Chapter 13 - The Alliance
Two days after Elena Moretti's visit, Damon called an emergency meeting in his underground command center. Unlike the previous meetings with corrupted advisers, this gathering was attended exclusively by Marcus Ellery and three regional directors who had remained fiercely loyal to the Reyes family through decades of turbulent history.
"The Chicago Outfit is testing our borders," Damon announced, pacing slowly behind the steel conference table. "They think Victor’s failure was an isolated incident. They believe we're vulnerable."
"We intercept their supply lines," Marcus suggested immediately, resting his hands on the table. "Cut off their distribution networks in New Mexico before they can even cross the state line."
"No," Damon said, shaking his head. "A direct military strike invites federal intervention. We hit them where it hurts most: their capital."
For the next two hours, the men mapped out a sophisticated financial counter-offensive. Using the encrypted data recovered from Victor’s safe, Damon’s legal and financial teams began quietly shorting the stocks of shell corporations tied to the Moretti family, while simultaneously alerting federal regulatory bodies to illegal asset transfers through anonymous, untraceable whistle blower reports.
As the meeting wrapped up, Marcus lingered behind as the other directors filed out.
"You're taking a massive risk, Damon," Marcus noted quietly. "If Moretti realizes we're dismantling their financial backing from the inside, they won't send negotiators next time. They'll send an army."
"Let them," Damon replied, his voice calm and resolute. "For fourteen years, Marcus, I fought to build an empire because I thought power was the only shield that mattered. But empires can be infiltrated. Fortresses can be breached."
"What changed your mind?"
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Damon glanced toward the ceiling, where upstairs, the faint sound of laughter drifted down through the ventilation system—Ruby and Selena playing in the sunroom.
"A three-year-old girl with a pink suitcase," Damon said softly. "She taught me that you don't fight to protect stone walls and bank accounts. You fight to protect the people who make a house feel alive."
