Chapter 5 - The Woman He Chose Over His Empire
Marco wanted the ledger.
Roman wanted Norah alive.
For the first time in his adult life, the decision was not complicated.
“Take it,” Roman said.
Norah turned sharply.
“No.”
Roman didn’t look back.
“Give him the ledger.”
Marco laughed.
“Now that is interesting.”
Norah tightened her grip.
“This proves what he did to my father.”
“It’s paper.”
“It’s everything.”
“You are not.”
The room went silent.
Even Marco stopped smiling for a second.
Norah stared at Roman’s back.
He continued.
“Give it to him.”
“No.”
Roman lowered his voice.
“Trust me.”
That was a dangerous thing to ask from a woman whose entire life had been damaged by men carrying his name.
But Norah understood his tone.
There was a plan.
She slowly held out the ledger.
Marco gestured to one of the guards.
“Get it.”
The guard moved toward Norah.
Roman’s eyes followed every step.
Too close.
Closer.
Then a car alarm screamed outside.
Marco looked toward the window.
Roman moved.
He struck the first guard.
Elias swung the fireplace poker into the second man’s wrist.
The gun fired into the ceiling.
Norah dropped behind the piano.
Marco grabbed the ledger.
Roman lunged.
They crashed into the dining table.
Elias wrestled the second guard to the floor.
Norah saw the first guard reach for his weapon.
She grabbed her mother’s heavy brass metronome and slammed it into his hand.
The gun skidded beneath the sofa.
Marco escaped through the kitchen.
“Marco!” Roman shouted.
He started after him.
Norah grabbed his sleeve.
“The ledger!”
Marco had it.
Roman looked toward the back door.
Then toward Norah.
He chose her.
Again.
“Let him go.”
“What?”
“Are you hurt?”
“No.”
“Then we’re leaving.”
She stared at him.
“My father died for that book.”
“And I memorized enough names to know where to look.”
“You let him take it.”
“I let him think he won.”
Elias stood, breathing hard.
“Car alarm was Enzo?”
Roman nodded.
Outside, tires screamed.
Marco disappeared.
Enzo entered seconds later.
“Lost him.”
Roman didn’t react.
“Good.”
Enzo frowned.
“Good?”
“He’ll run to the one person he still trusts.”
“DeLuca?”
Elias shook his head.
“My father hates Marco.”
Roman looked at Norah.
“Someone bigger.”
The next clue came from the ledger photographs.
Before surrendering it, Roman had used his phone while Norah and Elias searched the piano bench.
Twelve pages.
Enough.
They returned to the estate just before dawn.
Norah refused to sleep.
She sat at Roman’s study table while Elias and Enzo mapped company names.
Roman brought her coffee.
She looked up.
“You made this?”
“No.”
“Good.”
He almost smiled.
The first shell company connected to a senator.
The second to a port authority director.
The third to an offshore trust.
Then Norah recognized a surname.
“Vale.”
Roman looked.
“Councilman?”
“No.”
She pointed.
“Sebastian Vale.”
Roman’s expression changed.
Elias noticed.
“Who?”
Roman sat back.
“My mother’s brother.”
Norah stared.
“Your uncle?”
“Sebastian helped my father build Costa Shipping.”
“And Marco sends him money.”
“Apparently.”
Enzo’s face darkened.
“Vale sits on the board.”
Roman nodded.
“And controls three port unions.”
The betrayal widened.
Marco wasn’t stealing alone.
He was financing a parallel structure inside the Costa empire.
Sebastian had motive.
Roman inherited leadership after Antonio died.
Sebastian believed it should have been his.
If Marco weakened Roman, Sebastian could step in.
Norah looked toward the window.
“So my father uncovered a coup seven years before it happened.”
Roman said nothing.
Daniel Bennett had seen the financial skeleton of a war.
Antonio Costa refused to act.
Daniel died.
The conspiracy survived.
Until Norah.
At nine that morning, Roman called a board meeting.
Norah found out when twelve black cars arrived.
“What are you doing?”
“Inviting Sebastian here.”
“That sounds dangerous.”
“It is.”
“And you’re doing it anyway.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Roman adjusted his cuff.
“Because men like Sebastian believe women like you don’t matter.”
Norah crossed her arms.
“And?”
“So he won’t expect you in the room.”
The board meeting took place in the formal dining hall.
Nine senior men.
One woman—Roman’s attorney, Sofia Russo.
Sebastian Vale arrived last.
Silver-haired.
Elegant.
Warm smile.
He hugged Roman.
“Nephew.”
Roman embraced him.
Norah watched from behind a service door.
Sebastian looked like a kindly grandfather.
That frightened her more than Marco ever had.
Roman spoke for twenty minutes about missing port revenue.
He revealed nothing about Daniel.
Nothing about the ledger.
Then he casually mentioned Marco.
Sebastian didn’t flinch.
“Marco always had loose accounting habits.”
Roman watched him.
“Eleven million dollars is loose?”
A pause.
Small.
But Norah saw it.
Sebastian had not been told the amount.
Roman had.
Sebastian responded too quickly.
Roman knew.
The meeting continued.
Afterward, Sebastian remained.
“You’re distracted,” he told Roman.
“Am I?”
“I hear you’ve taken an interest in a maid.”
Roman’s expression cooled.
“People talk.”
“They should talk less.”
Sebastian smiled.
“Your father understood that affection is leverage.”
Norah’s skin prickled behind the door.
Roman said, “My father died alone.”
“That doesn’t mean he was wrong.”
Sebastian walked toward the exit.
Then stopped.
“Oh. One thing.”
Roman waited.
“Marco contacted me.”
There it was.
“He wants safe passage.”
“And?”
“I told him no.”
Roman nodded.
Sebastian smiled.
“Family first.”
Then he left.
Norah stepped out.
“You don’t believe him.”
“No.”
“Neither do I.”
Roman looked at her.
“Why?”
“He knew about me.”
“Everyone in the house knows.”
“He knew you were interested.”
Roman stiffened.
Norah almost enjoyed that.
“You aren’t subtle.”
“I’m extremely subtle.”
“You threatened a mechanic with your eyes because I called him handsome.”
“I never threatened him.”
“You wanted to.”
Roman said nothing.
Norah smiled slightly.
Then became serious.
“Sebastian said affection is leverage.”
“Yes.”
“He wasn’t giving advice.”
Roman understood.
“He was warning me.”
His phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
Marco.
Roman put it on speaker.
Marco laughed.
“Enjoy the meeting?”
Roman looked toward the windows.
“Where are you?”
“You really think I’m stupid?”
“Yes.”
Marco chuckled.
“I have something you want.”
“You already have the ledger.”
“I’m not talking about paper.”
Norah’s expression changed.
Marco continued.
“Check the motor-pool cameras.”
Enzo ran to the security console.
Thirty seconds later, footage appeared.
Mrs. Alvarez, the elderly housekeeper who had employed Norah.
She was being forced into a van.
Norah stood.
“No.”
Marco said, “She was always too kind to you.”
Norah grabbed the phone.
“What do you want?”
“The photographs Roman took.”
Roman looked at her.
Marco knew.
There was another leak.
“Delete them. Every copy.”
“And Mrs. Alvarez?”
“She comes home.”
Norah’s voice shook.
“You hurt her—”
“Midnight. Pier Nine.”
The call ended.
Roman immediately said, “You’re not going.”
Norah looked at him.
“She protected me for two years.”
“I’ll get her back.”
“You don’t decide that alone.”
“This isn’t jealousy, Norah.”
“No. It’s control.”
The word hit.
Roman stopped.
She stepped closer.
“You told me nobody owns me.”
“I meant it.”
“Then stop making choices for me.”
His jaw tightened.
She continued.
“If you want me to trust you, treat me like someone standing beside you. Not behind you.”
Roman looked at her for a long moment.
Then nodded.
“Together.”
Norah’s anger softened.
“Together.”
Elias entered.
“We found something.”
“What?” Roman asked.
“Pier Nine isn’t Marco’s territory.”
Roman already knew.
“Whose?”
Elias looked toward him.
“Sebastian Vale.”
May you like
And outside the estate gates, three black SUVs without plates slowly parked across the road.
The war had officially arrived.
