Chapter 14 - THE CITY THAT TURNED AGAINST HIM|
By noon, Roman Costa's name was everywhere.
News outlets reported that a financial ledger connected his organization to a decades-old murder investigation. Commentators speculated about political corruption, missing funds, and the possibility that Roman had inherited an empire built on a cover-up.
The story grew more complicated by the hour.
Some reports described him as a ruthless criminal finally facing consequences. Others suggested he had cooperated with investigators and was preparing to expose his own relatives.
None of them knew the whole truth.
That did not stop them from publishing it.
Outside the estate, reporters gathered behind the gates. Cameras followed every vehicle that entered or left. People who had once returned Roman's calls within seconds suddenly stopped answering.
His allies began distancing themselves.
His enemies began celebrating.
And the men who had depended on his authority started wondering whether the Costa organization would survive the week.
Roman watched the coverage without speaking.
Marcus stood beside him.
“We can suppress some of the stories.”
“No.”
“Boss, the damage—”
“Let them report what they can prove.”
Marcus hesitated.
“That could destroy everything.”
Roman looked at him.
“Then everything deserves to be destroyed.”
The answer unsettled Marcus more than anger would have.
Across the room, Norah was speaking with a lawyer from Graves's office. She had agreed to provide a statement about the false debt and the records her father had left behind.
Roman had offered to arrange private transportation and a security detail.
She had accepted the transportation.
She had refused the detail.
“I won't spend the rest of my life hiding because powerful people are afraid of what I know,” she told him.
Roman had wanted to argue.
Instead, he had asked what would make her feel safe without making her feel trapped.
They agreed on a driver, an emergency contact, and a clear rule: Norah would decide where she went and who accompanied her.
It was a small change.
For Roman, it was also one of the hardest.
That afternoon, his mother arrived.
Eleanor Costa was a dignified woman in her late sixties, known for her charity work and her refusal to discuss family business in public. She entered the study carrying an old leather handbag.
“Roman.”
“Mother.”
She looked at the television.
“You've made a terrible mistake.”
Roman closed the report he had been reading.
“Which one?”
“Publicly challenging the family.”
“The family challenged itself when it concealed a murder.”
Eleanor's face tightened.
“You don't understand what your father was trying to protect.”
“Then explain it.”
She sat down slowly.
“Your father believed that if the organization collapsed, every person who depended on it would suffer. Workers would lose their livelihoods. Families would lose their homes. Men who had been kept under control would start fighting each other.”
“So he chose to hide the truth.”
“He chose the lesser evil.”
Roman looked at her.
“That's what people always call their own decisions.”
Eleanor's eyes filled with tears.
“You sound like him.”
“No. I sound like the man who finally has to live with what he inherited.”
For a long moment, she said nothing.
Then she opened her handbag and removed a small envelope.
“I knew Daniel Bennett.”
Roman's expression changed.
“Mother?”
“He came to me after he discovered the payments. He begged me to persuade your father to stop the arrangement.”
“Did you?”
“I tried.”
“And?”
Eleanor looked down.
“Your father told me that if I interfered, I would put you in danger. I was afraid of losing you.”
“So you stayed silent.”
“Yes.”
The admission was quiet.
It was also devastating.
Norah stood in the doorway, having heard the last part of the conversation.
Eleanor saw her.
“Miss Bennett, I am sorry.”
Norah did not answer immediately.
“My father spent his last days afraid. I spent two years believing I owed money to the people responsible. I'm glad you're sorry, but your apology cannot give us those years back.”
Eleanor bowed her head.
“No. It cannot.”
Roman looked at his mother.
“You'll give your statement to the investigators.”
She closed her eyes.
Then she nodded.
“Yes.”
That evening, Roman received a call from his attorney.
The investigators had found evidence that Victor's associates were planning to flee the country. Several accounts had already been emptied.
But there was something else.
The attorney's voice was grave.
“Roman, someone has filed a complaint claiming you personally authorized the original cover-up.”
Roman looked at Norah.
“Who filed it?”
“Arthur Voss.”
The call ended.
Roman remained motionless.
Arthur had been arrested, but he was not finished.
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And if he could prove that Roman knew more than he had admitted, the consequences would reach far beyond the organization.
They could send Roman to prison.
