Chapter 4 - Shadows at the ShipyardThe old rusted shipyard along the Delaware River was abandoned, dark, and smelling heavily of salt, rotting wood, and industrial oil. A single overhead halogen light illuminated the center of the damp concrete floor where Dante Moretti stood alone, his hands resting inside his coat pockets.
A few yards away, Marcus Vance stepped out from the shadows of a towering crane, flanked by six heavily armed mercenaries carrying submachine guns. Marcus wore a smug, arrogant grin, believing he held all the cards now that his syndicate cousins had supposedly eliminated Dante.
"Well, well, well," Marcus sneered, spreading his arms wide. "I must say, cousin, you’re harder to kill than a cockroach. We heard about the car going over the cliff. How did you crawl out of that grave?"
"A guardian angel," Dante replied smoothly, his voice echoing off the corrugated metal walls. "Or perhaps just someone with more integrity than everyone in our family tree combined."
Marcus’s smile faded slightly. "You know about Vanessa. You know about the brakes. It doesn't matter, Dante. The board of directors at the shipping ports already voted this morning. Without you there to sign off on the European acquisitions, my syndicate takes control of the docks by midnight. You're finished."
"Am I?" Dante asked calmly.
Suddenly, the floodlights along the roof of the warehouse flickered blindingly to life, turning night into day. From the catwalks above, dozens of red laser dots appeared, painting a crimson constellation across the chests of Marcus’s mercenaries.
Before Marcus could shout a warning, a deafening volley of suppressed gunfire erupted. In less than ten seconds, all six of Marcus’s guards hit the concrete, disarmed and neutralized without a single fatal shot—pure, clinical execution by Dante’s elite personal security detail.
Marcus froze, his face turning sheet-white as a heavy combat boot stepped down onto the metal grating behind him. Rocco walked up, pressing the barrel of a pistol firmly against the back of Marcus’s neck, forcing him to his knees right in front of Dante.
"You thought you could outsmart me with amateur hour sabotage and a cheating wife?" Dante asked, walking slowly toward his trembling cousin until he stood right over him. "You forgot one crucial detail, Marcus."
"What... what detail?" Marcus choked out, staring up in absolute terror.
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"You never underestimate the people standing in the background," Dante said coldly. "Because while you and Vanessa were whispering in a restaurant booth, the waitress you didn't even bother to notice was the one who cared enough to save my life."
Dante signaled to Rocco. "Lock him in the lower hold of the freighter. Let him think about his corporate takeover while he listens to the tide roll in."
