Chapter 7 - EDUCATION IN THE UNDERWORLD
The library of the Vale Estate was a sanctuary of old wealth. Thousands of leather-bound volumes lined the walls, and a massive limestone fireplace crackled with a warm, steady flame. For Harper—who was trying to accustom her ears to being called June—this room was the only place she could find a shred of sanity in a world that felt increasingly psychotic.
She sat at a large oak desk, surrounded by financial ledgers and corporate documents Francesca had provided. If Dominic was the iron fist of the family, Francesca was the ledger. She ran the legal front companies—the real estate holdings, the import-export firms, the charitable foundations that washed the family’s wealth clean.
"If you are going to carry our name, June, you must understand what it actually means," Francesca said, leaning over her shoulder and pointing to a line item on a corporate balance sheet. "The world thinks we are just thugs with guns. But guns only protect the territory. This—the numbers, the control of the infrastructure—this is what keeps us alive."
June looked at the figures. "It’s millions of dollars. All of it generated from extortion, gambling, and smuggling."
"It’s generated from control," Francesca corrected her sharply. "In this city, the police are corrupt, the politicians are bought, and the courts are a lottery. We provide stability. The small business owners in the North Ward don't pay us protection because we threaten them; they pay us because when someone else breaks their windows, we find the person and break their hands. We are the alternative government."
The heavy double doors of the library burst open, and Vincent walked into the room, his jacket removed, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He looked at June with a strange, assessing curiosity. He had spent the last twelve hours cleaning up the blood from the harbor, yet he looked entirely refreshed.
"You look like you're studying for an exam, cousin," Vincent said, tossing a gold lighter onto the desk.
"I’m trying to understand how my life turned into an episode of a crime documentary overnight," June replied, her tone sharp.
Vincent laughed, a genuine, amused sound. "You have the Vale tongue, I’ll give you that. Your mother was the same way. She wasn't born into this world either. She was a doctor’s daughter from Boston. She thought she could change Dominic. She thought she could make him a civilian."
"And what happened?"
"She died because of it," Vincent said, his expression instantly sobering. "She didn't want the bodyguards. She wanted to drive her own car to the market. That’s the day the Morettis ran her off the road because Silvio told them her route. In our world, June, innocence isn't a virtue. It’s a target."
June looked down at her hands. The small crescent scar behind her left ear felt like it was burning. She had always thought it was an accident—a sign of a clumsy childhood. Now she knew it was the physical mark of a war she had been drafted into before she could even walk.
"I don't want people to die for me," she whispered.
"Too late for that," Vincent said, sitting on the corner of the desk. "Silvio is at the bottom of the bay. Anthony Moretti’s crews are currently being hunted through the streets of Newark. This family is moving like a hurricane right now, and you are the eye of it. Everything we do right now is to ensure that when you walk out of these gates, no one dares look at you with anything less than absolute respect."
Dominic entered the room then, his presence instantly commanding the space. He looked tired, but the dark, heavy exhaustion that had characterized his face two days ago was gone. He looked like a man who had finally found his purpose.
"The Moretti family has called for a sit-down," Dominic announced, his voice steady. "The commission in New York is stepping in. They don't want a full-scale turf war disrupting the construction contracts at the airport."
"A sit-down?" Francesca asked, her eyes narrowing. "With Anthony?"
"With Anthony and the heads of the five New York families," Dominic said. He looked directly at June. "And you are coming with me."
May you like
Vincent straightened up, his brow furrowing. "Don, with all respect, bringing her to a commission meeting? She’s not initialized. She doesn't know the protocols. If Anthony tries something—"
"Anthony won't do anything but sit and listen," Dominic said, his tone final. "They need to see her. They need to understand that June Rose Vale is alive, that she is the undisputed heir to the Vale family, and that anyone who speaks her name without permission is declaring war on me personally. Pack your dresses, June. Tomorrow, we go to Manhattan."
