Chapter 8 - The Price of Protection
The next morning, the Moretti estate was transformed into a command center.
Dozens of high-ranking lieutenants from across the Midwest arrived in armored sedans, filing into the grand conference room beneath the estate. Maps of Chicago’s shipping districts, financial ledgers, and tactical surveillance feeds covered the walls.
For the first time, I sat at the head table beside Victor, holding a clipboard containing the financial assets of the syndicate. Beside me sat Daniel, who Victor had invited to sit in on the strategic briefing after noticing the fourteen-year-old’s sharp tactical mind.
"Don Falcone has pulled back his remaining men to his primary stronghold in the South Side industrial district," Dante reported, pointing at a red marker on the digital map. "He’s fortified the warehouse with heavy armor and fifty guards. He knows we're coming for him."
A senior lieutenant named Marco slammed his fist onto the table. "We should take three hundred men and level the entire block! Show the city what happens when someone touches a Moretti heir!"
"No," Victor said calmly, his voice instantly silencing the room. "A full-scale war in the industrial district will draw federal attention. The FBI is already monitoring the harbor after last night's explosion."
"Then how do we crush him, Boss?" Marco asked.
Victor turned his head, looking at me.
"Olivia," Victor said softly. "You managed the financial shipping logs in my office for seven months. Tell them what you found in the monthly receipts for Wharf 14."
I stood up, holding my clipboard, feeling sixty hardened mob lieutenants fix their attention on me. I didn't tremble. I didn't hesitate.
"Wharf 14 isn't being used for shipping luxury goods," I declared, my voice clear and authoritative. "Don Falcone has been using the Moretti legal import licenses—which Thomas Vance illegally provided to him—to move unregistered assets out of the city. If we seize the accounts tied to Wharf 14 today, Falcone won't have enough liquid cash to pay his mercenaries by sunset."
Daniel smiled proudly from his chair, nodding along.
Victor’s storm-gray eyes gleamed with absolute satisfaction. He stood up, placing his hands flat on the mahogany table.
"You heard her," Victor commanded his lieutenants. "We don't need three hundred guns to destroy Falcone. We freeze his money. We cut off his escape routes. And then I personally go to Wharf 14 to collect his surrender."
"Boss," Dante warned. "Falcone won't surrender peacefully. It's a trap."
"Of course it's a trap," Victor said, pulling his tactical sidearm from his shoulder holster and checking the magazine with practiced ease. "That's why I'm taking my best team."
He looked down at me. "Olivia, stay here with the children. The estate is sealed under highest security protocols."
"Victor," I said, stepping closer to him as the lieutenants began filing out of the room. "Be careful. Don't let him take you away from Noah."
Victor reached out, taking my face in both of his large hands, kissing me deeply and passionately in front of his remaining guards, leaving me breathless and flushed.
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"I have seven reasons to come back alive today, Olivia," Victor murmured against my mouth, his thumb tracing my lower lip. "Six children... and the woman who captured my heart."
He turned and strode out of the hall, followed by Dante and twenty elite guards, leaving me standing in the warm light of the estate, my heart pounding with a mixture of terror and overwhelming love.
