Chapter 10 - The Quiet King
In a private, soundproofed office on the top floor of a gleaming skyscraper overlooking the Delaware River, Dominic Russo stood by the window, watching the sun dip below the city skyline.
Arthur Vance stepped into the room, holding a thick leather portfolio tucked neatly beneath his arm.
"The transition at The Obsidian is complete, Mr. Russo," Arthur reported evenly. "Leo’s assets have been fully liquidated and transferred into the family foundation. The board has voted unanimously to ratify your restructuring plan."
"Good," Dominic murmured, not turning around.
Arthur hesitated for a fraction of a second, a rare flicker of curiosity crossing his professional demeanor. "If I may ask... why did you give her half a million dollars? She was a waitress. She could have been dismissed with a standard bonus."
Dominic turned away from the window, walking slowly toward his mahogany desk. He picked up a small, silver-framed photograph resting near his blotter—a candid shot taken by a security camera weeks ago at Lombardi’s.
It showed a exhausted, twenty-two-year-old rookie waitress standing over an overturned stainless-steel urn, her eyes wide with stubborn, unyielding defiance, staring down a three-hundred-pound killer with nothing more than sheer grit and boiling water.
May you like
Dominic traced his thumb lightly over the glass.
"Because, Arthur," Dominic said, a faint, enigmatic smile touching his lips as he looked out over the sprawling empire he ruled in the quiet shadows of the city. "In a world built entirely on fear and calculation, the most dangerous person you will ever meet is someone who has nothing left to lose, and refuses to apologize for surviving."
