Chapter 9 - The echo of truth
Dante rushed to the small glass window and looked outside. Three black SUVs had blocked the dirt path. A dozen men in dark suits stepped out into the moonlight, pulling heavy weapons from their trunks. Standing at the front of the pack, illuminated by the bright headlights, was Tony Martinelli.
Tony held a megaphone to his mouth.
“Dante!” Tony’s voice boomed over the crashing waves. “It’s over, son. Hand over the ledger and the wife, and I’ll let you and the waitress walk away. You can go home to Sophia.”
Dante backed away from the door, his face a mask of absolute lethal focus.
“He’s lying,” Clara said, her voice shaking. “He needs us all dead. If you go out there, he’ll kill you, and then he’ll go to the estate and take Sophia to ensure his claim on the territory.”
Dante looked around the circular brick room. There was no back exit. They were trapped at the edge of a cliff.
“Dante,” Maya said, her voice trembling but surprisingly steady. “The bakery. The deed.”
“What about it?” Dante asked, checking the magazine in his weapon.
“When Clara gave me the deed, I became the legal owner of the property on 4th Street. Tony thinks the ledgers and the money are the only things in that lockbox. But the deed proves Clara transferred massive syndicate assets out of his reach. If Tony kills us, the rival syndicate gets nothing because the money is legally mine. He needs my signature to transfer the shell company.”
Dante stopped. He looked at Maya, his gray eyes widening as he realized her plan.
“You want to negotiate with Tony Martinelli?” Dante asked. “Maya, he’s a killer.”
“He’s a businessman,” Maya corrected. “You told me yourself. And right now, I hold the keys to the bakery, which holds the keys to the accounts.”
Before Dante could stop her, Maya walked directly to the heavy metal door, turned the deadbolt, and pushed it open.
“Maya, no!” Dante hissed, grabbing for her, but she slipped past him.
Maya stepped out into the cool night air, the bright headlights blinding her momentarily. She raised her hands in the air, the wind whipping her chestnut-brown hair around her face.
The armed men instantly raised their weapons at her.
“Hold your fire!” Tony shouted, lowering his megaphone. He looked at the waitress with a mixture of amusement and confusion. “Maya, sweetheart. You’re in way over your head. Step aside and let Dante come out.”
“I’m not stepping aside, Tony,” Maya yelled over the sound of the ocean. “Because you don’t want Dante. You want the money. And you can’t have it without me.”
Tony laughed. “You’re a waitress.”
“I’m the sole owner of Sunrise Pastries,” Maya yelled back. “And the holding company attached to it. Clara transferred the assets to me. I have the paperwork inside. If you kill me, the money goes to the state. Your new friends get nothing.”
Tony’s smile vanished. He turned to Roman, who was standing beside him. The rival lieutenant looked furious.
“Is she lying?” Roman demanded.
“I don’t know,” Tony muttered. He looked back at Maya. “Bring the paperwork out here. Let me see it.”
“No,” Maya said firmly. “You send your men away. You let Dante and Clara walk out of here and drive back to Sophia. Then I will sign the papers over to you.”
Tony narrowed his eyes. He raised a hand, signaling his men to hold steady.
Inside the lighthouse, Dante watched Maya with absolute awe. This small, struggling waitress who was terrified of him just hours ago was now standing down a dozen armed mafia hitmen to protect his family.
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But Dante wasn't a man who let others fight his battles. He pulled his phone from his pocket and pressed a single button, sending a pre-programmed distress signal to his elite security team, who had been tracking his phone's GPS the entire night.
He just needed Maya to buy them three more minutes.
