Chapter 6 - THE MEN WHO CAME BEFORE DAWN
The first threat arrived on Monday.
A black pickup parked outside the bakery.
Two men stepped out.
They wore work jackets.
No uniforms.
No badges.
One carried a folder.
The other carried a crowbar.
Hannah watched through the window.
“Dad?”
Samuel approached.
His face changed.
“Lock the door.”
Too late.
The men entered.
The taller one smiled.
“Morning.”
Hannah stepped forward.
“Can I help you?”
He placed the folder on the counter.
“Property inspection.”
She frowned.
“From who?”
“Ashcroft Development.”
Dante stood near the back.
His blood went cold.
The man continued.
“We're purchasing several properties on this block.”
Hannah shook her head.
“This bakery isn't for sale.”
The man smiled.
“Everything's for sale.”
Samuel stepped forward.
“No.”
The second man tapped the crowbar against his palm.
Dante moved.
“Put that down.”
The men turned.
The taller one stared.
Then recognition flashed across his face.
“Mr. Moretti?”
Silence.
Hannah looked at Dante.
The man's smile vanished.
Dante stepped closer.
“Who sent you?”
The man swallowed.
“We were told to deliver papers.”
“By whom?”
He hesitated.
Dante stared.
“Answer.”
“Aldo.”
The room went still.
Dante felt something cold settle inside him.
His uncle knew.
He knew Dante was in Briar Hollow.
And he was moving against the bakery.
Dante looked at the folder.
“Leave it.”
The man nodded.
“And the crowbar.”
The second man placed it on the counter.
“Now go.”
They left.
Hannah stared at Dante.
“You know them?”
He nodded.
She looked toward the door.
“Your uncle sent them?”
“Yes.”
Her expression hardened.
“Then this isn't over.”
Dante looked at the folder.
Inside were purchase offers.
Property maps.
And a list of businesses marked for acquisition.
Willow & Rye.
The hardware store.
The diner.
The church parking lot.
Dante stared.
Aldo wasn't simply threatening Hannah.
He was trying to buy the entire street.
Samuel looked at the papers.
His hands trembled.
“Again.”
Hannah turned.
“What?”
Samuel whispered:
“They're doing it again.”
Dante closed the folder.
He understood.
Twenty-two years earlier, the Moretti organization had tried to take the valley.
Now someone wanted it again.
And Dante had walked directly into the middle of it.
He looked at Hannah.
“I won't let them take your bakery.”
She stared.
“Don't promise what you can't control.”
Dante nodded.
“Then I'll find out what I can.”
And for the first time, he began preparing to fight his own family.
May you like
Not for power.
But for the people his family had spent decades trying to erase.
