"There was a... an incident. Some criminal came after me."She looks shaken but uninjured, Karvel observed with satisfaction. Perfect."This is terrible," he continued with convincing concern."Do the police know who was responsible?""The man who did this is dead," Vivian said simply, her voice carrying no emotion."Someone killed him."Karvel reached into his jacket and withdrew the briefcase containing her ransom money."I came here to return this to you, as I promised.""What is it?" Vivian asked, though she recognized the briefcase immediately."The two million dollars you paid for my ransom," Karvel explained."I told you I would repay every penny."Vivian stared at the briefcase for several seconds before pushing it away with visible disgust."I don't want it.""You paid this money because of my actions," Karvel insisted."It's only right that—""I said I don't want it!" Vivian interrupted sharply, her composure finally cracking."Keep your money, Karvel. I have more importan

Within an hour, Sebastian Sterling arrived at his besieged headquarters with Torres and his security team, his expression showing controlled anger at the obvious harassment of his legitimate business operations."What's the meaning of this?" Sebastian demanded as he approached Leo's position near the building's main entrance."Ah, Mr. Sterling," Leo replied with predatory satisfaction, "thank you for coming so promptly.""You're disrupting my business with half the police force in the city," Sebastian said with dangerous calm. "This better be important.""Oh, it's very important," Leo assured him with cold certainty."In fact, it's going to determine whether you continue operating in Carson City at all."Here it comes, Sebastian thought with anticipation. The ultimatum I've been waiting for."Is that a threat?" Sebastian asked with apparent concern."It's a statement of fact," Leo replied with absolute authority."From this moment forward, you will not be allowed to operate any busine

In the secure basement of his estate, Sebastian Sterling spread detailed financial documents across a war room table, each file representing a critical component of Leo Romano's criminal empire.Red pins marked locations on a city map while color-coded charts tracked revenue streams worth hundreds of millions of dollars."Ten major sectors," Sebastian murmured to himself as he studied the intelligence he'd gathered over the past month."Port operations, construction contracts, protection rackets, drug distribution, money laundering, casino operations, real estate holdings, political corruption, arms trafficking, and human trafficking."Each sector represents roughly ten percent of Leo's total wealth, he calculated with strategic precision.Take out all ten simultaneously, and his empire collapses overnight. But I don't have the manpower for a coordinated assault.The solution required surgical precision rather than overwhelming force—a systematic dismantling that would cripple Leo's

The Romano Corporation's executive boardroom fell silent as Leo's phone rang with the urgent tone reserved for emergency calls.Twelve of Carson City's most powerful businessmen sat around the polished mahogany table, their conversations about quarterly projections dying instantly as Leo's expression darkened."What do you mean burned down?" Leo's voice cracked with disbelief as he answered the call."How much money was in the vault?"The board members exchanged nervous glances as Leo's face turned an alarming shade of red, his knuckles whitening as he gripped the phone with dangerous intensity."FIFTEEN MILLION DOLLARS?" Leo roared, his voice echoing off the boardroom's glass walls with such force that several executives flinched involuntarily."ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT FIFTEEN MILLION DOLLARS JUST WENT UP IN SMOKE?""Sir," ventured board member Antonio Ricci with obvious nervousness, "perhaps we should postpone this meeting until—""GET OUT!" Leo bellowed, pointing toward the boardro

The Romano estate's private study resembled a war zone as Leo paced frantically behind his desk, his phone ringing constantly with calls from panicked politicians and angry officials.Financial documents and newspaper headlines were scattered across every surface while the evening news played footage of his political allies being arrested or resigning in disgrace."THOMPSON!" Leo roared, his voice cracking with barely controlled hysteria."GET IN HERE NOW!"His security chief burst through the study doors, his face showing obvious concern at his employer's deteriorating mental state."Sir, the phones haven't stopped ringing," Thompson reported grimly."Senator Ricci, Judge Benedetti, Mayor Romano—they're all withdrawing support and threatening lawsuits.""How much revenue are we losing?" Leo demanded with dangerous intensity."Conservative estimate? Fifteen million annually from the Velvet Lounge alone," Thompson replied reluctantly. "But the real damage is political protection. Witho