Chapter 5 - The First Ledger
Back at the Moretti estate, the atmosphere was suffocating.
The marble floors of the library were littered with files, hard drives, and overturned briefcases. Adrian stood behind his massive oak desk, his tie undone, the sleeves of his white shirt rolled up to his forearms.
Standing before him were his top lieutenants: Marco, his enforcer; and Luca, the family’s chief financial manager.
"What do you mean she has authority?" Adrian’s voice was dangerously low, vibrating with a rage that made Luca visibly sweat.
"Adrian, look at the incorporation paperwork for the logistics umbrella," Luca stammered, pointing a trembling finger at the legal documents on the desk. "Three years ago, when your father set up the tax haven through the maritime trust, the law required an unindicted family member to hold fifty-one percent of the voting shares. You were facing federal grand jury scrutiny at the time."
Adrian’s eyes narrowed into slits. "My father handled that. He told me it was secured."
"It was secured... in Sophia’s maiden name," Luca whispered. "Your father trusted her silence. He thought she was docile. He made her the primary signatory on the Delaware entity that controls the docks at Pier 42."
Adrian slammed both palms down on the oak desk. The crack echoed like a gunshot, making Marco reach for his holster out of pure reflex.
"Pier 42 is our primary corridor for the European shipments!" Adrian bellowed. "Eighty million dollars of product moves through that terminal every six weeks! Are you telling me my wife owns the ground beneath our boots?"
"Not just the ground, boss," Luca swallowed hard. "She froze the accounts this morning at 6:45 a.m. via an encrypted terminal in Manhattan. No container moves without her biometric sign-off. The union heads called five minutes ago—the cranes are stopped."
Adrian turned toward the floor-to-ceiling windows. The bay was gray and turbulent.
*You are the shame of my name, Sophia.*
His own words echoed back at him, mocking him in the stillness of the room. He had called her weak. He had called her a parasite living off his family's prestige. He had treated her like a stray cat he had taken pity on, ignoring the fact that she had managed his mother’s palliative care, kept his chaotic household flawless, and silently watched his every financial move.
She hadn't just left him.
She had severed his jugular, and she had done it without raising her voice.
"Find her," Adrian whispered, the cold steel returning to his tone. "I don't care if you have to turn over every safe house from Boston to Miami. Bring her back."
"And if she resists?" Marco asked quietly.
May you like
Adrian snapped his head toward the enforcer, his eyes wild and dark. "If anyone lays a single finger on her, Marco, I will personally skin them alive. She is my wife. Bring her to me."
***
