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I pace my home office like a caged lion, running my hands through my hair as if this could somehow pull the answers out of my brain.
This morning, my men trapped Sylvestro, one of Molinaro’s main hackers. They dragged him screaming and kicking to his last scene. Turns out with the right incentive he’s a real blabbermouth.
Since taking over De Marco Corp seven years ago, I’ve worked relentlessly to lift it away from its brutal roots and open the floodgates to cash like no De Marco has ever seen.
Harnessing the opportunities of the twenty-first century, I put together a great team of hackers and financial specialists to create a new product, evolving De Marco Corp into a broad provider of mainly black-market financial products.
It’s been an immense success, allowing all manner of dirty money to find attractive, legitimate, tax-friendly investment opportunities.
The late Sylvestro spilled that Molinaro also assembled a highly specialized IT team when he got wind of what I was doing. His crew has been working on an online platform that can reach further. It’s growing faster than ours, making us look ‘first-gen’.
How did we not know about this? How could this slip under our radar?
Molinaro clearly smelled the goldmine I’m sitting on and is trying to steal it from right under me. All he needs is access to my extensive client records.
The war with the Molinaro family started years ago. Papà was still alive when Niccolo Molinaro inherited his empire from his father. Old Molinaro died from natural causes, and not our doing. The overweight bastard dropped dead from a heart attack, caused by overindulgence in fatty meat, pastries and sweets.
When Niccolo took the reins, he needed to prove himself… to whom, who knows? Probably himself. Even before he came to power, he always hid behind cruelty and violence to cover up his inadequacies. Then, ten years ago, he suddenly had all the power he wanted.
The destruction of our business has been on top of his agenda ever since. First, he stole deliveries and interfered whenever possible. My father dealt with all of his underhanded shit swiftly, causing major losses on Molinaro’s side.
This fueled Niccolo’s thirst for retaliation. He set a trap and caused my father’s car accident, leaving me as head of my family at only twenty-five.
Anger and pain still surge whenever I think about how papa died.
After his death, things were relatively quiet for a few years, but Niccolo is out for blood again. The stakes are higher now.
His lame attempt to run me over proved just how close he’s got to us.
I was unguarded for only a few minutes when I stepped out of that café and he seized the opportunity. If it hadn’t been for Ella, he might have succeeded.
Who would have thought such a dark moment could be flooded with immeasurable light? That a moment of manipulation and violence could change my life forever? Give it meaning and purpose? That I would find the woman who would intoxicate me and eventually ensure the continuation of my family.
The thought of Ella softens my heart, even if only for a moment. The harmony we had on the island is out of reach at the moment, but our connection is still there. And we will get back what we shared. It’s only a matter of time.
But Molinaro has to be dealt with. I never saw him as a genuine threat to everything my family has built over four generations, but he’s definitely good for a surprise. Time is of the essence. Right now, he’s got an edge on me, and it may prove fatal to the entire world around me.
FUCK!
Before Sylvestro’s demise, he let slip that they’re close to hacking my investment bank. My mark, my brand, my major contribution to the evolution of De Marco Corporation is on the brink of devastation.
Fuck that shits me.
Uberto immediately investigated Sylvestro’s claims. When I met him at lunchtime, he assured me there’s no breach of our systems. His guys also couldn’t find any proof of the existence of Molinaro’s platform. So I was mollified.
But just four hours later, all hell broke loose.
Uberto rang, panicked. He’d found that a large part of our IT system has been cloned including the account details of most of my clients.
Christ, this could be curtains.
We had an emergency meeting at my Palermo club, and Uberto’s team is still trying to work out exactly what records were cloned. Everything I’ve built is on the line.
Then, seeing blondie touch my girl pushed me over the edge.
I hated having to take Ella along, but not knowing who’s betraying me, I wasn’t going to leave her home. Whenever possible, I want to keep an eye on her myself, and make sure she’s safe.
When it comes to my angel, I’ll take no chances. What better way for Molinaro to wipe me off the face of the earth than to take her from me.
