Chapter 4 - The CommissionBy noon, Harper’s mother was no longer in Ohio.
Dominic’s private medical team transported Evelyn Hayes to a discreet care residence located on the northern edge of the Lake Forest estate.
Harper spent most of the morning there.
The building resembled a quiet guesthouse rather than a medical facility, surrounded by maple trees and a fenced garden.
Maria sat beside Evelyn during the transition.
Her presence achieved exactly what Dominic had predicted.
Evelyn remained confused but calm.
When Harper entered the room, her mother looked toward her and smiled.
“Sarah.”
Harper stopped near the doorway.
Sarah had been Evelyn’s younger sister.
She had died years earlier.
Harper had learned long ago not to correct every mistake.
“Hi, Mom.”
Evelyn tilted her head.
Then recognition came and disappeared in uneven fragments.
“My Harper.”
“Yes.”
“You cut your hair.”
Harper had not changed her hair in two years.
She sat beside the bed.
Her mother touched her face.
“You look tired.”
“I had a long night.”
“Working?”
Harper looked toward the armed guard visible beyond the window.
“Something like that.”
Evelyn smiled vaguely.
“You always worked too much.”
Harper held her hand until she fell asleep.
Only then did Harper allow herself to cry.
Maria remained quietly near the door.
“I am sorry,” Harper whispered.
“For what?”
“For bringing this to her.”
Maria crossed the room.
“You did not bring wicked men into the world.”
Harper looked at her.
“I kissed one.”
Maria considered that.
“Yes.”
Harper almost laughed through the tears.
Maria squeezed her shoulder.
“But perhaps you chose the correct wicked man.”
The comment followed Harper all afternoon.
At six, the Commission began arriving.
Harper watched black sedans pass through the estate gates.
Dominic had explained the organization reluctantly.
The Commission was not a formal government of crime.
It possessed no official constitution.
No public building.
No legal authority.
Yet several powerful syndicates across the Midwest had used it for decades to prevent wars that attracted federal attention and disrupted business.
Chicago.
Milwaukee.
Detroit.
St. Louis.
Cleveland.
Each family sent a representative.
Victor Romano had occupied one of the Chicago seats.
His death created both opportunity and instability.
Dominic intended to control the outcome.
Harper had a different problem.
“What exactly am I supposed to do?”
Penelope tightened the final clasp on a black evening dress.
“Stand beside him.”
“That is becoming a dangerous job.”
Penelope smiled.
“You do it remarkably well.”
Harper examined herself in the mirror.
The dress was elegant but restrained.
No bright colors.
No diamonds except a small pair of earrings Dominic had provided.
She understood the message.
Tonight was not romance.
Tonight was power.
When Harper entered the main drawing room, more than twenty men were already present.
Dominic stood near the fireplace.
He wore a dark suit without a tie.
His expression became slightly less severe when he saw her.
That change did not escape the room.
Neither did Lorenzo’s smile.
“There she is.”
Dominic extended his hand.
Harper crossed the room and took it.
He drew her beside him.
“You did not need to attend.”
“You said they think I made you weak.”
“They do.”
“Then hiding upstairs seemed unhelpful.”
Lorenzo laughed softly.
“I increasingly understand your attraction.”
Dominic ignored him.
The meeting moved into the formal dining room.
No food had been prepared.
The long table held only water, whisky, documents, and several ashtrays.
Harper was the only woman.
She expected someone to object.
No one did.
That concerned her more.
Dominic seated her immediately to his right.
Lorenzo sat across from them.
An elderly representative from Detroit named Salvatore Conti opened the discussion.
“Victor Romano is dead.”
No one responded.
“His territory is unstable. His organization has lost central authority. The question is whether Chicago will divide the territory or whether another family will assume control.”
Dominic leaned back.
“I will assume control.”
A man from Milwaukee shook his head.
“Half Victor’s soldiers hate you.”
“Then half can find different employment.”
Several people smiled.
Conti did not.
“The problem is not Victor’s men.”
His eyes moved toward Harper.
“The problem is why Victor believed he could move against you.”
Dominic’s hand became still.
“Say what you intend to say.”
“You publicly presented a woman as your fiancée.”
“And?”
“Then one of your senior men betrayed you.”
“Harrison’s betrayal began months before Harper entered my life.”
“According to whom?”
“According to evidence.”
“Evidence controlled by your organization.”
Lorenzo watched without speaking.
Harper recognized the structure.
It was not a discussion.
It was an audit.
Everyone around the table was testing Dominic’s numbers.
Conti continued.
“Victor believed your attention was divided.”
“Victor believed many stupid things. That is why he is dead.”
A few men murmured.
The representative from St. Louis leaned forward.
“Romano’s death at the St. Regis created exposure. There were cameras.”
“They were disabled.”
“Not all of them.”
Dominic looked toward Enzo, standing near the wall.
Enzo’s expression remained neutral.
Conti placed a folder on the table.
“The federal government already has footage.”
Harper’s stomach tightened.
Dominic did not react.
“How?”
“Someone transmitted a copy before your people reached the security room.”
“Who?”
“That is your problem.”
Lorenzo finally spoke.
“Perhaps the more useful question is what the footage contains.”
Conti opened the folder.
“Dominic firing toward Victor during an active gunfight. Harrison holding Miss Hayes hostage. Miss Hayes firing a concealed weapon. Your men moving through the room.”
Harper’s mouth became dry.
“A federal prosecutor can create an entire criminal enterprise case from less.”
Dominic’s expression remained cold.
“Then let them try.”
Conti sighed.
“This is precisely the arrogance that concerns us.”
Harper watched each face.
Some wanted Dominic weakened.
Some feared federal pressure.
Others wanted Victor’s territory.
Lorenzo wanted something else.
She could not identify what.
Conti pushed another document forward.
“The Commission proposes temporary administration of Romano territory.”
“By whom?”
Dominic asked.
“Your uncle.”
Harper looked toward Lorenzo.
He did not appear surprised.
Dominic laughed once.
“No.”
“It avoids an immediate expansion of your power.”
“No.”
“And demonstrates stability.”
“No.”
Conti’s eyes hardened.
“This is not merely your decision.”
Dominic leaned forward.
“In Chicago, it is.”
The atmosphere changed.
Harper felt the old fear.
Every man inside the room possessed armed guards outside.
A wrong sentence could become another St. Regis.
Then Harper noticed the documents.
Three pages had been placed in front of Conti.
She had spent years reading financial reports quickly.
Column structures.
Transaction summaries.
Holding companies.
Her eyes moved across one page.
She frowned.
“May I see that?”
The room became silent.
Conti stared at her.
Dominic turned.
“Harper.”
She kept looking at the paper.
“The Romano accounts.”
Lorenzo smiled faintly.
“Miss Hayes, this is not your auditing firm.”
“I know.”
Harper extended her hand toward Conti.
“But those numbers are wrong.”
No one laughed.
Conti pushed the papers toward her.
Dominic watched.
Harper scanned them.
“These are estimated monthly revenues from Romano-controlled businesses?”
“Yes.”
“Who prepared this?”
Conti’s expression cooled.
“Why?”
“Because whoever did either made a mistake or wants you to believe Victor’s territory produces considerably less money than it actually does.”
The room became completely still.
Dominic leaned closer.
Harper pointed.
“Casino revenue here. Twenty-eight million annually.”
Conti nodded.
“That was Victor’s reported figure.”
“No.”
“How can you know?”
“The tax profile is impossible.”
Several men stared at her.
Harper continued.
“A casino producing twenty-eight million would not generate these levels of vendor expenditure, security costs, alcohol procurement, and property maintenance unless it was being operated by someone completely incompetent.”
“Victor was many things,” Dominic said.
“Incompetent was not one of them.”
“Exactly.”
Harper turned another page.
“Then look at trucking.”
She traced a line.
“These two logistics companies have nearly identical operating costs but different reported revenue. And the depreciation schedules are duplicated.”
The Detroit representative leaned forward.
“What does that mean?”
“It means these are not real independent figures. Someone copied accounting structures and adjusted totals to make the companies look smaller.”
Lorenzo’s face had become expressionless.
Harper noticed.
There.
A reaction.
Very small.
But present.
She looked directly at him.
“Who provided these reports?”
Conti followed her gaze.
“Lorenzo.”
Dominic slowly turned toward his uncle.
Lorenzo did not move.
“They came from Romano accountants after the shooting.”
“In less than twenty-four hours?”
Harper asked.
“Yes.”
“That is remarkably efficient.”
“They understood the Commission would require numbers.”
“Or someone already had them.”
Dominic’s voice lowered.
“Uncle.”
Lorenzo looked toward him.
“Do you intend to accuse me because your girlfriend discovered a spreadsheet inconsistency?”
“Fiancée,” Harper said.
Everyone looked at her.
She did not know why she said it.
Perhaps because Lorenzo had deliberately diminished her.
Perhaps because Dominic had risked enough for the lie that she refused to let anyone else redefine it.
Dominic’s eyes moved toward her.
Something dark and pleased entered them.
Lorenzo leaned back.
“Very well. Your fiancée.”
Harper returned to the papers.
“These accounts conceal at least thirty to forty percent of Romano revenue.”
Conti frowned.
“For what purpose?”
“To create a hidden pool of money.”
“Where?”
“I would need transaction records.”
Dominic looked toward Enzo.
“Get them.”
Lorenzo spoke sharply.
“You cannot seize Romano financial archives during a Commission review.”
“They are already mine.”
“No decision has been made.”
Dominic’s gaze hardened.
“Victor tried to kill me. His organization lost.”
Conti raised a hand.
“Enough.”
He looked toward Harper.
“If you are correct, what could the missing money represent?”
Harper thought carefully.
“Reserve capital. Bribes. Offshore transfers. Payments to someone who does not want to appear connected to Victor.”
Dominic and Harper looked toward each other simultaneously.
A traitor.
Not Harrison.
Someone larger.
Someone who had financed Victor.
Lorenzo stood.
“This meeting is becoming ridiculous.”
“No.”
Harper looked toward him.
“It is becoming interesting.”
His stare sharpened.
Dominic almost smiled.
Conti closed the folder.
“Until the numbers are reviewed, the Commission will make no decision regarding Romano territory.”
Lorenzo looked angry for the first time.
That told Harper everything she needed to know.
The meeting ended forty minutes later.
Vehicles left the estate.
Harper stood in Dominic’s study with accounting copies spread across the desk.
“You enjoyed that.”
Dominic poured whisky.
“I have no idea what you mean.”
“You challenged Lorenzo in front of five families.”
“He annoyed me.”
“You corrected him when he called you my girlfriend.”
Harper looked down at the spreadsheet.
“That was strategically necessary.”
“Of course.”
She could hear the smile in his voice.
“Stop.”
Dominic came behind her.
His hands settled lightly against her waist.
Harper froze.
“You said fiancée.”
“It is the role.”
His mouth moved near her ear.
“Is it?”
Harper turned.
They were dangerously close.
“You introduced me that way.”
“For tactical reasons.”
“Exactly.”
“So if I purchased a ring, that would also be tactical?”
Harper stared at him.
“Dominic.”
“Yes?”
“You are impossible.”
“That was not an answer.”
Before she could reply, Enzo entered without knocking.
Dominic closed his eyes briefly.
“You increasingly possess terrible timing.”
“I will attempt to schedule emergencies more appropriately.”
Harper covered a smile.
Enzo placed a tablet on the desk.
“We found the security leak.”
The room changed instantly.
Dominic released Harper.
“Who?”
“Camera twelve at the St. Regis uploaded footage to an external server eight minutes after shooting began.”
“Destination?”
“Federal law enforcement.”
Harper’s heart sank.
“Which agency?”
“FBI.”
Dominic became silent.
Enzo continued.
“There is more.”
He opened another file.
“A financial crimes unit requested records this morning for six businesses associated with Russo holdings.”
Harper looked at Dominic.
“They are building a case.”
“Yes.”
“From Victor’s records?”
“Possibly.”
Enzo shook his head.
“No.”
He enlarged the date on one subpoena.
“The request was drafted three days before the St. Regis shooting.”
Harper felt cold.
“They already had something.”
Dominic nodded.
Victor’s attack had not created federal attention.
Someone had been feeding information to investigators before Victor died.
Harper looked back toward the false financial statements.
Harrison had supplied shipment schedules to Victor.
Victor had hidden enormous amounts of money.
Lorenzo had somehow received Romano accounting data within hours.
The FBI had begun moving against Dominic before the public gunfight.
Different facts.
One invisible structure.
Harper whispered the conclusion.
“These things are connected.”
Dominic looked toward her.
“Yes.”
“Your uncle.”
“Possibly.”
“You think he worked with Victor?”
“I think accusing a Russo without proof starts a war.”
Harper looked toward the door Lorenzo had used hours earlier.
“What happened to your father?”
Dominic’s expression sharpened.
“You said your mother was killed by a car bomb.”
“Yes.”
“And your father died years later?”
“Seven.”
“How?”
“Heart attack.”
Harper watched him.
“You do not believe that either.”
Dominic said nothing.
Enzo did.
“We never proved anything.”
Harper looked between them.
“You investigated?”
“For years,” Dominic said.
“And Lorenzo?”
“My father’s death made me head of the family.”
“That does not answer the question.”
Dominic walked toward a locked cabinet.
He opened it using his thumbprint.
Inside were several old files.
He removed one.
“My father was preparing to remove Lorenzo from the organization during the month before he died.”
Harper felt the room become smaller.
“Why?”
“Missing money.”
Dominic placed the file on the desk.
Harper opened it.
Old ledgers.
Photocopies.
Handwritten notes.
Transaction summaries.
The numbers looked familiar.
Not amounts.
Structure.
Duplicated depreciation.
Inflated vendor costs.
Hidden revenue.
Harper looked toward the Romano documents.
Then back to Dominic’s father’s records.
“Oh my God.”
Dominic’s eyes became cold.
“What?”
“It is the same method.”
Enzo stepped closer.
Harper spread the documents beside each other.
“Whoever hid money from Victor’s businesses used the same accounting structure that someone used against your father.”
Dominic stopped moving.
“How certain?”
Harper examined the pages.
“Ninety percent based on formatting alone.”
“Ninety is not enough.”
“Give me original transaction records.”
“I will.”
Harper looked toward him.
Dominic’s face had transformed.
The man who had nearly lost her last night was gone.
The syndicate leader stood before her.
Except now the threat was personal in an older, deeper way.
If Lorenzo had created the same fraudulent accounts—
He might have betrayed Dominic’s father.
He might have financed Victor.
He might have been involved in the death of Dominic’s mother.
Harper closed the file.
“We find proof.”
Dominic looked toward her.
“We?”
“Yes.”
“This is not an audit assignment.”
“No.”
She stood.
“It is much more interesting.”
“Harper.”
“You said staying had consequences.”
“I did not mean becoming my forensic accountant.”
“That is unfortunate because your criminals are terrible at bookkeeping.”
Enzo coughed.
Dominic looked at him.
“Was that laughter?”
“No, boss.”
“Leave.”
Enzo immediately walked out.
Harper smiled.
Dominic approached her.
“You understand that if Lorenzo is involved, this becomes dangerous.”
“Everything around you becomes dangerous.”
“He is family.”
“So are you.”
The words escaped before Harper considered them.
Dominic stopped.
She did as well.
Neither corrected the statement.
Dominic reached slowly toward her face.
His thumb touched her cheek.
“You should never have kissed me in that corridor.”
Harper looked into his eyes.
“I am beginning to disagree.”
Outside the study, a vehicle moved somewhere beyond the gates.
Inside, decades of hidden financial records waited across the desk.
Victor Romano had been only the visible enemy.
May you like
Someone else had spent years moving money through the shadows.
And Harper Hayes—the junior auditor no one in Chicago’s criminal world had considered important—had just found the first thread capable of unraveling an empire.
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