Chapter 5 - The Fall of the CouncilThe grand dining hall of Villa Moretti was dead silent when Alessandro, Lucas, and I walked in through the double oak doors.
The twelve mafia bosses sat around the massive mahogany table, murmuring nervously among themselves. But the moment their eyes landed on Lucas Bennett—a man they had attended a memorial service for two years ago—several of them gasped aloud, scrambling back in their chairs as if they had just witnessed a ghost rise from the crypt.
At the center of the room, tied securely to a wooden chair with heavy plastic zip-ties, sat Marco Moretti. His face was bruised, his expensive suit ruined, and his eyes wide with sheer terror as he stared at Lucas walking toward him.
“L-Lucas?” Marco stammered, his voice pitching high with panic. “How... how are you here? You were supposed to be—!”
“In ashes?” Lucas finished for him coldly, stepping right up to his former friend and betrayer. “Sorry to disappoint you, Marco. Turns out hell was too crowded, so I came back early.”
Alessandro walked to the head of the table, resting his hands flat on the polished wood. He didn't raise his voice, but every man in the room listened with rapt attention.
“Gentlemen,” Alessandro announced smoothly. “For two years, we operated under the assumption that a loyal member of our family sold us out to the federal government. Tonight, thanks to the courage of my financial advisor Lucas Bennett, and an unexpected intervention by his brave wife Elena, the truth has finally come to light.”
Alessandro tossed a thick stack of certified bank transcripts and digital audio recordings onto the center of the table.
“Marco Moretti embezzled twelve million euros from our shipping ports, framed Lucas for his crimes, and attempted to slaughter an innocent family to cover his tracks. Furthermore, he conspired with outside federal agents to dismantle our entire syndicate from the inside.”
Murmurs of outrage erupted around the table. Don Ricci slammed his cane onto the floor, silencing the room instantly.
“Traitor,” the old Don spat, fixing his cold, elderly gaze on Marco. “In the Moretti family, treason is punishable by only one thing.”
Marco thrashed wildly against his bonds, sobbing hysterically. “Cousin! Alessandro, please! Don't do this! We’re blood! Have mercy!”
Alessandro looked down at his cousin with absolute, chilling indifference.
“Mercy was what I showed you when I let you sit at my family table,” Alessandro said quietly. “You forfeited your bloodline the moment you put a target on an innocent woman and a three-year-old child.”
Alessandro nodded to two of his enforcers standing by the doorway. Without a word, they stepped forward, grabbed Marco by the chair, and dragged him out toward the subterranean vaults, his desperate screams echoing down the corridor until the heavy steel doors slammed shut.
The silence that returned to the dining hall was absolute.
Alessandro turned his gaze back to the remaining eleven crime lords, who sat rigid and submissive.
“The Moretti syndicate is restructured effective immediately,” Alessandro declared, his voice carrying the finality of a supreme judge. “All debts are settled. All false charges against Lucas Bennett are erased from our records. And let it be known across every territory we control: anyone who ever touches, threatens, or disrespects Elena Bennett or her family answers directly to me.”
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He turned, walking over to where Lucas and I stood near the entrance. He offered a small, respectful nod.
“Your debt to my family is paid in full, Lucas,” Alessandro said softly. “And your family’s debt to mine is cleared forever. You are free. All of you.”
