Before the Wedding, My Father Gave My Black Onyx Ring to My Sister Chapter 1

In the Ferro family, every daughter received a black onyx ring before getting married.

The stone was jet-black, with the Ferro family's signature F engraved in the center.

My father said it wasn't jewelry. It was a Ferro family vow.

As long as you wore it, the whole Ferro family would have your back, wherever marriage took you.

My twin sister, Lucia Ferro, and I were getting married on the same day.

But in the days leading up to the wedding, my father brought out only one velvet ring box.

Lucia held out her hand in delight as our relatives raised their glasses.

I stared at my bare ring finger, then turned to my mother. "Where's mine?"

My mother, Margaret Ferro, avoided my eyes and pretended to study the oil painting on the wall.

My brother, Victor Ferro, kept cutting his steak and didn't even look up. "Lucia's marrying into the Cassano family. She needs to walk in with some real weight behind her. We melted your ring down and added the gold to her band."

My father, Robert Ferro, sipped his red wine, his tone perfectly flat. "The Cassano family has strict rules. She needs them to know the Ferro family is behind her all the way. Your fiancé, Aiden Brooks, is just an ordinary doctor who has nothing to do with the family business. You'll never need a ring like that."

I stared at the harsh gleam of gold around Lucia's finger.

I remembered the year I turned 18, when my father let me touch his ring for the first time. He'd looked at me and sworn that as long as my last name was Ferro, I'd always have someone in my corner.

Only now did I understand that he hadn't been lying.

I simply wasn't the Ferro he meant to protect.

* * *

After the pre-wedding family dinner, only champagne corks and crushed rose petals remained in the great hall.

My mother pressed the ring box back into Lucia's hands and turned to me. "Chloe, stop pulling a long face. If the press sees this, they'll think we treat you badly."

I looked at the ring on Lucia's hand, my nails digging deep into my palms.

"Mom, do you remember the onyx you picked out for me on my 18th birthday?"

That year, my mother had stroked my hair and said, "Black onyx has a quiet strength. It suits you best. Whatever storms come your way, this family will always be your safe harbor."

Her expression stiffened briefly before she frowned impatiently. "Lucia's jewelry box is still missing a few decent emeralds. Don't bother me with ancient history."

She turned and went upstairs.

When I looked down, I noticed a small black onyx stone with silver veining set into the side of Lucia's ring.

It was the one my mother had personally picked out for me when I turned 18.

She hadn't forgotten her promise. She'd simply given Lucia the family backing that was supposed to be mine without a second thought.

Lucia had been the goddaughter of the head of the Cassano family since she was little.

My father said that one day she'd be the most reliable link between the two families.

From then on, her gowns, her social calendar, and her public appearances were all carefully planned around the family's interests.

Over time, whatever Lucia needed became "what the family needs," while my needs could always wait.

Back in my bedroom, I found that the vintage trunks that had stood against the wall were gone. My grandmother's antique jewelry box had been opened, too, and the sapphire brooch inside was missing.

The trunks were listed as part of my trousseau, and my aunt had left me the brooch.

I went to find Victor, who was taking stock of the supplies.

He tossed the list onto the table. "Lucia's moving into the Cassano estate with clothes for every season, and there weren't enough trunks, so I had them use yours for now. You're marrying that broke doctor of yours. Throw your stuff in a canvas bag and move into his apartment. He won't mind."

Lucia walked by in a silk robe, dangling the keys to my trunks. "Sorry, Chloe. When we get back from the honeymoon, I'll have the butler send a car to bring them back."

Victor stopped her at once. "They're already listed as part of your trousseau. What would it look like to take them back now? Do you want the Cassano family thinking the Ferro family can't even come up with two trunks?"

My mother hurried over when she heard us and jabbed a finger in my face. "Why are you being so petty? If your grandma were still alive, she'd want Lucia to have a proper wedding too. We can't let the Cassano family look down on us."

My father leaned on the second-floor railing and jerked his chin toward the servants' quarters. "It's not like we didn't give you anything. There are two old furs in there."

I knew those two furs.

Lucia had thrown up on one of them while drunk, and it still smelled sour after several washes. The other was riddled with moth holes, and just last month, my mother had said she was going to cut it up for the dog's bed.

I lowered my voice. "What happened to the 50,000 dollars Aiden transferred for our wedding?"

My mother calmly toyed with the diamond ring on her finger. "Some of that $50,000 paid for a few bottles for Lucia's party tonight. The rest went toward two couture gowns for her."

I clutched the hem of my nightgown. "So the money Aiden gave me for our wedding was spent making Lucia look good, too?"

Lucia's eyes turned red, and she hid behind Victor. "Chloe, if you care that much, I'll just pay you back. But the Cassano family trust takes effect after the wedding, and just one of its estates is worth ten million dollars. If I don't even have a decent wedding, what will people think of the Ferro family?"

Mother pulled Lucia into her arms at once. "Your sister never fought you for anything. Why are you arguing with her over this now?"

Everyone was waiting for me to back down the way I had for the past 20 years and say, "It's fine."

Instead, I walked into the middle of the hall and ripped Lucia's custom name tags off the pile of luggage.

Victor grabbed my wrist hard. "Are you determined to make sure this family never has a moment's peace?"

I bit back the pain and stared at him. "Since we're all family, shouldn't I get half of the thirty-million-dollar trust Dad set up for Lucia?"

The hall went silent.

Lucia threw herself in front of the document box, horrified, and my mother shrieked, "How is that the same? She's marrying the Cassano heir!"

I pulled free of Victor's grip, went back to my room, and dug an old notebook out of the back of a drawer.

Years ago, my aunt had written a line on the first page: "If your family won't give you dignity, you have to fight for it yourself."

I looked at it for a long time. Then I picked up my phone and texted Aiden. "You said the art restoration studio in Manhattan was looking for an assistant. Is the position still open?"