Chapter 21
Ethan looked down at the leather folder on the table, then back at Dante Moretti’s unreadable face.
“You’re trying to buy my silence,” Ethan said coldly.
“I’m offering you peace, Ethan,” Dante countered softly, taking a step closer.
“You have your wife back. You have your daughter. Your family is safe.”
“If you publish those files, you won't just bring down the ghost of my father.”
“You’ll ignite a war with the Chicago syndicate that will put a target on your daughter’s back for the rest of her life.”
The room went completely freezing silent as the weight of Dante’s words settled over the cabin.
Ethan looked at Clara, whose hand was resting gently on his arm.
He looked back at four-year-old Lily, who was watching from behind Victoria, clutching her stuffed bear.
He had spent the last four years fighting to get his family back together.
Did he really want to drag them into a bloody war with an international crime syndicate over thirty-year-old corporate records?
“The files stay offline,” Ethan said slowly, lowering his revolver.
“On one condition.”
“Name it,” Dante said.
“You wipe every trace of my family from your syndicate’s records,” Ethan demanded.
“If I see a single Moretti associate near my wife or daughter ever again, I won't leak the files to the press.”
“I’ll hand them directly to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”
Dante smiled a faint, genuine smile of deep respect.
May you like
“Agreed,” Dante said, offering his hand across the table.
Ethan took Dante’s hand, the two powerful men exchanging a firm, binding handshake.
