Chapter 5 - THE MAN WHO BETRAYED HIS OWN BLOOD
Gabriel Moretti had built his reputation on control.
He rarely raised his voice.
Rarely acted without planning.
Rarely allowed emotion to influence decisions.
But the discovery of Harper had unsettled him.
He looked at her and saw Nicholas.
Not just the eyes.
The stubbornness.
The quick intelligence.
The way she refused to accept an answer that didn't make sense.
Gabriel ordered an internal review of everyone who had access to information about Ashford Station.
He also contacted an attorney experienced in cooperating with federal investigators.
If Nicholas's records existed, Gabriel wanted them handled lawfully.
He had spent too many years protecting the wrong people.
Harper watched him from the kitchen.
“You're really going to help the police?”
Gabriel looked at her.
“Yes.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“That's unusual for a mafia boss.”
He almost smiled.
“I'm discovering that a great many things about my life need to change.”
The next morning, Marco brought troubling news.
A senior member of Gabriel's organization had disappeared.
His name was Dominic Russo.
He had worked for the Morettis for thirty years.
He had also been close to Vittorio.
Gabriel stared at the report.
“Find out where he went.”
Marco nodded.
That afternoon, Harper received a text from an unknown number.
Your mother lied to you. Gabriel is lying too.
She stared.
Another message appeared.
Ask him what happened at the river.
Harper felt cold.
She confronted Gabriel immediately.
“What happened at the river?”
His face changed.
“Who asked you that?”
“Answer me.”
He looked down.
“Twenty-three years ago, Nicholas and I argued.”
Harper stared.
“About what?”
“He wanted to expose the organization.”
“And you didn't?”
Gabriel closed his eyes.
“No.”
He explained that Nicholas had accused Vittorio of ordering violence against people who threatened the family's operations.
Gabriel refused to believe him.
They argued.
Nicholas said he was leaving.
Gabriel told him he was making a mistake.
“That was the last time I saw him,” Gabriel whispered.
Harper stared.
“You let him go?”
“Yes.”
“Did you tell Vittorio?”
Gabriel went silent.
Harper felt her stomach drop.
“You did.”
He nodded.
“I told him Nicholas was planning to leave.”
Harper stepped back.
“Oh my God.”
Gabriel's voice broke.
“I didn't know what Vittorio would do.”
“But you knew he was dangerous.”
Gabriel looked at her.
“Yes.”
Harper began crying.
“You betrayed him.”
Gabriel didn't defend himself.
“Yes.”
She turned away.
That night, Harper packed her bag.
Gabriel found her near the front door.
“Where are you going?”
“Somewhere else.”
He nodded.
“Okay.”
She looked surprised.
“You're not going to stop me?”
“No.”
She stared.
“Why?”
“Because you have every reason not to trust me.”
He handed her a card.
“A safe apartment arranged through counsel. You can stay there without seeing me.”
Harper took it.
Then looked at him.
“Did you love your brother?”
Gabriel's eyes filled.
“More than anything.”
She swallowed.
“Then why didn't you protect him?”
He looked down.
“Because I was afraid of losing my place in the family.”
Harper stared.
“And you lost him instead.”
Gabriel nodded.
“Yes.”
She left.
And Gabriel stood alone in the doorway.
May you like
For the first time in decades, he understood that power had never made him strong.
It had only made him afraid to do the right thing.
