Chapter 5 - Echoes of the Past
The news of Marcus Lane’s arrest and the collapse of Victor Vance’s illegal shipping line sent shockwaves through the New York underworld. In less than forty-eight hours, Julian Reeves had effectively severed Vance’s grip on Brooklyn without firing a single public shot.
However, peace in the mafia world was a fragile illusion.
Three days after the Red Hook operation, Sophia sat in the library of Julian’s penthouse, studying an online curriculum for college courses. With her sister Maya safely enrolled in a secure private boarding school upstate—funded entirely through an educational trust Julian had quietly established—Sophia was finally able to think about her own future.
The double doors of the library opened, and Julian walked in. He looked tired; dark shadows lingered beneath his eyes, and he had discarded his suit jacket, wearing only a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms.
"You look stressed," Sophia said, setting her laptop aside and standing up.
"Victor Vance is escalating," Julian said, walking over to the bar to pour himself a water. "He knows I was behind the federal raid on his Newark port. He called an emergency summit of the five syndicate families for tomorrow night at the Plaza Hotel."
Sophia felt a cold knot tighten in her stomach. "A summit? Is that safe?"
"It’s a formal sit-down under the old rules," Julian explained, turning to face her. "No weapons are allowed inside the ballroom. Neutral territory. But Vance is desperate. Desperate men don't respect old rules."
Sophia walked over to him, stopping close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his body. Over the past week, the boundary between protector and protected had blurred into something far deeper. She saw the heavy burden he carried—a man who lived in the dark to protect those he cared about.
"Don't go," she whispered, her hand rising instinctively to rest against his chest, right over his heart, which beat with a slow, steady rhythm.
Julian looked down at her hand, then covered it with his own larger, calloused palm. "If I don't go, Vance will frame this as a cowardly act and drag the other families into a full-scale war on our streets. I have to finish this formally, Sophia."
"Then let me help you," she said firmly.
Julian chuckled softly, a rare, genuine smile softening his harsh features. "Help me? Sophia, you’ve spent your life escaping violence."
"And you spent your life fighting it alone," she countered, her dark eyes flashing with determination. "Marcus told me that Vance keeps his private financial ledgers on a secure server at his penthouse in the Plaza—the very hotel where the summit is being held. He bragged about it once when he was drunk."
Julian’s eyes narrowed with sudden interest. "The server at the Plaza?"
"Yes," Sophia said. "He uses a private luxury suite on the penthouse floor as his mobile headquarters during summits. If we can access that server while he is trapped downstairs in the summit meeting, we can destroy his financial empire permanently."
Julian stared at her, amazed by her sharp intelligence and courage. He cupped her cheek, his thumb gently smoothing over her soft skin.
"You continue to surprise me, Sophia," Julian murmured, his voice dropping an octave. "Very well. We execute a double strike tomorrow night. But you stay with Thomas in the surveillance van. I will not risk a single hair on your head."
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"Deal," she smiled softly.
Julian leaned down, his lips brushing against hers in a light, breathtaking kiss that sent electricity shooting through her veins. "Now," he whispered against her mouth, "let's go prepare a war."
