Chapter 10 - the threshold of sixteen
Augustus opened a thin leather folder on his desk and pulled out two single sheets of paper. He slid them across the mahogany surface toward Damian and Victoria.
"What is this?" Damian asked, his voice barely a whisper.
"Your retirement," Augustus replied. "A comfortable villa in the hills outside Florence, Italy. A modest annual stipend paid on the first of every month. No business connections. No political influence. No return to the United States without my explicit written permission."
Damian looked down at the paper, then back up at Augustus. "And if we refuse?"
Augustus didn't answer with words. He simply gestured toward the large window behind him. Down on the street below, three dark black SUVs were parked along the curb, their engines idling quietly in the rain.
"The choice is yours, Damian," Augustus said, his tone entirely devoid of anger or malice. "You can sign those papers and live a quiet, comfortable life in the shadows... or you can step out of this building tonight as ordinary citizens with nothing to your names, waiting to see how long your father's old enemies take to find you."
Damian took a deep breath. Without looking at Victoria, he reached into his jacket, pulled out his own pen, and signed the bottom of the document.
Victoria watched him sign, tears welling in her sharp blue eyes. She knew her life of high-society dominance, grand galas, and effortless power was over. She picked up the pen with trembling fingers and added her signature beside his.
Augustus pulled the papers back, inspecting the signatures carefully before closing the folder.
"Your flight leaves at midnight," Augustus said smoothly, picking up his cup of coffee. "Do not be late."
Damian bowed his head one final time, grabbed Victoria’s arm, and turned to leave the room. As they reached the heavy double doors, Damian paused, looking back over his shoulder at the old man sitting quietly in the warm light of the desk lamp.
"Augustus..." Damian asked, a quiet question burning in his mind. "If you had all this power... why stay in that wheelchair for seven years? Why let everyone think you were helpless?"
Augustus raised his coffee cup to his lips, a slow, mysterious smile gracing his face.
May you like
"Because, Damian," Augustus whispered softly, "when you sit in a wheelchair, nobody expects you to be the one pulling the strings. And when the sixteen families finally meet next month... they still won't see me coming."
Damian stared at him for a long, silent moment, a chill running down his spine as he realized that the real game hadn't even begun yet. He pulled Victoria through the doors, closing them tightly behind them, leaving the old king alone in his quiet sanctuary above the city.
