Chapter 4
Dominic made the decision his associates least expected.
He hired an outside forensic accounting firm.
Not family accountants.
Not men who owed him favors.
An independent firm from Midtown whose partners had no reason to protect the Caradonna name.
Rebecca approved.
Several longtime associates did not.
“You’re opening the books to strangers,” one capo said.
“Only the atelier and its vendors.”
“That’s enough.”
Dominic looked at him.
“Then stop standing near doors you’re afraid somebody might open.”
The forensic accountants began with Knox Executive Logistics.
Lucian objected through counsel.
Dominic’s response was simple.
Invoices tied to the atelier would be reviewed whether Lucian liked it or not.
The cost arrived immediately.
Two international distributors paused negotiations because the launch delay suggested a product or compliance problem.
A specialty retailer in Los Angeles withdrew from its exclusive-window agreement.
Helen warned that fragrance materials prepared for launch had limited stability once blended.
Every week mattered.
Dominic still refused to restart.
At home, the damage was less measurable.
Ava asked when Valeria was coming back.
Dominic sat beside her bed.
“Not tonight.”
“Tomorrow?”
“I don’t know.”
Ava frowned.
“She promised we paint nails.”
Dominic had prepared himself for anger.
Not this.
Valeria had been kind to Ava most of the time.
She attended preschool events.
Read bedtime stories.
Knew which pajamas Ava refused to wear.
That did not erase grabbing her in the showroom.
It made the betrayal harder for a three-year-old to understand.
Margaret stayed at Dominic’s townhouse while her hip healed.
Their relationship remained polite.
Too polite.
At dinner Margaret said, “You don’t have to punish yourself for loving somebody.”
“I’m not.”
“You’re hardly eating.”
“I’m busy.”
She gave him the look mothers reserve for sons who remain twelve in one specific way no matter how old they become.
Then Rebecca called.
The accountants had found a pattern.
Every inflated Knox invoice was followed within ten days by a transfer from Lucian’s business account to one of three companies.
All three ultimately connected to Luca Valenti.
Dominic felt anger return.
“How much?”
“About four hundred and sixty thousand.”
“For what?”
“We don’t know.”
May you like
Then Rebecca added the detail that changed his next move.
“The transfers started before you ever met Valeria.”
