Chapter 8 - The Architect
The silence in the warehouse was absolutely deafening.
Gabriel stared at the man who was supposed to have been buried twenty years ago.
Arthur Moretti smiled, a cold, calculated expression that did not reach his dead eyes.
“Hello, Gabriel, you have grown into quite a formidable young man,” Arthur said smoothly.
“You died in a car bombing in nineteen ninety-eight,” Gabriel whispered, his reality completely shattering.
Arthur chuckled lightly, tapping his golden cane against the concrete floor.
“I faked my death to escape a federal indictment, and I let your father take the fall for my empire.”
Leah felt physically sick as she realized the sheer depth of the old man’s absolute cruelty.
“You let your own son be murdered by my father so you could hide in the shadows?” Leah demanded angrily.
Arthur turned his piercing gaze toward Leah, raising a single silver eyebrow.
“Ah, the little Falcone orphan finally learns her true pedigree,” Arthur mocked.
“Your father was a useful idiot who served his purpose, just like Gabriel has served his.”
Gabriel’s shock instantly morphed into a blinding, uncontrollable rage.
He raised his pistol and pointed it directly at his grandfather’s heart.
“Why are you doing this?” Gabriel roared.
“Because you are weak, Gabriel, you let this city forget what the Moretti name truly means,” Arthur spat in disgust.
“I need that ledger to blackmail the governor into granting me full immunity, and then I will reclaim my throne.”
Arthur snapped his fingers, and Silvio aggressively pulled Cecilia out of her chair.
“Toss the ledger onto the floor, little girl, or my lovely wife takes a bullet to the brain,” Arthur ordered.
Leah looked at Gabriel, who was visibly trembling with the weight of the impossible choice.
She slowly reached into her jacket and pulled out the leather-bound journal.
She tossed it onto the concrete, sliding it exactly halfway between them.
Arthur grinned greedily and nodded to Silvio to retrieve it.
As Silvio stepped forward, Arthur pulled a small remote control from his tailored pocket.
“I am afraid I cannot leave any loose ends to challenge my return,” Arthur smiled maliciously.
He pressed a bright red button on the remote.
A loud, electronic beep echoed through the warehouse, followed by a massive, grinding mechanical sound.
The heavy steel doors of the warehouse suddenly slammed shut, locking them entirely inside.
“I wired the foundational pillars of this pier with enough C4 to level a city block,” Arthur announced casually.
He pointed to a large digital timer mounted above the main exit.
May you like
The bright red numbers began counting down from exactly five minutes.
“You have exactly three hundred seconds to make peace with God,” Arthur laughed, turning toward a hidden blast door in the back of the room.
