Chapter 10 - Vanessa’s Desperate Gamble with a Corrupt District Attorney and a Loaded Revolver
While the celebration was in full swing, danger was lurking in the shadows outside.
Carmine Bellini’s empire had collapsed entirely that afternoon. His warehouses were padlocked by federal agents, his bank accounts frozen, and his sons arrested.
Vanessa Bellini had nothing left to lose.
Dressed in a dark trench coat, her designer elegance replaced by disheveled madness, she slipped past the crowded street festival through the back alley behind the restaurant.
In her coat pocket, she clutched a snub-nosed .38 revolver.
“If I’m going down,” she whispered to herself in the freezing drizzle, “I’m taking that little maid with me.”
She reached the rear service door of the kitchen, which had been left slightly ajar for the delivery of fresh herbs.
Inside, the kitchen was busy, but the pantry corridor was empty.
I had just walked into the dry storage room to retrieve extra linen napkins for the VIP tables when the door clicked shut behind me.
I turned around.
Vanessa stood in the doorway, the revolver pointed straight at my chest.
Her mascara was smeared across her pale face, her hands trembling with hysterical fury.
“You,” Vanessa hissed, cocking the hammer of the gun. “A pathetic little girl who scrubbed my floors. You destroyed my entire life!”
I took a slow breath, forcing my heart to remain calm. I kept my hands visible.
“You destroyed your own life, Vanessa. You forged Luca’s name. You tried to rob an elderly widow. You aligned yourself with criminals.”
“Shut up!” she shrieked, taking a step forward. “I was going to be the queen of this city! I was going to own every high-rise from here to the lake! And Luca threw me away for you!”
“Luca threw you away because you have no soul,” I said firmly.
May you like
Vanessa’s finger tightened on the trigger.
“Say goodbye, Emma.”
Related Stories
