Chapter 8 - The Declaration of Seattle
Three months later.
The Grand Ballroom of the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Seattle was packed with five hundred of the most powerful people in the Pacific Northwest—governors, judges, corporate titans, and high-ranking syndicate leaders from across the continent.
They were gathered for the annual Pacific Business Summit, an event traditionally hosted by the Cole Syndicate to set the territorial rules for the coming year.
The room buzzed with intense speculation.
Rumors had circulated for weeks about the bloodbath at Pier 54, the total destruction of the Moretti Family, and the strange rumor that Ethan Cole—the cold, unfeeling "Ice King of Seattle"—had taken a mysterious woman into his home.
At 8:00 PM, the heavy double doors at the top of the grand marble staircase swung open.
The room went dead silent.
Ethan Cole stood at the top of the stairs. He looked formidable, dressed in a bespoke black tuxedo with a red silk pocket square.
But he was not walking alone.
On his right arm walked Sophie. She was breathtaking. She wore an emerald-green silk gown that flowed around her heels, decorated with a diamond necklace that had once belonged to the Russian Royal Family. Her dark hair was styled in elegant waves, and her eyes sparkled with supreme confidence and grace.
On Ethan’s left, holding his hand proudly, was seven-year-old Amy. She wore a matching pink princess dress, her dark curls adorned with a small silver tiara.
A collective gasp echoed through the ballroom.
Powerful men who had spent decades fearing Ethan Cole watched in absolute shock as the ruthless mafia king gently helped the little girl navigate the marble steps, adjusting her dress so she wouldn't trip.
Ethan led them to the center stage, stepping up to the microphone.
He didn't pull out a speech. He didn't look at a paper. He simply swept his dark, commanding gaze across the sea of powerful elites standing before him.
"For ten years," Ethan’s voice boomed softly through the crystal audio speakers, "you have known me as the head of the Cole Syndicate. You have known my laws, my borders, and my temper."
He reached out, taking Sophie’s hand in his, while placing his other hand on Amy’s shoulder.
"Tonight, I announce a new law," Ethan declared, his voice ringing with absolute, terrifying authority. "This is my wife, Sophie Cole. And this is my daughter, Amy Cole."
The room remained frozen, nobody daring to breathe.
"If anyone in this room—or anyone in this city—ever raises their voice to them, looks at them with disrespect, or causes them a single second of distress..." Ethan’s eyes turned into cold, lethal obsidian. "...I will not use lawyers. I will not use courts. I will erase your entire bloodline from the face of the earth."
A beat of stunned silence held the room.
Then, Marcus—standing near the front row in his sharp suit—began to clap.
Within seconds, the entire ballroom erupted into thunderous, roaring applause. Judges, politicians, and mob bosses alike bowed their heads in respect to the new Queen and Princess of Seattle.
May you like
Sophie looked up at Ethan, her eyes shining with tears of absolute happiness.
Ethan leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss to her lips, before lifting Amy onto his shoulder, where she waved happily to the cheering crowd.
