The Mafia Boss Walked In as His Supervisor Whipped the Shy Employee—Then the Entire Office Froze!
Chapter 7
Clara’s hand instinctively grabbed Matteo’s sleeve.
A flashlight appeared at the far end of the warehouse.
Then another.
Men were moving between the crates.
Matteo pulled Clara behind a concrete pillar.
“Stay here.”
“No.”
“Clara.”
“I can help.”
“Then don’t move until I tell you.”
The men searched the terminal.
One spoke into a phone.
“They’re here.”
Clara’s stomach dropped.
Someone had known they were coming.
Matteo looked at her.
His expression was calm.
Too calm.
“There’s another exit.”
They moved silently toward it.
Then a gunshot cracked through the warehouse.
Clara flinched.
Matteo pulled her down.
Another shot struck the wall.
They escaped through a side door and reached the street.
Rain poured over them.
Clara was breathing hard.
“How did they know?”
Matteo didn’t answer.
Instead, he looked back at the terminal.
“Someone followed us.”
“From the office?”
“Possibly.”
They returned to the company before dawn.
By morning, Matteo had suspended several executives.
Adrian Cole appeared in his office.
He looked offended.
“This is outrageous.”
Matteo stared at him.
“Is it?”
“You have no right to accuse me.”
“I haven’t accused you.”
“Then why am I being questioned?”
“Because your name appears in the financial chain.”
Cole’s expression remained steady.
“That’s not evidence.”
Matteo nodded.
“Correct.”
Clara sat quietly nearby.
Cole looked at her.
“This is because of her?”
Matteo’s eyes narrowed.
“Leave.”
Cole smiled.
“You think you can protect everyone?”
Matteo stood.
“I’m not trying to protect everyone.”
Cole looked at him.
“Then who?”
Matteo’s voice became quiet.
“Only the people who deserve protection.”
Cole left.
Clara waited until the door closed.
“He knew about me.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Matteo didn’t answer.
Instead, he opened another file.
Inside was a photograph of Thomas Bennett.
Standing beside him was Adrian Cole.
Clara stared.
The photograph was dated seven years earlier.
Her father had been investigating the company then.
And Cole had been standing beside him.
But there was something else.
Written on the back were four words:
He knows about the ledger.
Clara whispered:
“What ledger?”
Matteo looked at her.
“I don’t know.”
Then his phone rang.
He listened for several seconds.
His face changed.
“What’s wrong?” Clara asked.
Matteo ended the call.
“Your apartment has been searched.”
