Chapter 7 - Burning Chicago to the Ground
By 8:00 AM, the storm had cleared, leaving behind a crisp, ice-cold Chicago sky.
The Russo and Moretti syndicates had spent twenty years locked in a bitter, bloody cold war. By noon, that war was officially over—because Stellan Cross was no longer playing by the rules of business.
He sat behind his massive desk in his office downstairs. His shirt was fresh, his hands clean, but his face looked like it was carved out of iron.
Across from him sat Marco, his head of security, along with six of his highest-ranking Capos.
"Victor is dead," Stellan announced softly. "Vance Moretti is currently hiding in his penthouse at the Grand Regency Hotel, surrounded by forty armed men. He knows I have Julian's ledger. He knows I know he killed my brother."
"Boss," Marco said gravely. "If we hit the Regency, the police will be involved. The Mayor will pull our contracts. It will be a bloodbath on Michigan Avenue."
"Let it be a bloodbath," Stellan said coldly. "Vance sent men to my house. He tried to take my niece. He tried to murder Nora. Chicago is going to burn today, Marco. And when the smoke clears, there will only be one name left in this city."
He stood up, pulling a heavy black overcoat over his shoulders.
"Load the trucks," Stellan ordered. "We hit the Regency in twenty minutes."
While the city of Chicago trembled under the rumble of approaching war, Nora sat in the private study upstairs.
She held the small, battered silver pocket watch that "Liam" had left her—the one she had sold months ago to pay for an ultrasound.
An hour ago, Stellan had walked into her room, placed the pocket watch back into her hands, and whispered, I bought it back from the pawn shop.
She ran her thumb over the scratched silver surface. She pressed the tiny latch on top.
The watch popped open.
Inside, beneath a layer of dust, wasn't a clock face.
It was a miniature, high-density micro-drive—the missing Cross-Moretti ledger. Julian hadn't hidden the drive in a bank vault or a safe-deposit box. He had hidden it inside the one thing he knew Nora would keep close to her heart.
Nora stared at the tiny piece of black plastic.
She didn't hesitate. She grabbed Wren, wrapped her in a thick wool blanket, and sprinted down the grand staircase toward Stellan’s private garage.
Stellan was just stepping into his armored sedan, surrounded by a convoy of ten dark SUVs filled with armed soldiers.
"STELLAN!" Nora screamed across the concrete bay.
Stellan turned, his eyes widening in shock as he saw her running toward him. "Nora! What are you doing out here? Get back inside!"
Nora ran up to him, breathless, and pressed the open silver pocket watch into his palm.
"It was in the watch," she gasped, her eyes bright with tears. "Julian hid the ledger in the watch he gave me. It’s all here, Stellan. You don't have to go die in a gunfight! You can destroy Moretti with this!"
Stellan looked down at the tiny micro-drive lying in his hand.
A slow, terrifying realization swept across his face. Julian hadn't just left behind a child; he had left behind the absolute, unassailable weapon to dismantle Vance Moretti’s entire political and criminal protection network without firing a single shot.
Stellan looked up at Nora. The cold, brutal Don vanished for a fleeting second, replaced by a man looking at his salvation.
"You saved us," Stellan whispered, taking her face in his hands. "Nora... you just saved my entire family."
"Don't go to war, Stellan," she pleaded, holding his wrists. "Stay here. Be a father to her. Be a man who stays."
Stellan looked at her dark blue eyes, then down at little Wren, who was looking up at him from inside the blanket, smiling her tiny, two-toothed smile.
May you like
Stellan turned to Marco.
"Cancel the strike team," Stellan commanded, his voice echoing through the garage like thunder. "Send this drive straight to the Federal Prosecutor’s office. I want Vance Moretti arrested by sunset."
