Chapter 6 - THE MAN WHO TAUGHT HIM TO CONTROL EVERYTHING
“Your father came here last December,” Frank said.
Damian stared at him.
“Why?”
“Because I was still listed as a trustee, and he wanted my approval for something he called a temporary loan.”
Elena leaned forward.
“What did you tell him?”
“I told him the drivers' money wasn't his to borrow.”
Frank lifted his tired eyes.
“Vittorio said the fleet was in trouble. He said drivers would lose their retirement savings if we didn't help.”
“Did you sign anything?” Damian asked.
“No.”
“Did he threaten you?”
Frank hesitated.
“He reminded me that my granddaughter worked for Russo Transportation.”
Elena felt a cold anger rise.
“He threatened her job?”
“Not directly. Vittorio never needed to say things directly.”
Damian looked down.
He knew exactly what Frank meant.
He had learned that particular skill from his father.
Frank continued.
“Two weeks later, I received a notice saying the trustees had approved the transfer anyway.”
Elena looked at Damian.
“Your father took money that belonged to the Lantern House.”
Damian didn't defend him.
Instead, he asked Frank for copies of the records.
“I want everything you have.”
Frank considered him.
“Will you protect the people who signed those papers?”
“I won't threaten them.”
“That isn't the same thing.”
Damian swallowed.
“No,” he admitted. “It isn't.”
Vittorio Russo lived in a large stone house outside the city.
At sixty-eight, he had retired from daily operations but remained an imposing man.
He was sitting in his library when Damian and Elena arrived.
His expression softened when he saw Elena.
“There's my beautiful daughter-in-law.”
“Don't,” Elena replied.
Vittorio's smile disappeared.
Damian placed the financial statement on the desk.
“Explain this.”
His father glanced at the paper.
Then sighed.
“You went to Alvarez.”
“Yes.”
“I told that old man to leave the matter alone.”
“Then you should have left his family's livelihood alone.”
Vittorio leaned back.
“Watch your tone.”
Damian did not move.
“Elena's name was used without her permission. Her center is being sold. Three million dollars is missing from a trust fund.”
“Nothing is missing,” Vittorio snapped. “The money was borrowed.”
“Without approval,” Elena said.
Vittorio looked at her.
“You don't understand the responsibilities of maintaining an organization this size.”
Elena stood straighter.
“I understand that people trusted you with their savings.”
Vittorio turned toward Damian.
“Are you going to allow your wife to speak to me like that?”
Damian answered immediately.
“Yes.”
The old man stared.
Elena did too.
Damian continued.
“She has every right to ask questions.”
Vittorio's face darkened.
“I built everything you have.”
“And you taught me that meant I could make decisions for everyone around me.”
“Because sometimes someone has to.”
Damian shook his head.
“That's what I told Elena every time I took away another choice.”
Silence filled the room.
Then Vittorio spoke more quietly.
“Last winter, the fleet was close to collapsing. Gabriel said we needed emergency reserves. If the company failed, one hundred and forty families would suffer.”
“So you used the charity trust,” Elena said.
“I intended to replace every dollar.”
“Then why hide it?”
Vittorio looked away.
For the first time, his confidence seemed uncertain.
“Because Gabriel said the transfer couldn't be reversed without exposing the company.”
Damian frowned.
“What do you mean?”
Vittorio opened a drawer.
He removed a thin blue folder.
“Gabriel brought me this in March. He said a developer had agreed to purchase the Lantern House for enough money to restore the reserve.”
“Who was the developer?” Damian asked.
“Northlake Commercial Partners.”
Damian recognized the name.
The company had recently purchased three warehouses connected to Russo Transportation.
He examined the folder.
The offer was for $4.6 million.
But something was wrong.
The purchase proceeds were directed toward a private holding account rather than the driver trust.
Damian pointed to the account number.
“Who controls this?”
Vittorio looked confused.
“Gabriel told me it belonged to the fleet pension fund.”
Damian checked the corporate account schedule attached to the folder.
His expression changed.
“No. It doesn't.”
Elena moved beside him.
“Then whose account is it?”
Damian looked at his father.
May you like
The answer was printed beneath the account details.
Gabriel Mercer—Sole Authorized Beneficiary.
