Chapter 6 - Shadows on the Waterfront
Two weeks passed in a blur of silk, diamonds, and hidden daggers.
To the public, Mr. and Mrs. Adriano Falcone were the golden couple of Boston’s high society. They appeared at charity auctions, sat in the front row of elite fundraisers, and played their roles with chilling perfection. But behind closed doors, the war for the Boston underworld was escalating.
Marcus Vance hadn't taken his public humiliation lying down. Intelligence gathered by Adriano’s enforcers revealed that Marcus was cutting ties with the syndicate and meeting secretly with Nikolai Volkov, the ruthless leader of the South Boston Russian mob.
It was a Tuesday night when the trap finally snapped shut.
Dileia sat in the passenger seat of Adriano’s armored Maybach as it rolled quietly down toward the abandoned warehouses of Pier 4. The rain was drumming a relentless tattoo against the bulletproof glass.
"You shouldn't be here," Adriano said, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. He wore a dark tactical turtleneck under his trench coat, a heavy holster strapped across his chest.
"You need someone who knows the layout of these old loading bays," Dileia replied, checking the clip of the small, suppressed pistol Adriano had taught her how to load three nights ago. "My father used to take me here when I was a kid. You get lost in these service tunnels in ten minutes if you don't know the pipes."
Adriano glanced at her, a muscle twitching in his jaw. "If anything happens to you—"
"The debt is erased, the townhouse is mine, and Toby is set for life," she finished for him with a grim smile. "You wrote it in the addendum, remember?"
May you like
Adriano let out a sharp, dark laugh. "God help me, Dileia. I think I fell in love with you the second you asked me 'Why' in the middle of a ballroom full of snobs."
"Save the romance for when we get out of here," she said, pulling her hood up over her dark hair as the car came to a silent stop in the shadows of warehouse 7.
