Chapter 2 - Five Women
Adrian came back at nine the next morning.
Mom was resting upstairs.
I made him sit at our kitchen table.
"Start with the wife part."
He did.
The Moretti family owned restaurants, shipping companies, private security firms, and real estate across three states.
Adrian's father spent years moving the family toward legitimate business before dying six years ago.
His younger brother, Salvatore, had controlled the old network ever since.
"And you?" I asked.
"I control the legal companies. My uncle controls the men who still think fear is a business model."
"They all want to marry you?"
Adrian almost smiled.
"Some want the alliance. Some want what comes with it. One may actually want me. I try not to ask."
"Romantic."
"It isn't supposed to be."
The Moretti family charter contained an old clause. If Adrian married before thirty-five, control of a major voting block moved from Salvatore's temporary proxy to Adrian permanently.
Salvatore wanted the bride to come from a family he could predict.
I sat back.
"And now he thinks you might marry a waitress?"
"I met you yesterday."
"Your family doesn't seem big on patience."
Then Mom came downstairs.
She saw Adrian.
The color left her face.
"Moretti."
Adrian stood.
"Mrs. Hart?"
Mom gripped the railing.
"What was your father's name?"
"Carlo."
The mug slipped from her hand and shattered.
I rushed toward her.
"Mom?"
She did not look at me.
She stared at Adrian.
"Carlo Moretti saved my life once."
Adrian went still.
May you like
Mom's voice dropped.
"And your uncle tried to make sure nobody ever found out why.
