Chapter 8 - THE GHOSTS OF THE EAST SIDE
The digital screen went dark, leaving only the soft amber glow of the desk lamp reflecting off the polished mahogany surface.
Maria stood motionless under Sebastian’s hand, the reality of what had nearly happened crashing over her in waves. For twelve years, she had believed she and Diego were completely alone in the world—two drifting driftwood scraps surviving on a stormy sea, accountable to no one, protected by nothing except her own blistered hands and stubborn pride.
To discover now that an entire empire had been watching over them from the shadows—that her mother’s single act of desperate heroism decades ago had woven a protective net beneath their feet—felt like standing on the edge of an abyss and realizing the ground was made of glass.
"What happens now?" Maria asked, her voice barely audible over the hum of the city outside.
"Now," Sebastian said, removing his hand from her shoulder and turning back to the window, "we finish what your mother started."
He picked up his phone, tapped the screen once, and pressed it to his ear.
"Vance," Sebastian said into the receiver, his tone crisp and devoid of all warmth. "Tell our legal team to execute clause twelve of the Marcone acquisition. Freeze every asset they hold in the logistics sector. And have the federal prosecutor's office deliver the audit files on their downtown clinic by midnight. I want them out of business before the markets open on Monday."
He hung up without waiting for a reply, tossed the phone onto the desk, and turned back to Maria.
"Your brother's surgery is fully covered," Sebastian said, his gray eyes softening just a fraction as he looked at her. "Not through the auction. The auction was just a stage to draw Marcone out into the open where we could see his hand. St. Vincent's has already received the wire transfer. Dr. Vance is prepping the operating theater right now. If you want to be there when Diego goes under, my car is waiting downstairs."
Maria stared at him, her chest rising and falling in rapid, shallow breaths. "You planned all of this. The auction, the bid, the confrontation... you used me as bait."
"I used the system Marcone built against him," Sebastian corrected, his expression unyielding, though a flicker of genuine remorse crossed his features. "And I apologize for putting you on that stage, Maria. You should never have had to stand there and let strangers appraise your worth. But it was the only way to draw him out without tipping our hand."
Maria looked down at the cream-colored envelope still clutched in her hand, then back up at Sebastian. The anger that should have flared in her chest was drowned out by an overwhelming, tidal wave of exhaustion and relief.
May you like
Her brother was going to live. The debt was paid. The shadow that had hung over her family for twenty-three years was finally being dissolved in the harsh light of accountability.
"Let's go," Maria said, her voice steadying as she lifted her chin. "I want to see my brother."
