Chapter 2 - The Price of Survival
Sofia’s hands shook around the water glass. The kitchen was silent, save for the ticking of the grand grandfather clock in the hall.
“My husband,” Sofia whispered, her eyes glued to the marble floor. “Before he died, he borrowed money. He had a gambling problem. I didn’t know until the collectors came.”
Victor’s eyes narrowed. The underworld was a small ecosystem. “Who holds the debt?”
“The Moretti family.”
Victor’s jaw clenched. Lorenzo Moretti was a ruthless loan shark, a bottom-feeder who preyed on the desperate. The Romanos and the Morettis had an uneasy truce, built on geographic boundaries. Sofia’s debt meant Moretti had a hook inside Victor’s own territory.
“How much?” Victor asked.
“Fifty thousand,” Sofia choked out. “I pay them all my wages, but the interest... it never goes down. And my medication for my lungs is so expensive. If I buy the medicine, Lucia doesn’t eat. If I buy food, I can’t breathe.”
Victor looked at Lucia, who had fallen asleep, her head resting on her mother’s arm, safe on a full stomach. He looked back at Sofia, noting the dark circles under her eyes, the hollows of her cheeks, the sheer exhaustion radiating from her bones.
He had built his empire on the rule of omertà and isolation. Never get involved with civilians. It made you weak. It gave your enemies leverage. But looking at the two of them, the rule shattered into a million pieces.
“Go upstairs. Pack your things,” Victor ordered.
May you like
Sofia flinched, fresh tears welling. “You’re throwing us out?”
“No,” Victor said, his voice hard as steel but entirely protective. “You’re moving out of the servant’s quarters. You’ll take the guest suite in the East Wing. And tomorrow, I am going to have a conversation with Lorenzo Moretti.”
