Chapter 6
The tension in the grand foyer was absolute. The fifty guests stood immobilized in the archway, paralyzed by the overwhelming, lethal energy radiating from Mason Vale.
"You sold my child," Mason stated, his voice a low, vibrating rumble that shook the crystal glasses held by the onlookers.
"I protected our future!" Camille snapped back, her voice losing its practiced elegance, pitching higher with defensive panic. "The Shaw family and the Vale family are merging to control the entire eastern seaboard! You were careless, Mason! I did what was necessary to eliminate a bastard complication before it could embarrass us both!"
"Does eliminating a complication require threatening the life of an elderly woman on a ventilator?" Mason inquired. His perceptive eyes missed nothing, and the details he had quietly gathered over the past few weeks suddenly aligned.
Camille’s fair skin paled further. "I secured her obedience. That is how our world works. You cannot humiliate me in front of our families over a filthy maid and a mistake!"
"You humiliated yourself the moment you brokered a transaction involving my blood," Mason replied coldly.
He did not remove his protective hand from Lila’s back. He slowly swept his gaze across the room, taking in the numerous capos, donors, and relatives standing frozen in the ballroom entrance. His eyes locked onto Vincent, his most trusted lieutenant.
"Vincent," Mason commanded, his voice echoing off the carved walnut furniture. "Lock the perimeter. No one leaves the estate."
"Yes, Boss," Vincent replied instantly, speaking into the radio at his lapel. The heavy mechanical locks of the mansion’s exterior doors echoed with loud, definitive clacks.
"Now," Mason said, turning his terrifying focus entirely back to the woman in the emerald gown. "You are going to give me the names of the buyers."
"I will give you nothing," Camille sneered, her aristocratic bravado returning as self-preservation took over. "The transaction was anonymous through a third party. And even if I knew, I wouldn't tell you. You are going to honor our engagement, Mason, or my father will burn your empire to the ground."
"Is your father a man who fights battles for foolish, child-trafficking daughters?" Mason asked quietly.
"He will kill you!" Camille pleaded, reaching out to grasp the edge of the console table. "We signed the contracts! You cannot back out now without causing a massive war! You need the Shaw syndicate!"
"Do you expect me to harbor a sociopath under my roof to appease a shipping magnate?" Mason asked.
May you like
He didn't wait for her to answer. He reached into his tailored jacket and retrieved a sleek, encrypted smartphone. He dialed a single digit and pressed the phone to his ear. The small artistic tattoo above his collar shifted seamlessly with the movement.
"Marcus," Mason said into the receiver, his eyes locked on his former fiancée. "Deploy the strike teams to the Shaw family compounds. Authorize lethal force. And come to the foyer to escort Miss Shaw to the holding cells beneath the east wing."
