Chapter 5 - The Gala of ShadowsThe annual Manhattan Maritime Gala at the Plaza Hotel was the premier event of the year for New York’s business elite and secret underworld lords alike.
Tonight, the grand ballroom was filled with sparkling chandeliers, flowing champagne, and men in tuxedos whispering deals that controlled billions of dollars in international trade.
Marcus walked into the ballroom with Camila on his arm, turning every head in the room.
Camila was breathtaking. She wore a fitted midnight-blue silk gown with a subtle leg slit and a plunging back, her dark hair styled in classic Hollywood waves. Around her neck rested a magnificent sapphire necklace—a Moretti heirloom that Marcus had personally placed around her neck before they left the estate.
Beside her, Marcus looked lethal and strikingly handsome in a black velvet tuxedo. His hand remained firmly resting on the small of her back, a clear signal to everyone present that she was under his absolute protection.
"Stay close to me," Marcus murmured quietly as they navigated the crowd of bowing politicians and smiling corporate executives. "Sal Valenti is here tonight."
"I see him," Camila said softly, her eyes catching a heavy-set man with slicked-back gray hair sitting at a VIP table in the corner, surrounded by four large men in suits.
As Marcus stepped away for a moment to speak with a harbor commissioner, Sal Valenti’s younger brother, Dominic—a sleek, arrogant man in his early thirties—stepped into Camila’s path, holding two glasses of champagne.
"Mrs. Moretti," Dominic sneered, offering a cold, theatrical bow. "Or should I say, Miss Vance? I must congratulate you. You played the role of the knight in shining armor remarkably well."
Camila didn't flinch. She took a slow sip of her water, looking down her nose at him with effortless disdain. "Mr. Valenti. I believe I should thank you. If you hadn't dropped that contract at the shelter, I wouldn't be wearing a five-million-dollar necklace and controlling your family's distribution lines."
Dominic’s smile vanished, his eyes narrowing into cold slits. "You think you're clever, girl? You think Marcus Moretti actually cares about you? You are a temporary convenience. Once he secures his permanent charter next month, he'll discard you back to the gutter where he found you."
"I didn't find her in the gutter, Dominic," a deep, icy voice boomed behind him.
Dominic stiffened as Marcus stepped up beside Camila, his towering frame casting a long, intimidating shadow over the younger Valenti brother. Marcus slid his arm around Camila’s waist, pulling her flush against his side.
"Marcus," Dominic spat, trying to maintain his composure. "Just giving your bride some advice."
"She doesn't need advice from a man whose family is currently facing twelve federal indictments for dock fraud," Marcus said smoothly, his tone dripping with lethal contempt. "Your brother Sal is bankrupt, Dominic. He just doesn't know it yet. My wife spent the last forty-eight hours handing the Department of Justice every paper trail your family created over the last five years."
Dominic’s face drained of all color. "What?!"
Camila smiled, a sweet, razor-sharp expression that made Dominic’s blood run cold. "Article Eight of the Maritime Transport Act, Mr. Valenti. Never keep secondary ledgers in a digital vault hosted in Switzerland. It took me three hours to crack the encryption."
Dominic backed away, his hands shaking with rage, before retreating into the crowd toward his brother.
Marcus looked down at Camila, a dark, incredibly attractive laugh escaping his chest. "You really gave the DOJ their ledgers?"
"I sent them thirty minutes ago," Camila whispered, leaning close to him, her lips brushing his cheek. "Sal and Dominic Valenti will be arrested before the dessert course is served."
Suddenly, the lights in the grand ballroom flickered and died, plunging the massive room into pitch blackness.
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Screams erupted through the crowd.
"Camila!" Marcus roared, his arms immediately wrapping around her, pulling her down toward the floor as the deafening sound of a gunshot shattered the glass chandeliers above!
