Chapter 4 - The Gala of Ghosts
The annual Metropolitan Logistics Gala was the premier event for New York’s elite. The Romano and Caruso families occupied the VIP tables, celebrating their newly finalized merger. Adrian Caruso sat next to his new fiancée, a naive heiress, while Victor and Lucille Romano toasted to their family’s absolute dominance.
“To a future of unbroken legacy,” Victor announced, raising his glass.
“I wouldn't toast just yet, Victor,” a cold, commanding voice echoed through the grand ballroom.
The music stopped. The crowd parted like the Red Sea.
Walking down the grand staircase was Bianca Romano—no, Bianca Vance. She wore a stunning, form-fitting emerald green gown that elegantly accentuated her slightly rounded stomach. Beside her, looking like death incarnate in a tailored black tuxedo, was Dominic Vance. Behind them walked four armed security guards carrying silver briefcases.
Lucille Romano dropped her champagne glass. It shattered on the marble floor.
“Bianca?” Adrian Caruso stammered, standing up. “What is the meaning of this? You don’t belong here.”
“I own thirty percent of the shipping lines this gala is celebrating, Adrian,” Bianca said, her voice carrying flawlessly across the silent room. “And as of ten minutes ago, my husband’s syndicate has bought out the remaining debt of Romano Continental. We don't just belong here. We own you.”
Victor Romano stood, his cane trembling. “You are a disgrace, Bianca. You come here with this thug—”
“Careful, old man,” Dominic interrupted, his voice a low, lethal purr. “The 'thug' is the only thing keeping your throat intact tonight.”
Bianca stepped forward, tapping a button on her phone. Instantly, the massive projector screens behind the stage—which were supposed to show promotional videos of the merger—flickered to life.
Instead of corporate logos, the screens displayed a bank ledger showing the fifty-million-dollar transfer from Dr. Ferris to Victor Romano, alongside decrypted emails detailing the human trials of the 'Shadow Protocol' and a forged medical report bearing Bianca’s name.
The crowd gasped. Reporters began snapping photos furiously.
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“This is a lie! A fabrication!” Dr. Ferris, who was sitting at the Caruso table, panicked, trying to flee. Dominic’s guards blocked the exit.
“It’s the truth,” Bianca said, looking directly at her mother, whose face was completely pale. “You told me bloodlines are everything, Mother. You told me I was defective. But the only thing defective in this room is your humanity.”
