Chapter 6 - The Devil's Bargain
The gunshot echoed across the harbor, freezing everyone in absolute shock.
Don Rossi collapsed to the concrete, dead before his body even hit the ground.
Rossi's guards did not return fire; instead, they immediately lowered their weapons and bowed their heads.
Grace watched in pure horror as the men she thought were holding her father hostage stepped back respectfully.
Samuel Walker stood up, brushing the dirt from his knees with a calm, calculated precision.
He was not a tortured prisoner at all.
"Dad?" Grace whispered, stepping out from behind Luca's protective stance.
Samuel looked at her, his eyes lacking the gentle warmth she remembered from her childhood.
"Hello, Gracie," Samuel said smoothly.
"I apologize for the theatrical display, but Rossi was becoming a liability."
Luca raised his weapon, aiming it directly at the man who had once saved his life.
"You orchestrated this entire thing," Luca deduced, his jaw tight with fury.
"You let Rossi believe he captured you, while you slowly took over his entire organization from the inside."
Samuel chuckled, walking toward them like a king inspecting his newly conquered territory.
"Rossi was a brute with no vision," Samuel explained.
"I needed him out of the way, but I also needed the master ledger to secure my total control over the city."
Grace felt her stomach twist into a painful knot.
"You abandoned me for twelve years just to become a mafia boss?" she cried, tears of betrayal burning her eyes.
Samuel stopped a few feet away, his face hardening.
"I did it for us, Grace," he insisted.
"I grew up with nothing, and I promised myself you would never have to worry about money or power again."
He held out his hand expectantly.
"Now, be a good girl and give me the ledger."
Titan let out a furious bark, pulling against the leash to get between Grace and her father.
Even the dog recognized that the man standing before them was no longer the kind mechanic who had rescued him.
"She isn't giving you anything, Samuel," Luca stated, stepping firmly in front of Grace.
Samuel's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.
"You owe me your life, Luca," Samuel reminded him coldly.
"And now I am calling in that debt."
Samuel snapped his fingers, and the twenty armed guards raised their weapons, aiming them at Luca and Grace.
"Hand over the ledger, Luca, and I will let you walk away," Samuel bargained.
"Refuse, and I will kill you and take my daughter home by force."
Luca did not flinch, nor did he lower his gun.
He looked over his shoulder at Grace, offering her a small, reassuring smile.
"I only owe my life to a good man named Samuel Walker," Luca said softly.
"But that man died twelve years ago."
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Luca pressed a hidden button on his car key fob.
A massive explosion suddenly ripped through the shipping containers behind Samuel's men.
