Chapter 8 - The Shadow Bank Speaks
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Dominic’s mind raced frantically, trying to process the absolute impossibility of the situation. The Moretti signet ring. The rubies. Gabriel Cross acting as an escort.
“Evelyn,” Dominic stammered, raising his hands in a placating gesture, realizing that aggression would be suicidal. “I think there’s been a massive misunderstanding. Whatever game this is, let’s go to a private room. We don't need to make a scene in front of the board members.”
“We aren't playing a game, Mr. Vale,” Gabriel finally spoke.
His voice was a low, terrifying rumble that echoed off the vaulted ceilings. He didn't raise his tone, but the sheer menace behind his words made the nearest guests physically step backward.
“And we aren't going to a private room,” Gabriel continued, stepping slightly in front of Evelyn, a shield of pure violence. “You wanted to make your new life public tonight. Evelyn is simply returning the favor. I am here to witness the transfer.”
“Transfer of what?” Dominic demanded, his panic briefly giving way to his natural arrogance. “She signed a prenuptial agreement! I own Vale Holdings. I built it from the ground up! She has no legal right to my assets!”
Gabriel let out a short, cold laugh. It was the most terrifying sound Dominic had ever heard.
“You didn't build anything, Dominic,” Gabriel said, his amber eyes piercing straight through Dominic’s facade. “Fifteen years ago, you were a street-level enforcer running numbers out of a deli. Then, miraculously, you received an anonymous seed investment of fifty million dollars. You thought it was a silent partner. You thought your brilliance attracted an angel investor.”
Dominic’s stomach dropped into a bottomless abyss. The seed money. The offshore account that had launched his legitimate empire. He had never known where it came from.
“It wasn't an angel,” Gabriel whispered, leaning in closer. “It was a king. Evelyn’s father, the last true Boss of Bosses, needed to hide his fortune before the federal indictments came down. He chose a nobody. He chose a pathetic, ambitious rat with a clean record. He bought you a company, and then he bought you a wife to keep an eye on the investment.”
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Vanessa let out a small, horrified gasp. Dominic looked like he was about to physically collapse.
“You aren't a king, Dominic,” Evelyn said, stepping out from behind Gabriel’s shadow, the signet ring flashing on her finger. “You’re just the vault I used to store my money. And the vault is now officially closed.”
