Chapter 4 - The Master Suite
The master suite on the top floor of the Cray estate was a fortress disguised as luxury. Reinforced steel core doors, bulletproof floor-to-ceiling glass, and a dedicated security monitor displaying live feeds of the estate perimeter.
I sat on the edge of a massive velvet sofa, watching Marcus happily eat a plate of fresh fruit and sliders brought up by one of Dominic’s trusted guards, a burly man named Gabe.
"Eat up, kiddo," Gabe said warmly, placing a glass of juice on the coffee table. He turned to me with a reassuring nod. "Don't worry, ma'am. Nobody gets up to this floor without going through us."
"Thank you, Gabe," I said softly, though the anxiety knotting my stomach wouldn't ease.
An hour later, the heavy suite doors opened, and Dominic walked in. He had changed out of his unbuttoned shirt into a dark tactical sweater, his dark hair slicked back. The tension around his eyes was palapable, but his movement was sharp, precise, and completely focused.
He sat down in an armchair opposite me.
"Where is Victor?" I asked quietly, keeping my voice low so Marcus wouldn't pay attention.
"In the basement," Dominic replied coldly. "He's talking. Or rather, he's trying to bargain."
Dominic reached into his pocket and pulled out a transparent evidence bag containing the tiny metallic device Marcus had extracted.
"This is a custom audio-frequency dampener," Dominic explained, staring at the tiny object. "It was surgically inserted behind my tragus three years ago while I was unconscious in the hospital following a vehicle accident. The medical team was paid off. For three years, Victor made sure I stayed 'deaf' so my rival syndicate—the Vance family—could slowly bleed my business operations dry from the inside."
I gasped softly. "Victor was working for your rivals?"
"He was their inside man," Dominic said, his jaw tightening. "They knew that as long as I was deaf, I had to rely entirely on written reports, lip-reading, and filtered information provided by Victor. I was effectively running an empire through a distorted glass window."
He looked over at Marcus, who was busy drawing a picture of a fire truck with new crayons Gabe had provided.
"Your son didn't just fix my thính giác, Elena. He saved my life. Victor was planning to finalize a complete buyout of my shipping docks tomorrow morning. I would have signed the papers without knowing the full terms."
Dominic looked directly into my eyes, his intense gaze softening. "I owe you both a debt I can never fully repay."
Suddenly, Gabe stepped into the room, holding a encrypted radio unit. "Boss, we've got a problem. Victor’s personal phone just received an encrypted satellite message."
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Dominic stood up immediately. "What does it say?"
Gabe looked grim. "It's an automated check-in confirmation from Julian Vance. It says: If the deal isn't signed by midnight, deploy the cleanup crew at the estate."
