Chapter 8 - THE HARBOR
We went to the harbor.
Not because they ordered us to.
Because Luca had discovered where the money trail ended.
A shipping terminal.
The same terminal controlled by Victor Bell.
We arrived with federal agents.
The plan was simple.
Expose the operation.
Rescue anyone being held.
Arrest Victor.
But Victor had anticipated us.
He had taken hostages.
Including Isabella.
Including several employees.
And one person I never expected.
Rosa.
Victor stepped onto the loading platform.
“You brought the child.”
Alessandro held Mia.
“No.”
Victor smiled.
“You did.”
I stepped forward.
“Mia isn't yours.”
“She belongs to history.”
“She belongs to me.”
Victor laughed.
“You think motherhood protects her?”
“No.”
I looked at him.
“People do.”
At that moment, the lights came on.
Federal agents surrounded the terminal.
Victor's men surrendered.
Victor ran.
Alessandro chased him.
I stayed with Mia.
Then I heard a gunshot.
I turned.
Alessandro stood near the edge of the pier.
Victor was gone.
Alessandro was bleeding.
I ran toward him.
“Are you hurt?”
“Nothing serious.”
He looked at Mia.
“She's okay?”
“Yes.”
He smiled.
For the first time, I realized something.
Alessandro wasn't protecting Mia because she was valuable.
He was protecting her because he had decided she was family.
Victor was arrested before sunrise.
The network collapsed.
The hidden accounts were frozen.
The authorities recovered millions.
But there was still one unanswered question.
Who had ordered everything?
Victor wasn't high enough.
And then Luca found the final document.
A corporate structure.
At the top was a name.
DUCA INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS.
Alessandro stared at it.
“This can't be.”
Someone had been using his own empire against him.
For years.
May you like
And the signature belonged to someone he trusted.
His uncle.
