Chapter 7 - THE CRUMBLING PILLARSClara dropped the laptop onto the bed and rushed forward just in time to catch Dominic before he hit the floor. Together, they slid down until they were both kneeling on the worn carpet of the servant's quarters.
Dominic let out a ragged breath, his forehead resting against his arm as his muscles spasmed with violent exhaustion. "Damn it," he muttered, his teeth clenched against the pain. "Six years of muscle memory doesn't return in six minutes."
"You stood up, Mr. Vale," Clara said softly, her hands gently supporting his back to steady the tremors in his frame. "That's more than anyone thought possible."
Salvatore Rossi stood quietly in the doorway, watching them with a thoughtful expression. He stepped forward, offering a heavy silk handkerchief to Dominic, who took it without a word.
"The commission will handle the transition of power back to you, Dominic," Rossi said quietly. "Grant’s associates have already been rounded up or neutralized. But you have a mess to clean up on the streets. The rival syndicates in Detroit heard rumors that the Vale empire was fractured. They’re moving on our shipping lines at the North Pier tonight."
Dominic lifted his head, his dark eyes flashing with the cold, calculating brilliance that had made him a legend in Chicago before the ambush.
"Let them move," Dominic said, his voice dropping into a deadly whisper. "They think the king has been crippled for six years. They think the throne is empty."
He pushed himself up against the side of the bed, using his arms and core strength to pull his frame back into the motorized wheelchair. Though his legs were still weak and shaking, his mind was sharper, clearer, and more lethal than it had been in a decade.
"Clara," Dominic commanded, looking directly at the young housekeeper.
"Yes, Mr. Vale?"
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"Call Dr. Kline’s private clinic. Tell him his favorite patient is waiting for an emergency follow-up session tonight."
Clara’s eyes widened slightly as she caught the chilling implication in his tone. A slow, knowing smile touched her lips. "Right away, sir."
