My Fiancée Kept My Daughter’s Mother Trapped in Our Kitchen—Until I Saw the Bruises — Part 2

Previously: When Matteo stepped into his restaurant's chaotic kitchen, he expected a busy dinner service. Instead, he found his ex-partner bruised, weeping, and facing his ruthless fiancée.

The Mask Slips

Victoria’s dismissive smile faltered for a fraction of a second under Matteo's furious gaze, but she quickly recovered her composure, smoothing down her satin gown. "Matteo, darling, don't be ridiculous," she scoffed, laughing softly as if it were all a grand misunderstanding. "She is a manipulative liar. She probably tripped over a crate. She’s just trying to extort money from us because she knows we're getting married next month."

But Matteo was no longer listening to Victoria's silver-tongued excuses. The woman standing before him—the high-society darling his family had pressured him to marry—suddenly looked like a complete stranger. He turned to the head chef, who was watching the scene in stunned silence.

"Call security," Matteo commanded, his voice deadly quiet. "Get the CCTV footage from the kitchen and the back hallway for the last three hours. Now."

Victoria's face drained of color. "Matteo, you cannot be serious! You are going to humiliate me in front of these... these servants over her?" she hissed, her voice losing its polished veneer and revealing a sharp, ugly edge.

Ten minutes later, in the security office, the truth was laid bare on the glowing monitors. The footage showed Victoria cornering Elena near the pantry. It showed Victoria snatching Elena's phone, throwing it to the floor, and then raising her hand to strike Elena across the face when she tried to retrieve it. The camera captured Victoria's lips moving, delivering the cruel ultimatum that had kept Elena trapped in terror.

Matteo felt a sick dread pool in his stomach. For months, Victoria had convinced him that Elena had willingly chosen to work the grueling night shifts in the basement kitchen to "stay busy," while keeping their daughter Lily away from him. In reality, Victoria had been blackmailing Elena, threatening to use her family's immense wealth and high-priced lawyers to strip Elena of custody if she ever told Matteo the truth.