Chapter 8 - The Public Declaration
Two days later, the front page of every major newspaper in the tri-state area carried a headline that sent shockwaves through the corporate boardrooms, police precincts, and criminal syndicates alike.
CASTELLO SYNDICATE ANNOUNCES FULL ACQUISITION AND EXPANSION OF ST. JUDE’S PEDIATRIC ONCOLOGY WING. Mysterious Benefactor and Fiancée Indicated in Private Ceremony.
The article was accompanied by a high-resolution photograph taken outside the grand courthouse downtown.
In the center of the frame stood Victor Costello, dressed in an immaculate charcoal three-piece suit, his arm wrapped securely and possessively around the waist of a young woman wearing a tailored emerald-green silk dress.
Sadi Hayes looked transformed. Her hair was styled in soft, elegant waves, her skin glowed with health, and the raw, bleeding cracks on her hands were completely covered by delicate white lace gloves.
Standing right beside her, discharged from the hospital and looking stronger than he had in months, was Sam, wearing a brand-new suit and smiling brightly for the camera flashes that went off like a localized lightning storm.
Reporters shouted over one another, microphones thrust forward like forest canopy branches.
“Mr. Costello! Is it true the syndicate is backing the hospital permanently?” “Who is the young lady by your side?” “Is there a connection between the disappearance of loan shark Mick O’Shea and this announcement?”
Victor raised his free hand.
The roar of the press instantly died down into a respectful, terrified hush.
Victor looked down at Sadi, a rare, breathtakingly genuine smile softening the hard, dangerous angles of his face. Then he looked back out at the sea of reporters and flashing cameras.
“The St. Jude’s pediatric wing will be fully funded by Castello assets for as long as this city stands,” Victor announced, his deep baritone carrying clearly across the stone steps. “And as for the lady beside me... Sadi Hayes is no longer an employee of my estate.”
He pulled her slightly closer, his grip firm, warm, and absolute.
May you like
“She is the future Mrs. Costello. And let this serve as a notice to every rat, shark, and scavenger in this city: anyone who looks at her sideways answers to me.”
The camera shutters accelerated into a furious, unbroken roar, capturing the exact moment the feared mafia king claimed his queen in front of the entire world.
