“The Gala Comes First,” Mafia Boss Insisted—His Pregnant Wife Cost Him More Than a Vote

The document looked authentic.

It carried Matteo's signature, the Mercer Logistics seal, and a date corresponding to the week Celeste had visited the flooded warehouse.

If released, it would appear to prove that Matteo had authorized the destruction of the building.

Catherine studied the image.

"Where did Enzo get this?"

Agent Lawson shook her head.

"We don't know yet."

Matteo stared at the signature.

"I never signed it."

"Could it have been copied?" Catherine asked.

"Yes. But this letterhead was used only for internal security orders."

Gabriel examined the document.

"There's a problem with the seal. The company stopped using that version two years ago."

Agent Lawson looked up.

"Can you prove that?"

"Absolutely."

They returned to the office and retrieved the original security archives. Catherine compared the dates, invoice numbers, and approval codes.

Within an hour, she found the inconsistency.

The document referenced a security contractor that had been dissolved months before the date on the letter. The signature had been copied from an unrelated authorization.

Enzo had forged the order.

But Catherine knew that proving the document false would not erase the damage already done. The press would publish the accusation, and the public would decide what to believe.

Matteo sat across from her.

"If this goes public, the company could collapse."

"Then let it collapse if that's what the truth requires."

He looked at her.

"You're asking me to give up everything."

"No. I'm asking you to stop treating everything as more important than the people you love."

He absorbed the words.

For a long time, he said nothing.

Then he called his communications director.

"Prepare a statement."

The director sounded alarmed.

"Sir, we should deny the document and challenge the source."

"We will do that. But I also want the public to know that I am cooperating with the investigation into the waterfront project."

"That could expose the company to liability."

"It should."

The director went silent.

Matteo continued.

"Release the records of every transfer connected to the project. All of them. Including the ones approved during my tenure."

Catherine looked at him in surprise.

He ended the call.

"I'm not going to hide behind my father's name anymore."

"That won't erase what you did at the gala."

"No."

"Or the affair."

"No."

"Or the years you spent treating our marriage like a business contract."

His eyes lowered.

"No."

Catherine took a breath.

"Then why are you doing this?"

"Because I don't want our child to inherit a lie and call it a legacy."

For the first time, she saw the possibility of a different man—not a perfect one, not a man magically absolved by a single sacrifice, but someone finally willing to accept the cost of his choices.

That evening, Matteo held a press conference.

He admitted that the Balori Foundation had been used to conceal questionable financial transactions. He confirmed that he had failed his wife and that he was cooperating with investigators. He refused to attack Catherine, blame Celeste, or suggest that family loyalty excused criminal conduct.

The statement shocked Charlotte.

Within hours, the trustees resigned. Several business partners suspended their contracts. Mercer Logistics' stock in its public subsidiaries fell sharply.

Matteo lost control of the waterfront development.

He also lost the protection of several powerful men who had benefited from the old system.

Enzo remained at large.

At 10:30 p.m., Catherine received a message from an unknown number.

It contained a photograph of the old gardenias from her wedding.

Underneath it were the words:

COME TO THE PLACE WHERE YOUR FATHER DIED, OR MATTEO WILL PAY FOR YOUR COURAGE.

Catherine showed the message to Gabriel.

He immediately called Agent Lawson.

"We have a location."

Catherine shook her head.

"No. We have a trap."