Chapter 9 - The Verdict of the Commission
The grand dining room of the Valenti estate had been converted into an emergency tribunal of the syndicate Commission.
Sitting at the long oak table were the four most powerful crime bosses on the East Coast. Surrounded by fifty armed guards, the air was thick with cigar smoke and a heavy, suffocating silence.
Don Carmine Valenti and Jimmy were forced to sit on metal folding chairs in the center of the room, stripped of their weapons, their faces pale with defeat.
Aleandro stood at the head of the table, presenting the decrypted financial ledgers that Sophia’s locket had unlocked.
“Forty-two million dollars,” Aleandro announced, placing the digital tablet in front of the senior boss, Don Luciano. “Stolen directly from your union funds over six years. Julian Vance tried to stop it, so Carmine had him executed. When he realized Vance’s widow had the keys, he ordered a strike on my estate and tried to bring down my private plane with a child on board.”
Don Luciano, an elderly man with silver hair and eyes like chipped ice, carefully reviewed the bank ledgers. He looked up, his gaze cutting into Carmine Valenti like a butcher’s knife.
“Is this true, Carmine?” Luciano asked softly.
“He’s lying!” Carmine pleaded, his voice cracking with desperation. “The widow is framing me! Moretti is trying to take over my territory!”
“The banking encryption doesn't lie, Carmine,” Luciano said coldly. He turned his attention to Sophia, who was standing quietly near the fireplace with Emma and Bruno.
Luciano’s expression softened slightly as he looked at the small child, who was sitting on the floor drawing pictures on a piece of paper using Bruno’s broad back as a table.
“Mrs. Vance,” Don Luciano said respectfully. “Your husband was an honest man who died trying to correct a great wrong. The Commission owes you an apology—and a debt.”
Luciano stood up, addressing the room. “By order of the Commission, the Valenti family is officially dissolved. Their assets will be liquidated to repay the stolen funds. Carmine Valenti and his nephew will be stripped of their titles and handed over to federal authorities to face charges for the airline sabotage and embezzlement.”
Jimmy slumped in his chair, sobbing quietly, while Carmine stared at the floor in total ruin.
Luciano then turned to Aleandro. “And what of the widow and the child, Moretti? New York is no longer safe for them.”
Aleandro walked over to Sophia, placing a warm, protective hand on her shoulder. He looked down at Emma, who reached up and grabbed his finger with her small hand.
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“They belong to Chicago now,” Aleandro said firmly. “Under the personal protection of the Moretti family. Anyone who seeks to harm them answers directly to me.”
Don Luciano smiled thinly, nodding his approval. “So be it. The matter is settled.”
