Chapter 29
"Do you really believe you have the advantage?" Alessandro asked softly, a dark, mocking smile touching the corners of his mouth. "Take a closer look at your men, Falcone." Don Falcone turned his head, his rosy skin draining of color. Every single one of his elite bodyguards had slowly lowered their weapons and taken a step backward, completely abandoning their protective formation around him. "What is the meaning of this?!" Falcone shrieked, sheer panic overriding his aristocratic arrogance. "I pay you millions!" "You pay them with money," Alessandro corrected smoothly, stopping directly behind Falcone’s chair. "I pay them with their lives. I bought your lieutenants yesterday. I bought your security detail this morning. Your entire empire belongs to me, and you didn't even notice the transaction." Falcone collapsed into his chair, weeping in absolute, pathetic defeat. He had been completely outmaneuvered without a single shot fired in the room. "Sign the territorial deeds over to the Rizzano holding company," Alessandro commanded, dropping a thick legal folder onto the glass table. "You will leave this city tonight. If I ever see your face again, your own men will execute you on my behalf." Trembling violently, Don Falcone picked up the pen and signed away his legacy, terrified by the apex predator who now controlled his entire world.
