Chapter 6 - Whispers in the Shadows and the Disgraced Receptionist’s Revenge
While Josie was securing her dominion over the operational machinery of Relli Global, a toxic storm was brewing in the dark underbelly of the city.
In a private VIP lounge at the back of the Bordeaux Club—a notorious nightclub controlled by the rival Moretti crime family—Priscilla Vance sat slumped in a red leather booth. Her designer makeup was ruined by streaks of mascara, and an empty glass of gin trembled in her hand.
Across from her sat Lorenzo Moretti, the ruthless underboss of the Moretti syndicate, and her disgraced uncle, Arthur Vance.
"Dominic humiliated me in front of the entire company!" Priscilla hissed, her fingernails digging into the velvet upholstery. "He fired me like a dog in the street! All for some pathetic, gutter-trash single mother who used to wash greasy diner plates!"
Lorenzo Moretti took a slow sip of bourbon, his cold eyes gleaming with dark curiosity. "This woman... Josephine Whitaker. Who is she to Dominic? Relli has never kept a woman near his inner circle. He is paranoid, calculating, and ruthless. Why would he elevate a nobody to the head of his logistics empire?"
"She saved his life," Arthur Vance spat bitterly, leaning forward over the table. "I dug through the harbor records from seven months ago. When your hit squad failed to kill Dominic in the shipyard ambush, she was the one who hid him in that diner alley. Dominic feels indebted to her. But worse than that—he looks at her like she’s his queen."
Lorenzo’s lips curled into a sinister grin. "A debt of honor. The great Dominic Relli, the untouchable ghost of the Eastern ports, has finally developed a fatal weakness."
"What are we going to do?" Priscilla demanded, her voice shaking with venomous spite. "I want her destroyed, Lorenzo! I want her stripped of that fancy title, I want her thrown back into the slums, and I want Dominic to watch her suffer!"
"Patience, Priscilla," Lorenzo purred, setting down his glass. "Tomorrow night is the annual Harbor Commerce Gala at the Grand Bayview Hotel. Every major shipping magnate, politician, and syndicate boss on the East Coast will be in attendance. Dominic will introduce Miss Whitaker as his new executive prodigy."
Lorenzo leaned in closer, his voice dropping into a conspiratorial whisper.
"Arthur has already arranged for our men to tamper with the hotel’s electronic security grid and the central champagne distribution. We will plant forged manifests on Miss Whitaker’s personal tablet, linking her to illegal harbor smuggling operations under federal jurisdiction. And while Dominic is distracted dealing with federal agents in the main ballroom..."
Lorenzo's smile turned monstrous.
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"...my enforcers will pay a visit to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. Let us see how powerful Chairman Relli remains when his precious logistics director is forced to choose between corporate loyalty and the beating heart of her dying son."
Priscilla let out a sharp, cruel laugh, raising her glass in a toast. "To her total destruction."
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