Chapter 3 - Unearthing the Betrayal
For the next three days, the high-walled library of the Vance estate became Elena’s sanctuary and command center.
Dante provided her with full access to his vault of encrypted financial records, corporate filings, and historical city registries dating back decades. Working late into the night, wrapped in one of Dante’s oversized cashmere sweaters, Elena systematically mapped out Garrick Voss’s shadow network.
Dante rarely left her side. While he managed his syndicate operations from his desk, his dark eyes constantly drifted toward her—watching the intense focus on her face, the way she tucked a lock of brown hair behind her ear, and the fierce intelligence that radiated from her every movement.
On the fourth night, around 2:00 AM, Elena let out a sharp gasp, dropping her pen onto the mahogany desk.
Dante was at her side in an instant. "What did you find?"
"It wasn't just my father," Elena said, her voice shaking as she pointed to three parallel property transfers from 2011. "Look at the notary stamps on these three port transfers. The notary of record is Arthur Hale—Preston’s father."
Dante leaned over her shoulder, his chest pressing lightly against her back, his scent of cedar and expensive leather enveloping her senses. "Arthur Hale was the chief city commissioner fifteen years ago."
"Fifteen years ago," Elena continued, turning in her chair to face him, her face inches from his, "the city seized the South Riverfront terminal from your father’s shipping company following an unexpected warehouse fire that killed two of your guards. The man who signed the seizure order was Arthur Hale. And the man who purchased the land for pennies on the dollar through a blind trust was Garrick Voss."
Dante went entirely still. The air in the room turned ice-cold.
"They didn't just steal the land," Dante whispered, his jaw tightening until the bone stood out pale against his skin. "They set the fire that killed my men."
Elena reached out on instinct, her hand covering his broad, tensed forearm. "Dante... Garrick and Arthur Hale didn't arrange Meredith's wedding to consolidate their legal businesses. They did it because the fifteen-year statute of limitations on the arson investigation expires next month. Once Meredith married Preston, the two families' trusts would merge, permanently burying the evidence of the fire."
Dante looked down at her hand resting on his arm. His expression softened, his fingers coming up to interlock with hers, pulling her gently out of the chair until she was standing close against his chest.
"You found in three days what my intelligence network couldn't find in ten years," Dante murmured, his dark eyes shining with intense admiration and something far deeper. "You are incredible, Elena."
May you like
Elena felt her heart skip a beat. The dangerous, ruthless mob boss whom the entire city feared was looking at her as if she were the most precious jewel in existence.
Before she could speak, the heavy glass windows of the library exploded inward with a deafening CRACK.
