Chapter 10 - The Last GateSix months later, the Riverside playground was quiet on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
Children ran across the rubber turf, laughing and shouting, while parents sat on nearby benches sipping coffee. Leashed securely to a heavy oak bench just outside the playground fence sat a massive, brindle Cane Corso.
He wasn't cowering. He wasn't pacing. He was sitting with perfect, elegant posture, his amber eyes calmly tracking the movement of the children, completely relaxed, completely secure in his place.
Standing a few feet away, holding the leather leash with one hand while holding a paper cup of coffee in the other, was Dante Moretti. He wore a simple black jacket instead of his usual three-piece suit, looking more like an ordinary dog owner than a man who controlled half the docks in Chicago.
I walked up behind them, slipping my hand into the crook of Moretti’s arm. Titan turned his head, let out a soft, happy huff, and nudged my knee with his wet nose.
"Look at him," I said, smiling as I scratched the dog behind his massive ears. "Not a single citation in six months."
Moretti looked down at me, the sharp, dangerous edge in his slate eyes softened completely by something warm and permanent. He wrapped his free arm around my waist, pulling me close against his side.
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"He learned it from the best," Moretti said softly.
"He learned it because I wouldn't let either of you off the hook," I replied, leaning my head against his shoulder as the Chicago sun dipped slowly toward the lake, casting a golden light
