Chapter 5 - The Collapse of an Empire
The fallout did not take forty-eight hours. It took forty-five minutes.
Inside the executive boardroom of Moretti Holdings, Arthur Price was still sitting with his legal team, waiting for Gabriel to return, when his phone rang on speaker.
"Arthur," Viktor’s cold, heavy accent came through the line.
Arthur stood up immediately, gesturing for his team to be silent. "Viktor? Is Mr. Moretti returning? We have the amended escrow documents ready—"
"Your son, Evan," Viktor interrupted flatly, "is currently lying on the floor of Bellanova’s Italian Kitchen."
Arthur frowned, a knot forming in his stomach. "Evan? What does Evan have to do with—"
"He spent his lunch hour assisting his friend in assault and harassment against Don Gabriel’s wife," Viktor said. "The video was broadcast live to eighty thousand people."
Arthur’s heart stopped. The room seemed to tilt beneath his feet. "Don Gabriel’s... wife? Gabriel Moretti isn't married!"
"He has been married for six months," Viktor replied coldly. "And as of five minutes ago, Don Gabriel has terminated all legal contracts with Price & Associates. By six o'clock this evening, your firm's bank accounts held in Moretti-affiliated institutions will be frozen pending an emergency audit for corporate negligence."
"Wait! Please!" Arthur screamed into the phone, dropping his pen onto the table. "Viktor! Let me speak to Gabriel! Evan is a fool! He’s an idiot! I’ll disown him! I’ll fire him from the firm!"
"It is too late, Arthur," Viktor said softly. "You raised a boy who thinks other people exist for his amusement. Now you will pay for his education."
The line went dead.
Arthur dropped into his leather chair, his hands shaking so violently he couldn't keep his glasses on his face. He looked at his junior partners, who were staring at him in utter shock.
"Get my car," Arthur whispered, his voice trembling. "GET MY CAR NOW!"
Meanwhile, across town at Cole Luxury Motors, Richard Cole—Madison’s father—was sitting in his glass office watching the late-afternoon sales reports.
His phone buzzed. It was a link sent by his regional marketing manager.
Richard clicked the link.
It opened a saved mirror of Madison’s livestream.
Richard watched in horror as his twenty-two-year-old daughter poured a full glass of Coke over a waitress’s head, laughing hysterically into her phone while making fun of the woman's body.
Then he watched the video continue. He saw the doors open. He saw Gabriel Moretti walk into the frame.
Richard’s face lost all its color.
He knew Gabriel Moretti. Cole Luxury Motors leased fifty armored SUVs to Moretti Holdings every single year—a contract that accounted for sixty percent of Richard’s annual revenue.
His phone rang again. It was the bank manager at Harbor National.
"Richard," the banker said, his tone clipped and formal. "I’m calling to inform you that your line of credit for the new dealership in West End has been revoked effective immediately."
"Revoked?!" Richard gasped, standing up so fast his chair flipped backward. "Why?! The papers were signed yesterday!"
"The primary underwriter for your loan was Moretti Capital," the banker said flatly. "They pulled their backing ten minutes ago. Good day, Mr. Cole."
Richard dropped his phone onto the carpet.
May you like
He looked at the video on his computer screen—at his daughter screaming about her three-thousand-dollar dress while the most dangerous man in Harbor City stood three feet away from her.
"Madison..." Richard choked out, tears of ruin filling his eyes. "What have you done?"
