Chapter 5 - Shadows in the Conservatory
The glass conservatory at the back of the Lake Forest estate was filled with towering ferns, white orchids, and the faint, sweet scent of damp earth. At night, with the moonlight pouring through the glass panes, it looked like a tropical jungle frozen in winter.
Dominic Vesceri sat bound to a wrought-iron patio chair. His bespoke suit was wrinkled, his tie loosened, and the high-end aura of corporate invincibility had entirely vanished. Two guards stood behind him, their hands resting easily on their holsters.
I stood near the arched doorway with Ellie, keeping my distance. Vincent had asked us to stay inside the main hallway, but I wanted to make sure Ellie was safe, and a strange, protective pull kept me watching from the shadows.
Heavy footsteps echoed on the stone floor.
Vincent walked into the conservatory, his silhouette cutting a sharp line against the moonlight. He didn't look angry anymore. He looked terrifyingly calm.
Dominic jerked his head up, his eyes bloodshot and frantic. “Vincent! You can’t do this. If you hand me over to the feds, I’ll take half your lieutenants down with me. Every offshore account, every tax shelter, every bribe—I have the ledger keys encrypted off-site. The moment I don’t check in, an automated dead-man’s switch releases the whole archive to the Department of Justice.”
Vincent stopped a few feet away from the chair. He looked down at Dominic with mild curiosity, as if observing a bug trapped under glass.
“A dead-man’s switch,” Vincent repeated smoothly. “You always were thorough, Dominic. I’ll give you that.”
“So let me walk,” Dominic hissed, his voice rising in desperate pitch. “Put me on a private flight to Zurich tonight. You get your revenge, your daughter gets her peace, and your empire stays intact. It’s a clean trade.”
Vincent slowly shook his head. “You misunderstand something fundamental about my empire, Dominic.”
“What?”
“The empire was never the money,” Vincent said softly. “The money was just a byproduct. The empire is my family.”
Vincent reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small, sleek flash drive, tossing it onto the glass-topped table between them.
“You left your backup server credentials in your primary office safe,” Vincent continued. “My tech team decrypted it three hours ago. The dead-man’s switch you set up? We routed it into a federal sinkhole before you even finished your first cup of coffee in the holding room. You don't have a safety net anymore, Dominic.”
Dominic’s face went completely grey. His jaw slackened, and he slumped back against the iron chair, the last ounce of fight draining out of his bones. “You... you bluffing. You couldn't have cracked the encryption—it’s military-grade—”
“My team doesn't play by corporate rules,” Vincent interrupted coldly.
May you like
At that moment, the heavy oak doors at the end of the conservatory hallway swung open. Three sleek black SUVs pulled up to the glass exterior, their emergency lights flashing a dull, muted red against the dark estate grounds. Federal agents in tactical vests stepped out into the night air.
The nightmare that had gripped the Moretti family for eleven long months was finally coming to an end.
