Library
Search
Home / They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family / Chapter 2

Share

Chapter 2

Author: Palma W
A few days later, we went to the Brooklyn docks to finish transferring the warehouse assets.

Before we left, Marco inspected my armored car himself. Standing by the door, he went over the rear exit route with me, carefully checking every detail.

"If anything happens, follow my car," he told me. "I'll get you out first."

We'd barely spoken in private since the project review. But his promise eased some of the tension I'd been carrying for days.

Maybe, I told myself, what he'd done with the restaurant had been a one-time lapse in judgment.

We were counting the last of the warehouse stock when a burst of gunfire came from outside.

Bullets hammered the warehouse's metal doors. The side windows exploded, showering the floor with glass. Security shouted evacuation orders. Within seconds, the entire warehouse descended into chaos—screams, gunfire, and pounding footsteps everywhere.

I turned to find Marco, only to see him pushing through the crowd, straight toward Sophia, who stood frozen in place.

She was white with fear at the sound of gunfire. Marco grabbed her and pushed her into the nearest armored car. Then he assigned two of his best men to go with her.

"Leave now. Take her straight to the private clinic."

I watched from about ten feet away. Marco glanced back and spotted me. He looked at me for a second, then past me, deeper into the warehouse. More than ten employees were still inside.

"Elena! You know the rear exit route best. Take them out that way. Backup's coming!"

Another burst of gunfire left no time to question him. I turned back, pushing against the panicked crowd to guide the employees toward the rear exit in groups.

Some were too scared to walk. Others covered their ears and shook, close to breaking down. I kept my voice steady as I reassured them and slowly guided everyone along the wall.

As we neared the rear doors, I realized something was wrong. The security team assigned to meet us wasn't there.

I picked up my radio at once. "Is the team at the rear exit in position?" I asked, my voice steady.

After a pause, a voice crackled through the static. "They were just reassigned to the clinic."

"Who gave the order?"

The static cleared. The answer was cold and unmistakable. "Mr. Bellini."

I stood in the dim loading corridor, gripping the radio. For a moment, I couldn't speak.

That morning, Marco had checked this route himself. He'd promised he'd get me out first if anything happened.

Instead, he'd sent Sophia away first, then taken every last guard assigned to cover my escape and sent them to protect her too.

The employees behind me were panicking. "Ms. Moretti, what do we do now?" they kept asking.

I pushed aside the hurt and kept my voice steady. "Stay here. Wait for backup."

Outside the roll-up door, the shouting and shooting went on. It took more than 20 minutes for reinforcements to reach us and get us out safely.

As I led the last group out, flying glass left a long cut on my arm. It wasn't deep, but blood ran down to my wrist, quickly soaking my cuff.

After the danger and chaos at the warehouse, the private clinic was so quiet it felt wrong.

My mother, Francesca Moretti, was there with my father. Sophia sat beside the bed without a scratch. Marco knelt on one knee in front of her, one hand resting on hers as she shook. He spoke softly, helping her slow her breathing and calm down.

I stopped in the doorway while a nurse cleaned and dressed my cut. Only then did Marco look up. He noticed the blood seeping through my bandage first.

His first words held no concern, only accusation. "Why didn't you leave first, like I told you?"

I met his eyes. "Who reassigned the team at the rear exit?"

The room fell silent.

Marco stood and immediately began defending himself, speaking a little faster than usual. "Sophia was in a terrible state. The moment the shooting started, she could barely breathe. She was falling apart."

"And?" I asked.

"You know the warehouse. You stay calm. You could handle it."

My mother stepped in, taking his side. "Elena, Sophia's only just calmed down. This isn't the time to argue about that."

I looked down at my blood-soaked cuff and said nothing more.

Back in my room that night, I pulled up Anna's contact information. I had just three questions.

Would my home in San Francisco be separate from the Moretti family and entirely outside their control?

Could my security team operate completely outside the Moretti family's command?

Could I choose my own emergency contact, without anyone else's approval?
Continue to read this book for free
Scan code to download App
Previous Chapter Next Chapter

Latest chapter

  • They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family   Chapter 12

    Several years later, I returned to New York to bid on a contract to jointly operate a luxury hotel.The meeting was at a luxury hotel in Manhattan, on neutral ground. Away from the Moretti estate and every private family club. It was business, with no personal ties attached.I sat at the main table, leading my own independent bidding team. Across from me was Giulio. I remembered him well.He'd been in the study that night, when everyone rushed to arrange my marriage and plan my life. He'd been the only one to ask, "Has Elena agreed to this?"But back then, no one had waited for my answer. No one had cared what I wanted.This time, when I received the final version of the contract, everyone around the long table fell quiet. They watched me.I read it page by page. One clause granted far too much authority over staffing without clearly defining its limits. It left too much room for trouble. "This clause needs to change," I said.The lawyer beside me leaned in. "What limits would you like

  • They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family   Chapter 11

    Once the San Francisco project was on solid ground, Lucia brought me a due diligence report on a seaside hotel in Sicily.The hotel sat on a beautiful stretch of coastline, with a prime location, sweeping views, and plenty of potential. But its cash-flow records and debt accounts were a mess. The owner wanted to cash out quickly and was offering the property at a low price. The pros and cons couldn't have been clearer.The first page alone brought back memories of that restaurant in New York. The one we'd never managed to launch, the plan we'd abandoned. Old memories stirred, but they no longer hurt."How does the Ferraro family want to handle the purchase?" I asked."There are two workable options."Lucia set two neat proposals in front of me.Under the first, the Ferraro family would put up most of the money. My risk would be very low, the pressure minimal. In exchange, they would hold the controlling stake. I wouldn't have the final say.Under the second, they would provide only a s

  • They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family   Chapter 10

    Months later, at a large reception for the Ferraro hotel project, I saw Marco again in the crowd.He was a little thinner than the last time I'd seen him, and his old swagger was gone. He didn't grab me or publicly demand to know why I'd cut off contact and stopped answering his calls. Before the reception began, he stopped me while I was alone in the hall. His expression was serious, his manner restrained."Can I have five minutes?"I checked my watch. "Go ahead."It was obvious he'd rehearsed what he was about to say again and again."Sophia is completely out of every project I'm responsible for. From now on, I won't attend family events alone with her either. There has never been anything inappropriate between us."He pulled out his phone and held it toward me. "Check my schedule. All of it. Whatever you want."I looked at him, seeing exactly what he was clinging to. "You still think I walked away because I suspected you had feelings for Sophia?"Marco went still, bewildered. "Wasn'

  • They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family   Chapter 9

    My father slid my withdrawal papers for the Ferraro project across the desk. I heard the soft scrape of paper against the desktop."This isn't just about giving you a way out." His voice was low and grave. "Someone out there wants you dead."My mother sat beside him, red-eyed and visibly frightened. Her voice trembled slightly. "Come back to New York first. Everything else can wait."I looked at them.I knew they were afraid for me. That fear was real. So I didn't push the papers back at once. I looked up and asked the question that had stayed with me. "What about the Brooklyn docks?"My father's frown deepened. "What?""People were being shot at that day too." I turned to my mother, calm but cold. "Why was it fine for me to stay behind and handle the mess alone then?"Silence filled the closed room. Even the air seemed to stop moving.My mother looked away first. She sounded a little helpless, as if hoping I'd accept her explanation. "Because you're steadier. You've always handled thi

  • They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family   Chapter 8

    Once the San Francisco project was running, my first real crisis wasn't my father's arrival. It was a transportation contractor pulling out at the last minute.We were overhauling the liquor delivery system between the hotel and the warehouse. Half the fleet was being replaced, and the security routes were still being worked out, leaving the whole operation vulnerable. At the most critical point in the transition, our enemies found exactly where we were exposed and struck.First came heavy gunfire outside the warehouse. Several black trucks blocked every entrance and exit. Car windows shattered, the noise tearing through the compound.Everyone ducked and scrambled for cover. The Ferraro security chief rushed to my side. "You need to leave now!"I followed the team a few steps toward the exit, then stopped at the security monitors. Two members of the finance team were still in the basement office. Several members of the loading crew were still behind the shelving, in the blind spots."T

  • They Toasted Her, so I Left the Moretti Family   Chapter 7

    During my first week in San Francisco, the strangest thing was how everyone waited. For my answer. For my decision.Lucia put together three housing options. One was close to the office, with an easy commute. One had the best security. The third offered the most privacy and freedom.At our first project meeting, the finance director asked whether we should adjust the warehouse budget. Everyone at the table turned to me.They weren't blindly following my lead. People disagreed, pointed out risks, and warned me about costs and waste. But no one jumped in to decide for me. No one took the choice out of my hands.On the third day, I chose my home and approved the full security plan.On the morning of my sixth day there, I stood by my office window and saw a black armored car I knew far too well.I'd ridden in it for years. I knew every detail. The first-aid kit in the back seat. The small cigarette burn beside the driver's seat.Two of my old bodyguards got out. One of them was Bruno March

More Chapters

You May Also Like

Explore and read good novels for free
Free access to a vast number of good novels on GoodNovel app. Download the books you like and read anywhere & anytime.
Read books for free on the app
SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP
DMCA.com Protection Status