Chapter 9 - The Fire
Gasps rang out across the room as the ancient leather and dry paper caught fire instantly.
"No!" Carmine yelled, stepping forward, but the flames roared high, consuming the ciphered names, bank accounts, and political bribes in a bright, yellow blaze.
Julian screamed in frustration, writhing in his chair as the only tool he had sought to steal burned into ash before his eyes.
"What have you done?!" Carmine roared, pointing his gun at Arthur. "You just burned our security! You burned everything!"
"I burned my prison," Arthur replied calmly, stepping backward toward the door where Clara stood. "The ledger is gone. The evidence is ash. If the feds come for us, we all stand trial together. You have no leverage over me, and I have none over you."
Arthur reached out, taking Clara’s hand tightly in his.
"The Moretti Syndicate is finished," Arthur announced to the stunned bosses. "Take the territory. Divide the money. Kill each other over the crumbs. I am out."
"You can't walk away, Arthur!" Carmine shouted, his hand trembling on the trigger. "No one leaves the family alive!"
Leo, standing behind Clara, stepped forward with two heavy submachine guns raised, pointing them directly at Carmine’s head.
"He leaves if he wants to, Don Carmine," Leo grunted in his deep, rumbling voice. "And if anyone takes a shot, I’ll turn this room into a blender."
Silence fell over the boardroom. The capos looked at the blazing fire on the table, then at Leo’s heavy firepower, and finally at Arthur, who looked completely unfazed, holding the hand of the woman he loved.
Carmine slowly lowered his weapon.
"Go, Arthur," Carmine spat with bitter contempt. "Go live like a coward with your maid. But if you ever step foot in this city again, we will put you in the dirt."
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"You won't have to worry about seeing me again, Carmine," Arthur said softly.
He turned, leading Clara out of the boardroom, down the grand staircase, and out into the cool, rain-washed night air.
