Chapter 10 - The Queen of Chicago
Walter’s arrogant smile instantly vanished, replaced by sheer, undisguised terror.
He scrambled backward, knocking over his expensive laptop as Dominic leveled the heavy shotgun directly at his chest.
"Dominic, please, be reasonable," Walter stammered, raising his trembling, age-spotted hands.
"I raised you since you were a boy."
"And tonight you tried to murder my mother and steal my empire," Dominic replied, his voice devoid of any mercy.
He didn't shoot the treacherous steward.
Instead, Dominic stepped aside, allowing Hannah to walk forward with a sleek, black USB drive in her hand.
"While you were busy hiding on your yacht, Walter, I used your own encrypted network against you," Hannah said smoothly.
She plugged the drive into Walter's main terminal and began typing rapidly with her uninjured hand.
"What are you doing?" Walter panicked, lunging forward, only to be stopped by the cold barrel of Dominic's gun.
"I am a surgeon, Walter," Hannah explained calmly, her eyes fixed on the glowing screen.
"I am very good at extracting cancerous tumors before they kill the host."
She hit the final execution key with a sharp, satisfying click.
"I just reversed every single offshore transfer you made tonight, and I locked the accounts behind a biometric firewall that only Dominic can access," Hannah announced.
Walter collapsed into the rolling office chair, completely ruined and utterly defeated.
"The police are on their way, Walter," Dominic said, lowering his weapon.
"You will spend the rest of your miserable life in a federal cell."
The wail of police sirens echoed loudly outside the warehouse, growing closer by the second.
Dominic had sent the anonymous tip himself, ensuring the corrupt steward would finally face justice.
Six months later, the Chicago winter had finally melted away, replaced by a warm, vibrant spring.
Dominic stood in the grand foyer of his restored mansion, adjusting his expensive silk tie.
He walked into the sunlit east conservatory, where his mother, Eleanor, was sitting happily, sipping a glass of fresh lemonade.
"You look nervous, Dominic," Eleanor teased, her sharp eyes missing absolutely nothing.
"I am about to ask a very stubborn woman to marry me, Mother," Dominic admitted, patting a small velvet box in his pocket.
"If she says no, I will fire her myself," Eleanor laughed warmly.
Dominic smiled and walked out toward the sprawling gardens, where Hannah was standing near the blooming roses.
She wasn't wearing a torn maid's uniform anymore.
She wore a stunning, tailored white dress, looking every bit the powerful, brilliant woman she truly was.
Thanks to Dominic's massive legal team and undeniable influence, her medical license had been fully reinstated.
She was now the Chief of Surgery at the largest private hospital in Chicago, a hospital Dominic had bought entirely for her.
Dominic approached her from behind, wrapping his strong arms gently around her waist.
"You are home early, Dr. Reed," Dominic murmured, kissing the soft skin beneath her ear.
"I finished my surgeries in record time so I could see you, Mr. Moretti," Hannah smiled, leaning back against his broad chest.
Dominic turned her around, looking deeply into the gray eyes of the woman who had saved his mother, his empire, and his soul.
He slowly dropped to one knee on the manicured grass, pulling the velvet box from his pocket.
"You saved my life in a dark hallway, Hannah," Dominic said, his voice thick with overwhelming emotion.
"I want to spend the rest of mine making sure you never have to be afraid again."
"Will you marry me?"
Hannah looked down at him, tears of pure, absolute joy shining in her eyes.
"Yes, Dominic," she whispered, pulling him up for a deep, passionate kiss.
They had finally won their hard-fought peace, completely destroying the enemies who had tried to break them.
Later that evening, after a beautiful, private celebration with his mother, Dominic retired to his home office to review some final contracts.
He opened his secure desk drawer to retrieve his favorite pen.
Sitting perfectly in the center of the drawer was a single, crisp white envelope that hadn't been there that morning.
Dominic opened it and pulled out a high-resolution photograph of his former fiancée, Vanessa Whitmore.
She was sitting comfortably in a luxurious Parisian café, smiling brightly at the camera.
May you like
Written on the back of the photo in familiar, elegant handwriting was a simple, chilling message.
"You really thought I was working for Arthur?"
