Chapter 2 - The Suite Above the City
The penthouse suite on the forty-fifth floor of the Marzano Grand Hotel was a sanctuary of dark mahogany, leather, and sweeping glass views of the Chicago River reflecting the neon arteries of the Loop.
Dr. Sterling, an elderly physician with quiet eyes and a steady hand, worked under the warm light of a desk lamp, carefully extracting the shards of crystal from Simone’s palm.
Simone sat on the edge of a velvet armchair, wincing slightly as the antiseptic stung the raw skin. Beside her, Walter sat in his motorized wheelchair, his expression a mix of exhaustion and fierce, unyielding satisfaction.
Julian stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking out over the city lights, his back to them.
"The cut isn't deep, Miss Bellamy," Dr. Sterling murmured, applying a clean white bandage across her palm. "Keep it dry for a few days, and you'll be as good as new. Though I'd recommend staying away from shattered champagne flutes for a while."
"Thank you, Doctor," Simone whispered.
With a polite nod, Dr. Sterling packed his leather case and slipped quietly out of the suite, leaving the three of them alone in the quiet hum of climate-controlled air.
Walter’s fingers twitched against the keypad of his communication tablet. A synthesized, mechanical voice broke the silence.
“Thank you, Julian.”
Julian turned away from the window, walking slowly toward the old man. He crouched down so he was eye-level with Walter, a gesture of profound respect that none of Walter’s so-called business associates had ever shown him after his stroke.
"You don't need to thank me, Mr. Bellamy," Julian said evenly. "I’ve known for months that Matteo’s real estate firm was laundering capital through my hotel’s development permits. I was simply waiting for the right moment to dismantle their operations. Your daughter’s wedding just accelerated the timeline."
Simone looked between the two men, her mind racing. "You knew about the fraud before tonight?"
"I knew Matteo was skimming," Julian corrected, standing up and walking over to a crystal decanter to pour a glass of amber whiskey. He didn't drink; he just held the glass, letting the light catch the liquid. "I didn't know he was stealing from your father’s medical trust. That crossed a line from corporate white-collar crime into something personal."
Walter’s fingers flew across the tablet again.
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“Deline is blind. Matteo is a vulture. They thought I was a vegetable because I couldn't speak. They didn't realize a mind doesn't break just because the tongue does.”
Julian nodded slowly, a dark smile touching his lips. "And now, Mr. Bellamy, they are about to learn what happens when a vulture tries to pick clean a cage guarded by a wolf."
