Chapter 5 - Shadows on the Dock
Two nights later, the snow began to fall again, thick and wet, turning the streets of Providence into a labyrinth of white shadows.
Inside the study, the air was blue with cigar smoke. Dominic Renzy stood by the mahogany desk, slamming a heavy leather ledger down onto the wood with a dull thud.
"They're early," Dominic growled, his face twisted in a scowl. "The Gallo family from New York. They aren't waiting for Friday. Their cars crossed the state line forty minutes ago."
Garrison sat behind the desk, his fingers steepened under his chin. His face was a mask of cold, calculated fury. For months, the New York syndicates had been trying to muscle in on the Providence shipping docks—a lucrative pipeline for imported goods and gray-market logistics that Garrison controlled with an iron fist.
"How many vehicles?" Garrison asked, his voice dangerously low.
"Three black Escalades. Headed straight for Pier 4," Dominic said, pulling a 9mm pistol from his shoulder holster and checking the magazine with a sharp clack. "If we don't meet them at the gate, they'll think we're softening up. Word will get out that the boss is distracted by domestic charity work."
Dominic shot a pointed, venomous look toward the hallway—specifically in the direction of the first-floor guest room where Scarlet was currently reading engineering textbooks with Leo.
Garrison stood up so fast his leather chair screeched against the hardwood.
"Watch your tongue, Dom," Garrison warned, his voice dropping into a lethal purr that made the older enforcer take half a step back. "My house is my house."
"And your house is about to be burned to the ground if we don't deal with New York!" Dominic snapped back, his loyalty overriding his fear for a split second. "You brought an unknown civilian into the middle of a turf war, Boss! If the Gallos find out about her—if they figure out she’s your only soft spot—they'll use her to cut your throat from ear to ear."
Garrison walked around the desk, stopping inches from Dominic. The physical presence of the mafia boss was overwhelming—a wall of muscle, tailored wool, and suppressed violence.
"The Gallos won't touch her," Garrison said, each word carved from ice. "Because before they reach the gate of this estate, every single one of their trucks will be impounded, towed, or sitting at the bottom of Narragansett Bay."
Garrison reached into his drawer, pulled out a heavy steel security fob, and tossed it to Dominic.
"Take the North End crew. Block the access road at India Point. If a single New York license plate crosses that bridge, send them back in pieces."
Dominic caught the fob, his expression grim. He knew better than to argue when the boss spoke in that tone. He turned and marched out of the study, slamming the heavy oak door behind him.
Left alone in the dim amber light of the study, Garrison walked over to the window. He looked out across the dark, snowy lawn toward the front gate.
May you like
He knew Dominic was right about one thing: bringing Scarlet into his life had introduced a dangerous, bleeding variable into a world that operated strictly on cold calculus. She was a civilian, paralyzed, defenseless against the brutal realities of his underworld empire.
And yet, as he thought of the way she had looked him in the eye on Broad Street—refusing to break, refusing to cry, refusing to let the cold destroy her dignity—Garrison knew he would burn every dock in New England before he let anyone lay a finger on her.
