The door closed on my fingers, and the sound Vanessa made wasn't anger. It was relief. I was nobody — the maid who carried trays and kept her eyes on the floor.

The blaring alarm was abruptly silenced, leaving a heavy, ringing tension in the vault room.

The security guards immediately swarmed Nora, grabbing her arms and forcing her roughly to her knees. She screamed in agony as one of the guards inadvertently wrenched her broken right hand behind her back.

“Don't touch her hands!” Luca roared, his voice echoing off the steel walls.

The guards instantly loosened their grip, stepping back but keeping their weapons trained on the kneeling maid.

Luca walked slowly into the room. He didn't look at Nora. He looked down at Vanessa, who was still sitting on the floor, weeping dramatically, clutching her cheek where she had struck herself.

The hallway outside filled with panicked guests, drawn by the alarm. Dozens of wealthy socialites and mafia associates peered through the open doorway, whispering furiously.

“What happened here, Vanessa?” Luca asked, his voice dead and emotionless.

“I came down to check on the safe,” Vanessa sobbed, reaching out to grasp Luca’s pant leg. “She was already in here! She had the safe open! When I confronted her, she hit me and grabbed the emerald! Luca, she stole it!”

The guests in the hallway gasped collectively. A maid striking the future Mrs. Moretti and stealing a priceless heirloom was an unprecedented scandal.

Luca looked at the biometric safe. The green light was blinking, indicating it had been opened.

He slowly turned his dark eyes toward Nora, who was kneeling on the floor, her chest heaving, tears streaming down her face.

“Is this true, Nora?” Luca asked softly.

Nora looked up at him. She remembered his instructions in the study. Play your part.

“No, sir,” Nora whispered, her voice shaking violently. “I didn't take anything.”

Vanessa scrambled to her feet, pointing an accusing finger at Nora. “She’s lying! Search her! She still has it on her! I saw her put it in her apron!”