Chapter 7 - THE MAN WHO HAD BEEN LOYAL FOR SIXTEEN YEARS
Victor Salvatore had once saved Alessandro's life.
Sixteen years earlier, outside a restaurant in Cicero, a gunman had opened fire.
Victor pushed Alessandro behind a concrete pillar.
A bullet struck Victor's shoulder.
He nearly died.
Alessandro never forgot it.
From that day forward, Victor became more than an employee.
He became family.
Now Alessandro sat in his study staring at the recovered video of Nathan Moreland.
Victor stood across from him.
Two investigators were present.
Victor's attorney sat beside him.
Alessandro looked at his oldest friend.
“Why?”
Victor smiled faintly.
“Why what?”
“Why Nathan?”
Victor leaned back.
“You're assuming I had something to do with his death.”
Alessandro placed the photograph on the desk.
Victor glanced at it.
Then looked away.
Detective Shaw asked questions.
Victor denied everything.
He claimed the shipments were authorized.
He claimed Nathan had misunderstood the records.
He claimed the fire was an accident.
Then Shaw played Nathan's video.
Victor's expression changed.
Only slightly.
But Alessandro saw it.
Nathan's voice filled the room.
“Victor told me to stop asking questions. He said the shipments were protected. He said people above him would make sure nobody believed me.”
The recording ended.
Silence.
Victor looked at Alessandro.
“You think this proves anything?”
Alessandro stared.
“I think it proves Nathan was afraid of you.”
Victor laughed.
“People were afraid of everyone in your organization.”
The words struck harder than Alessandro expected.
Because they were true.
Detective Shaw continued the interview.
Victor's attorney advised him not to answer further questions.
Victor stood.
Before leaving, he looked at Alessandro.
“You're going to destroy everything your father built.”
Alessandro met his eyes.
“Maybe some of it should have been destroyed years ago.”
Victor's expression hardened.
Then he walked out.
That night, Alessandro returned to the dining room.
The table was empty.
Rain tapped softly against the windows.
He looked at the chair where Sophia had stood.
Five years old.
A child who noticed the sound of pills.
May you like
A child who had spoken when adults remained silent.
And because of her, sixteen years of trust had begun to unravel.
