Chapter 4 - The Confrontation in the VIP Lounge
Twenty minutes later, in the private soundproof VIP suite on the top floor of the hotel, Henry stood trapped against the mahogany bar.
Dante stood by the door, arms crossed. Victor Vance sat in a leather armchair, sipping cognac.
Sophie sat behind a glass desk, reviewing a thick stack of legal documents.
Henry was trembling—partly from rage, partly from an intense, overwhelming wave of confusion and suppressed guilt that had haunted him for five years.
"Why didn't you tell me?!" Henry roared, slamming his hands onto the desk. "You were alive! You disappeared! I spent months sending men to look for your body in Garfield Park!"
Sophie didn't even look up from her paper. "Did you, Henry? Or did you send men to make sure the trash didn't crawl back to your doorstep?"
Henry flinched as if struck across the face.
"I had no choice!" Henry pleaded, his voice cracking with desperation. "You don't understand the pressure I was under! The FBI was wiretapping my study! My uncle was threatening to execute anyone suspicious! I thought you were a spy sent by the Syndicate to trap me!"
Sophie set her gold pen down. She stood up slowly, stepping around the desk until she was standing three feet from him.
The scent of her expensive French perfume filled his senses—a far cry from the soap and bleach she used to smell like in his pantry.
"You threw a pregnant woman into a minus-seven-degree blizzard, Henry," Sophie said softly, her tone dangerously calm. "You listened to me beg for my life, and you told your dog to take out the trash."
Henry swallowed hard, sweat dripping down his temple. "Sophie... I was wrong. God help me, I was wrong! Every night for five years, I’ve seen your face in my dreams! I regretted it the moment the van drove away!"
"Lies," Sophie replied smoothly. "You didn't regret it. You just regret that I survived to buy your debt."
Henry froze. "What?"
Sophie gestured to Victor Vance. Victor slid a thick red binder across the table.
"As of 4:00 PM today, Mr. Russo," Victor said with a dark chuckle, "Vance Global acquired one hundred percent of the defaulted mortgages on the Russo Manor, your shipping ports, and your family's private accounts. You owe my daughter $1.2 billion, due in twenty-four hours."
Henry stared at the binder, his hands shaking violently as he flipped through the pages.
"You... you bought my life," Henry whispered, looking at Sophie with terror.
"I bought your destruction, Henry," Sophie corrected, leaning down until her dark eyes were inches from his. "Tomorrow at midnight, the Russo name ceases to exist in Chicago. You will be penniless, homeless, and hunted by every creditor in the city."
"Sophie, please!" Henry gasped, dropping to one knee, grabbing at the hem of her silk jacket. "Please! Give me a chance! I'll give you anything! I'll give you half the family business! Just grant me an extension on the loan!"
Sophie looked down at the ruthless mafia boss kneeling at her feet, pleading like a broken street beggar.
May you like
She pulled her jacket from his grip with total disgust.
"You have twenty-four hours, Henry," she said coldly. "Start packing."
