Chapter 7 - A Reckoning in Steel and Fire
Gasps echoed across the grand ballroom. Several men stood up so fast their chairs fell backward onto the carpet.
Don Moretti’s face drained of all color, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. Sienna stumbled back, hitting the edge of the table, her eyes wide with unadulterated terror.
"You... you were paralyzed!" Sienna shrieked. "The doctors said—"
"The doctors were paid by me to say whatever I wanted them to say," Elias said, his voice dropping an octave into a terrifying, resonant bass. He adjusted the cuffs of his tailored suit jacket, stepping away from the wheelchair with effortless, predatory grace. "I needed to know who was loyal... and who was waiting for a chance to drive a knife into my back."
Elias reached into his jacket, pulled out a stack of leather-bound documents, and slammed them onto the center table.
"These are the financial records of the Ashford corporation," Elias declared, turning his piercing gaze onto the room. "They show that Margaret and Sienna Ashford embezzled forty million dollars from the Moretti family's accounts over the past three years. They didn't come to Moretti for an alliance. They came to frame me for their debts!"
The room erupted into chaos. Don Moretti spun around, grabbing Sienna violently by the arm. "Is this true?!"
"No! He's lying! He's—" Sienna sobbed, but her panic was all the proof the hardened criminals needed.
"Furthermore," Elias continued, stepping closer to Moretti, "the hit placed on me at Lower Wacker Drive was funded directly by Don Moretti's personal accounts. A clear violation of the Commission Peace Accord of 1998."
Elias raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
Instantly, the heavy oak doors at the back of the room were kicked open. Dozens of Marchetti enforcers, armed to the teeth, flooded into the room, surrounding the perimeter. Mateo stepped forward, holding a high-caliber pistol aimed directly at Don Moretti’s head.
"You have two choices, Moretti," Elias said coldly. "You hand over your territories and surrender your position on the commission tonight... or this room becomes your tomb."
Don Moretti trembled, looking at the army of armed men surrounding him, then at Elias, who looked invincible standing in the center of the room. Slowly, reluctantly, Moretti raised his hands into the air.
"I surrender," Moretti spat out through gritted teeth.
"Guards, take him," Elias ordered. He then turned his cold gaze toward Sienna, who was cowering on the floor, weeping uncontrollably.
"And her?" Mateo asked, pointing his gun toward Sienna.
May you like
Elias looked at Sienna, then turned his gaze toward Maeve. The fear that had plagued Maeve for weeks was gone, replaced by a quiet, steady dignity.
"Strip her of the Ashford name," Elias commanded softly. "Seize all their assets. Let her spend the rest of her life knowing what it feels like to have nothing."
