Chapter 9 - The Downtown Betrayal
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The next morning, Vivien was practically vibrating with nervous, triumphant energy. She claimed she needed to run into the city for a final dress fitting and a spa appointment to calm her pre-wedding nerves.
I kissed her cheek, told her to enjoy her day, and ordered my driver to take her.
The moment the armored SUV cleared the front gates, I was in a separate, unmarked vehicle with Nico and Rocco, trailing three blocks behind.
Vivien didn't go to a spa. The driver dropped her off at a luxury hotel in the heart of downtown Chicago. She walked into the bustling lobby, bypassing the reception desk entirely, and stepped into an elevator.
We accessed the hotel's security feeds from the mobile command unit in our van.
"She's heading to the penthouse level," Nico reported, watching the grainy monitor.
"Who has the penthouse booked?" I asked.
"A shell corporation," Rocco replied, typing furiously. "But the billing address traces back to a holding company owned by Carlo Moretti."
I watched the screen as Vivien stepped out of the elevator. She walked down the plush corridor and knocked twice on the heavy wooden door of the penthouse suite.
The door opened. Carlo Moretti stood there, wearing a sharp suit, a smug grin plastered across his face. Vivien didn't just walk into the room; she threw her arms around his neck, kissing him passionately before the door slammed shut.
A heavy, suffocating silence filled our surveillance van.
My men looked at me, waiting for the explosive, violent rage they expected from a betrayed mafia boss. They expected me to order an immediate breach, to drag both of them out into the street and execute them.
But I felt no rage. I felt only a cold, absolute clarity.
"Boss?" Nico asked tentatively. "Do we move in?"
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"No," I said softly, my eyes locked on the black screen. "We let them celebrate. We let them think they have outsmarted the devil. We have all the proof we need. Pull the van around. We are going back to the estate."
The trap was fully armed. It was time to close the jaws.
