The Contract I Tore

Chapter 4 The Vulture's Feast

The hearing room smelled of polished wood and expensive cologne. Marcello sat at the head of the table, calling the seizures manageable setbacks.

He had left a corner seat for his chastised wife. I took it.

He was still talking when the doors slammed open.

Dante walked in with his men. Their weapons pulled at the seams of their jackets.

He threw a tablet onto the table. It stopped in front of Marcello with Camilla's post still open.

"The Feds are circling, Marcello," Dante said. "They need a head for the money laundering case. Your little tramp just told them where to find one."

Camilla shrieked and folded into Marcello's arms. Enzo and Bianca crowded behind his chair.

Marcello looked toward the doors. His gaze moved from the children to Camilla and stopped on me.

I remembered the turn of Marcello's head at the safe room door.

One arm stayed around Camilla. He pointed at me with the other.

"It was her. Serena handled all the offshore accounts. The shell companies, the algorithms, all of it. I knew nothing about it."

No one answered. Dante's men reached inside their jackets.

In my last life, I had begged Marcello to tell the truth. This time, I looked at Dante and raised one hand.

Armored boots struck the marble in the corridor and stopped outside the doors.

My people had arrived.