Chapter 4
The business connection arrived faster than Domenico expected.
Falcone Development Group owned hotels, commercial property, warehouses, and several restaurant buildings across Illinois.
Marcus Cole had managed procurement for three major renovation projects.
Valentina sat on the family-office oversight committee because she had an MBA and, until now, a reputation for being excellent with budgets.
Three weeks earlier, an internal accountant found irregular vendor invoices.
Not massive.
Not yet.
Enough to trigger a review.
Domenico had scheduled that review for the Monday after the banquet.
Valentina knew.
Marcus knew.
Lauren asked the accountant, Chloe Martin, to explain.
“Same vendors appearing across unrelated projects.”
“Illegal?”
“Not automatically.”
“Overbilling?”
“Possible.”
“Kickbacks?”
“We don’t know.”
Domenico stayed quiet.
Chloe continued.
One vendor supplied marble to a hotel renovation.
The same company later billed for furniture installation at a restaurant property.
A second company provided security consulting despite having no obvious security employees.
A third billed for “coordination services” using descriptions too vague to verify.
Marcus approved most of the invoices.
Valentina countersigned many.
Domenico had not yet accused anyone.
He ordered a standard review.
Marcus reacted badly.
“He said I was insulting him,” Domenico told Lauren.
“Did Valentina?”
“She said I was overreacting.”
“When?”
“Last week.”
Lauren checked the timeline.
Then asked Chloe:
“Was Monday’s review routine or potentially serious?”
“Potentially serious.”
“Could Marcus or Valentina lose their positions?”
“If the invoices are improper, yes.”
Domenico understood immediately.
The banquet happened two nights before the review.
Lauren still refused to connect everything.
“Financial motive gives us a reason they might want leverage.”
“Not a plan.”
“Correct.”
Then Chloe produced an email.
Marcus to Valentina:
If he makes Monday personal, we make sure everyone understands what he’s really like.
Domenico read it.
“What was this about?”
Chloe had no context.
Lauren did.
“Do not decide what it means yet.”
Domenico almost laughed.
“You enjoy saying that.”
“I enjoy not losing cases because my client prefers conclusions to evidence.”
Later that afternoon, Ruby asked if she could go home.
Domenico had temporarily moved her to his sister Anna’s house while the estate situation stabilized.
He visited every day.
“Which home?” he asked.
Ruby pointed vaguely.
“My room.”
He understood.
“Your room is still yours.”
“Valentina there?”
“No.”
“Ethan?”
“He’s with his dad.”
Ruby looked down.
“Did Ethan steal my chair?”
“No.”
The answer came immediately.
“He sat where his mother told him.”
“Why?”
“Because adults sometimes tell kids to do things they shouldn’t.”
Ruby considered that.
“Is Ethan bad?”
“No.”
That mattered.
Domenico refused to let two children inherit the hatred their parents and relatives created.
Then Ruby asked:
“Is Ethan still my brother?”
Domenico could not answer that yet.
He kissed her forehead.
“We’re figuring out the grown-up part.”
Ruby frowned.
“I hate grown-up part.”
May you like
“So do I.”
He meant it.
