drinking with his wife! You’ve got a death wish!"
Dominic slumped against the couch, his shoulders sagging.
"Dom, that wasn’t right," Bella said softly, her brows knitting together. "You need to return his money."
Scarlett crossed her arms, nodding firmly. "Yeah, seriously, Dom. Scamming someone like Leonardo Moretti? Out of all people? You might as well have written your will that day."
Dominic groaned, covering his face with one hand. "It’s not like I didn’t try! I did! I tried to contact him, but every time I did—he sent me death threats! Like, legit ones!"
.
Bella’s eyes widened. "He what?"
Dominic threw his arms up. "He said, and I quote, ’If I find your shadow, I’ll burn it.’ Who even says that? Shadows?! How do you burn a shadow?!"
Scarlett burst into laughter, clapping a hand over her mouth. "Oh my god, that does sound terrifying."
"Yeah!" Dominic continued, gesturing wildly. "I told him I’d pay him back, but he said—and I swear on my keyboard—Keep your money. I want your soul."
Jason nearly choked on his drink. "Your soul?! Bro, he cursed you!"
"I KNOW!" Dominic yelled, looking genuinely traumatized, clutching his chest like the trauma was still fresh.
Bella blinked, then said gently, "No, Leo isn’t like that. If you just say sorry and return the money, he won’t hurt you. He’s actually very kind and generous, Dom. He won’t do anything if you’re sincere."
Dominic stared at her as if she’d just told him the sun rises in the west. "Kind? Generous? You’re describing a different Leonardo Moretti! The one I know promised to shatter my existence into binary dust."
Zeke leaned back, his brow arched. "You’ve heard the rumors, right, Bella? They say he’s ruthless. That half the business world trembles when he walks into a meeting. That the city’s under his control and even the police don’t look him in the eye."
Jason nodded gravely. "Yeah, I heard he once shut down an entire company because someone was five minutes late to a deal."
Bella shook her head quickly. "You’re wrong. Unlike all those rumors, he’s different. He’s kind, actually. If you meet him, you’ll see." Her tone was firm but warm, her faith unshakable. "He’s not what people say."
Scarlett hid her pitying smile behind her glass, watching Bella with the same fondness one would have for a very sweet but hopelessly naïve little sister. Leo and kind? The words almost made her choke on her drink.