Chapter 5 - The Trial of Brothers
Nathan Cross did not look like a man who had been caught when he entered the master bedroom. He walked in with his chin up, his eyes scanning the room until they settled on Claire, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at the floor.
"So," Nathan said, taking a deep breath. "The maid talked."
"She wasn't just a maid, Nathan," Dominic said, sitting in an armchair opposite him. "She was family. She looked after this house. She looked after my people."
"She was an employee, Dom," Nathan said, his voice dropping into a low, dangerous tone. "I’ve bleed for you for seventeen years. I took a bullet in the shoulder for you in Queens. I dragged your wife out of a burning Mercedes while you were busy hiding in the warehouse. And you treat me like a servant while you plan to hand this entire family over to a board of trustees."
"I was going to name you my successor next month, Nathan," Dominic said quietly.
Nathan froze. For the first time, a genuine shadow of regret crossed his face, but it was quickly replaced by bitterness. "A successor? With how many strings attached? You were going to legalize the operations. You wanted to turn us into a logistics firm. We’re soldiers, Dom. Not truck drivers."
"You sold the shipping manifests to the Morettis," Dominic said, his voice flat. "How much?"
"Ten million," Nathan said, not bothering to deny it. "Five for me. Five for Claire. We were going to leave for South America after the wedding. A nice, clean tragedy. You would have died in a tragic accident on your honeymoon, and I would have taken over the remnants."
"And Mia?"
"She saw us," Nathan shrugged. "Claire panicked. She wanted to kill her right there. I told her we couldn't have a body on the property before the wedding. I thought if we kept her downstairs for a few days, we could slip her out in a laundry bin once the docks were clear."
Dominic looked at Harper, who was still holding her mother’s hand. The little girl was watching Nathan with wide, intelligent eyes. She didn't understand the business, but she understood who the monster was.
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"You left a four-year-old girl alone in this house for three days, wondering if her mother was dead," Dominic said.
"That was Claire’s department," Nathan said, turning his head away.
