Chapter 8 - The Queen’s Gambit
Three days after the shooting, while Dominic was still recovering in bed, a heavy black envelope was delivered to the estate.
Harper opened it in the study. Inside was a formal invitation to the Annual Chicago Commerce Gala—a public event attended by every politician, business mogul, and crime boss in the Midwest. Attached was a small handwritten note from Frankie DeLuca:
Let's see if the server can dance without her master.
Harper stared at the note, her chest rising and falling heavily. Frankie thought Dominic was crippled. He thought the Moretti empire was headless, vulnerable, and ready to fall. He expected Harper to hide behind the estate gates like a frightened mistress.
She walked straight into Dominic’s bedroom.
He was sitting up in bed, reviewing financial reports on a tablet, his chest bandaged tightly beneath a silk robe.
"I'm going to the Gala tonight," Harper declared calmly.
Dominic looked up, frowning instantly. "Absolutely not. It’s too dangerous. Frankie will be there."
"That's exactly why I have to go," Harper said, walking to the edge of his bed. "Frankie thinks you're dying. He thinks I'm a helpless server you bought to play house. If I don't show up, he wins the narrative. The other families will think the Morettis are weak."
"Harper, I won't risk your life—"
"You didn't risk it, Dominic," she interrupted, taking his hand. "You gave me the power to stand on my own two feet. Now let me use it."
Dominic stared at her for a long, silent moment. He looked at the fiery determination in her brown eyes, the proud set of her shoulders, and realized that the soft, beaten-down waitress he had pulled out of the Lexington Grill was gone. In her place stood a formidable, terrifying woman who was ready to wage war for him.
A slow, prideful smile spread across his face.
"Marco!" Dominic called out towards the door.
May you like
Marco stepped inside immediately. "Yes, Don Moretti?"
"Prepare the motorcade," Dominic commanded, his voice ringing with absolute authority. "Assign twelve armed guards. My wife is going to the Gala tonight. And make sure she has the family diamonds."
