Chapter 7 - The Man Standing Behind the Mafia King
Daniel Voss had been Vincent Rossi's closest financial adviser since Vincent was twenty-four.
He knew every legitimate business.
Every property.
Every investment.
He had attended Iris's funeral.
He had hugged Vincent beside her grave.
And now his name appeared on documents connected to the man suspected of orchestrating her death.
Vincent sat behind his desk, staring at the records.
Harper stood across from him.
"You need to call the investigators."
"I already have."
"Good."
He looked up.
"You sound surprised."
"I've met men like you before."
"Men like me?"
"Men who think they're the solution to every problem."
Vincent almost smiled.
"That's a little harsh."
"My manager sold my address to a criminal because he thought money meant he could do whatever he wanted."
Vincent's expression changed.
Harper continued.
"I don't want another powerful man deciding what happens to my life."
He nodded slowly.
"Understood."
The investigators questioned Voss the following morning.
He arrived with two attorneys.
He denied wrongdoing.
He claimed the suspicious transfer was an ordinary real estate transaction.
But the documents told a different story.
The property had been purchased for far more than its assessed value.
The seller was a shell company tied to Bell.
And the excess money had disappeared into another account.
When detectives requested supporting records, Voss claimed they had been destroyed in a server failure.
Then an accountant came forward.
Her name was Melissa Grant.
She had worked under Voss for seven years.
She brought copies of internal correspondence.
According to the documents, Voss had approved a series of questionable payments after Iris began investigating Briarwood.
He had also warned Bell that Vincent might ask questions.
The apparent purpose was to keep Vincent distracted while money continued moving through the companies.
But the most disturbing message concerned Iris.
She has to be handled before Vincent listens.
Harper read the sentence twice.
"Handled?"
Vincent looked sick.
Melissa explained that she'd questioned the wording.
Voss told her it meant finding Iris another job.
But Iris died three days later.
The investigators began examining whether Voss had participated in planning or concealing her death.
Vincent provided access to corporate records through his attorney.
He also disclosed information about his organization's criminal activities.
The decision exposed him to serious legal consequences.
Harper learned about it from a detective.
That evening, she confronted him.
"You're cooperating?"
"Yes."
"About everything?"
"As much as I can, with legal advice. I'm not pretending this is simple."
She studied him.
"What changed?"
Vincent looked toward the framed photograph of Iris on his desk.
"She spent her life helping people I never noticed."
His voice softened.
"And I spent mine convincing myself I could control dangerous men."
Harper said nothing.
"I couldn't."
For the first time, he looked tired of being feared.
Not merely exhausted.
Finished.
But the investigation took another terrifying turn.
An anonymous caller contacted Harper's hospital room.
She answered while her mother slept.
"Miss Ellis?"
"Who's this?"
A man's voice replied:
"Tell Rossi to stop."
Harper went cold.
"Who are you?"
"You have a beautiful mother."
She stood.
"If you go near her—"
"Tell him."
The line disconnected.
Harper immediately reported the threat.
Hospital security was notified.
Nora was moved to a safer room after the care team coordinated with investigators.
Vincent arrived twenty minutes later.
When Harper saw him, she broke.
Not dramatically.
Not with a scream.
She simply sat down and began crying.
Vincent knelt beside her chair.
"Harper."
She shook her head.
"I can't do this anymore."
"I know."
"My mother almost died because she tried to help your sister."
His face tightened.
"I know."
"And now they're threatening her again."
He looked down.
"I'm sorry."
Harper wiped her eyes.
"I don't need you to be sorry."
"What do you need?"
She took a shaking breath.
"I need this to end."
Vincent nodded.
"Then we keep giving the investigators what they need."
She looked at him.
"No more secrets?"
"No more secrets."
For several seconds, they sat in silence.
Then Harper asked something she'd been afraid to ask.
"Have you ever killed anyone?"
Vincent's expression changed.
He didn't look away.
"I've been involved in violence. Some of it caused deaths."
Harper's stomach tightened.
"Then why should I trust you?"
"You shouldn't trust me because I say you can."
His voice was quiet.
"You should judge what I do next."
Harper looked down at her hands.
She cared about him.
That frightened her.
Because caring didn't erase the things he'd done.
And she wasn't going to build her life on pretending otherwise.
"I won't wait forever for you to become a different person," she whispered.
Vincent nodded.
"I wouldn't ask you to."
Three days later, the investigators identified the anonymous caller.
He had used a prepaid phone connected to Daniel Voss's security contractor.
A warrant was issued for the contractor's arrest.
But before police could locate him, Harper received another message.
This one contained a photograph of the Brass Rail.
The windows were dark.
The front door stood open.
A second photograph showed Simon's former office.
A familiar shoebox sat on the desk.
Inside was the original stack of hundred-dollar bills Vincent had left her.
Beneath the money was a handwritten note.
Come alone if you want to know who really killed Iris.
Harper stared at the screen.
Then called the detective.
May you like
She wasn't going alone.
Not anymore.
