Chapter 7 - THE MAN AT ADRIAN'S TABLE
Marco knew dozens of executives.
But only one person had been at Adrian’s table for twenty years.
Samuel Greco.
Chief operating officer.
Adrian’s godfather.
Antonio’s oldest friend.
The man who taught Adrian to drive.
The man who stood beside him at Luca’s funeral.
The man who helped him rebuild after Antonio died.
Marco looked sick.
“Samuel recruited me.”
Exactly.
He knew him.
Adrian did too.
Too well.
They audited Samuel quietly.
No accusation.
No confrontation.
First evidence.
Hartman Capital communications showed an encrypted source designated SG.
Could be coincidence.
Could be Samuel Greco.
Then foundation payments.
Consulting entities.
Legacy shipping contracts.
One shell company’s director:
Samuel’s brother-in-law.
The pattern tightened.
Adrian called no one.
They flew to Montreal.
Claire first.
Luca first.
Samuel later.
At Celia Romano’s cottage, nobody answered.
Door unlocked.
Adrian entered with local officers.
Empty.
Warm tea.
Two plates.
Someone had left recently.
Then a noise upstairs.
Adrian stopped.
Marco raised a hand.
Footsteps.
Slow.
A man appeared.
Cane.
Gray sweater.
Scar along his neck.
Luca.
Adrian forgot every word he had prepared.
His brother stared down from the landing.
For six years, Adrian imagined this moment impossible.
Now it was merely awkward.
“Orange boy.”
Adrian laughed once.
Then crossed the room.
They embraced.
Hard.
No speech.
No apology.
Not yet.
Luca pulled back first.
“You got old.”
“You look terrible.”
“Good.”
Then Adrian hit him.
One punch to the shoulder.
Not face.
Not violence.
Anger between brothers.
Luca accepted it.
“I deserved that.”
“You deserved worse.”
“Yes.”
Then Adrian hugged him again.
Marco looked away.
“Claire?”
Adrian asked.
Luca’s face changed.
“Gone.”
“What?”
“She left yesterday.”
“Where?”
“She said Sophie was in danger.”
“Sophie is safe.”
Luca closed his eyes in relief.
Then Adrian showed the video.
“She got Sophie to me.”
“Good.”
“Where did she go?”
“New York.”
Adrian stared.
“We came here. She went back?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To get the original Hartman contracts.”
“Where?”
Luca looked at him.
“Your office.”
Impossible.
Then Luca explained.
Antonio hid duplicate internal records inside Moretti—no, DeLuca headquarters after discovering Vincent’s fraud.
Samuel later found some.
Not all.
Claire learned the missing originals were still in Adrian’s private executive archive.
She returned to retrieve them before Samuel could.
Adrian pulled out his phone.
No signal in the cottage.
He moved toward the door.
Luca stopped him.
“Adrian.”
“What?”
“Samuel is not the person who betrayed me.”
Adrian froze.
“He worked with Vincent.”
“Yes.”
“He sold information.”
“Yes.”
“But?”
“He did it after the fire.”
“Then who gave Vincent the warehouse location?”
Luca looked down.
For the first time, fear appeared.
“Our mother.”
Adrian stared.
“You said she didn’t betray you.”
“She didn’t mean to.”
“What does that mean?”
“Samuel told her I planned to confront Vincent alone. She called Vincent to stop me.”
Adrian’s face emptied.
Elena had believed she was preventing violence.
Instead, she told Vincent exactly where Luca would be.
May you like
The fire followed.
And Elena had spent six years helping Luca hide because she believed the disaster began with her phone call.
