Chapter 7
The bright, cinematic lighting of the marine museum felt painfully stark against the dark, treacherous reality unfolding in the donor lounge. Cesare stood like a carved monument of vengeance, his sharp jawline rigid, his handsome face betraying none of the internal heartbreak he felt at his family's betrayal.
"Father, I swear on my life, I knew nothing about this," Julian pleaded, stepping forward, his hands raised in surrender. "I thought I was going to be a father again. I thought we were building a future for this syndicate."
"You are thirty-six years old, Julian," Cesare said slowly, the controlled pauses emphasizing his disgust. "And you let your aunt. And your mistress. Plot a coup under my own roof. You watched Diane throw your daughter to the floor. And you did nothing."
"I was shocked!" Julian argued, his voice pitching higher in desperate defense. "I didn't want to cause a scene in front of the mayor and the donors! I was protecting our public image!"
"A man who prioritizes optics. Over his own blood. Is no man at all," Cesare whispered.
He turned his attention back to Vanessa. She was backing away, her heels clicking rapidly against the marble as she hit the thick glass of the aquarium viewing wall. The serene blue light from the water cast eerie, shifting shadows over her terrified face.
"What did you and Ethan plan to do. When the nine months were up?" Cesare asked calmly, his intimidating eyes locking onto her. "You cannot fake a birth."
"We... we had a contingency," Vanessa cried, shrinking against the glass as if trying to merge with the water.
"Tell me," Cesare commanded.
"Ethan found a clinic in Eastern Europe," Vanessa confessed, tears ruining her expensive makeup. "A young girl... she is due next month. We were going to buy the infant. We were going to bring it back and present it as Julian's son. A closed adoption disguised as a home birth."
A collective gasp rippled through the trapped guests. The sheer depravity of the plot shocked even the hardened mafia associates in the room.
"You were going to buy a child. To steal my empire," Cesare summarized, his voice incredibly low, vibrating with lethal intent. "And you thought I would simply smile. And hand over the keys."
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"We thought you would be distracted!" Vanessa shrieked, pointing a shaking finger at Avice, who was hiding safely behind one of the bodyguards. "We thought you would be too busy playing grandfather to notice the legal transfers!"
"I notice everything," Cesare said, taking a slow step toward her. "That is why I am the Boss. And that is why your brother is bleeding on my floor."
