Chapter 10 - THE NEW EMPRESS OF CHICAGOThree months later, the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Lombardi-Bennett Rehabilitation Institute was the biggest social event in Chicago, covered by every major news outlet in the Midwest.
The clinic was a sprawling, state-of-the-art facility occupying three floors of a gleaming glass tower in downtown Chicago, equipped with the most advanced neurological recovery technology money could buy. At the podium stood Oliver, wearing a sharp little suit, cutting the red velvet ribbon with oversized golden scissors while a crowd of prominent doctors, philanthropists, and city officials applauded wildly.
From the VIP gallery on the second-floor mezzanine, Sebastian Lombardi watched with his hands resting casually in his pockets, standing tall, unwavering, and completely in control of his empire.
Beside him, dressed in a sleek, tailored emerald-green dress that commanded the room, I adjusted my lapel and looked out over the crowded lobby. My reputation wasn't ruined anymore; it was golden. My financial worries were a distant nightmare, and my son was healthy, laughing, and running around the lobby with a group of new friends.
Gabriel appeared beside Sebastian, handing him a secure leather folder. "The last of Mercer’s offshore accounts have been seized and transferred to the pediatric respiratory foundation under your name, boss. And Mercer himself just received a mandatory thirty-year sentence with no possibility of parole."
Sebastian took the folder, his eyes never leaving the lobby below where Oliver was proudly showing off his new school backpack to a group of reporters.
"Let him rot," Sebastian said coldly. Then he turned his gaze toward me, a slow, knowing smile touching the corners of his mouth.
He raised a crystal tumbler of whiskey in a silent toast, and I raised my glass of sparkling water right back.
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The city of Chicago still believed Sebastian Lombardi was a ruthless crime boss who ruled from the shadows. They still whispered about his power, his wealth, and his terrifying reach. But none of them knew the real secret of the Lombardi empire:
The man who ruled the city had finally learned how to stand, and the woman who taught him had just become the most dangerous—and powerful—person in the room.
