chapter4

Marco heard what I said. He blinked — just once — and then he laughed.

The way someone laughs when they've heard something too absurd to be threatening.

"Underground casinos?" He took a slow step toward me, eyes fixed on mine. "You're quite the storyteller."

He glanced around at the people watching.

"You all hear that? She's threatening me."

Those nearby offered up obliging smiles.

Marco turned back to me, and the laughter drained from his face.

"Let me make something clear," he said. "In this industry, there is one thing you need to understand."

"This is Moretti territory."

"In here, I am the rules."

The atmosphere in the lobby shifted, going taut.

Isabella stood beside him, smiling like someone who'd already won.

She looked at me, her voice dripping with mockery.

"You hear him?" she said. "Your best move right now is to pay what you owe and walk yourself out."

She let a beat pass.

"Otherwise, this is going to get very ugly for you."

At that moment, urgent footsteps cut across the lobby from the far side of the room.

It was the casino's general manager — a man in his mid-forties who usually wore an immaculate, professionally calibrated smile.

Now, his face was ashen.

He looked at Marco first, then at me, and visibly stiffened.

Marco's eyes narrowed.

"Why the rush?" he said.

The general manager didn't answer. He stopped in front of me, held his silence for two full seconds, and then did something that left the entire room frozen.

He bent at the waist and bowed deeply.

The lobby went still. Half the room hadn't even processed what they were seeing.

The general manager's voice carried a slight tremor.

"Ms. Valentina, I sincerely apologize. The corporate headquarters has just been in contact."

Someone in the crowd murmured: "Corporate headquarters?"

Marco's expression changed visibly.

The general manager continued.

"We have confirmed your identity, and we deeply regret the disrespect that was shown to you."

"By order of corporate headquarters, effective immediately, oversight of the Moretti casino's opening ceremony is transferred to the Group."

That landed like a detonation. The lobby erupted.

"What?"

"She's from corporate?"

Guests turned to each other, their expressions completely transformed.

One person said under their breath, "That means she has regulatory authority."

Another: "The Moretti casino license was issued by the Group."

All color drained from Marco's face.

Isabella, standing beside him, had gone completely rigid.

The general manager pressed on.

"Ms. Valentina will serve as the highest-ranking regulatory representative dispatched by the Group, and will conduct a full review of the casino's operations."

He bowed toward me again.

"All matters going forward will be at your discretion."

Absolute silence fell over the lobby.

Every pair of eyes turned to me.

Marco stood rooted to the spot as though he'd been nailed to the floor.

The shock in his eyes slowly curdled into rage.

Isabella's smile had completely vanished. Her mouth worked, but nothing came out.

Then Marco let out a short, forced laugh.

"Well," he said. "Interesting."

He fixed his gaze on me, and the hardness returned to his voice.

"A woman. And she thinks she can regulate my casino."

"I'd very much like to know who gave you that kind of authority."

He dialed a number.

"It's Marco," he said into the phone.

He kept his eyes on me, his tone barely concealing his anger.

"There's a woman here claiming she's going to oversee our casino."

"I need you to revoke her authorization. Now."