Chapter 6 - The Fall of the Favorite
The high society of Chicago’s underworld is a vicious, unforgiving ecosystem.
Loyalty is always conditional, and power is the only currency that truly matters.
For three years, Sophia Reynolds had lived like a queen on the Moretti dime.
She had flaunted her designer bags, her exclusive country club memberships, and her untouchable status as Vincent’s favored pet.
She had smiled sweetly at me during family dinners, knowing she held my husband's heart.
But without the Moretti money shielding her, the illusion evaporated in a matter of hours.
Her credit cards remained frozen, turning her into a pariah at the luxury boutiques she once terrorized.
She tried to call her wealthy friends, the wives and daughters of Vincent's associates, looking for sympathy.
None of them answered her calls.
Word had spread through the syndicate like a plague.
The leadership channel I had messaged was filled with ruthless men who cared only about profits.
They knew Arthur Bennett was strangling their supply lines because of a mistress.
To them, Sophia was no longer a sweet childhood friend; she was a massive liability costing them millions.
By late afternoon, Sophia was forced to pack her belongings and leave her lavish downtown apartment.
The landlord, a quiet affiliate of my brother Julian, suddenly terminated her lease citing a paperwork error.
She stood on the sidewalk with her Louis Vuitton luggage, completely stranded in the freezing Chicago wind.
She called Vincent, weeping hysterically, demanding he send a car for her.
Vincent’s driver refused to go, citing orders directly from Don Carlo.
The patriarch of the Moretti family had officially banned Sophia from stepping foot on their estate ever again.
Vincent was trapped inside his own mansion, desperately trying to manage a crumbling empire.
He could not save her.
I watched this unfold from the comfortable leather chair in my brother’s office.
Julian had placed a surveillance team on her just to ensure she didn't try to flee the city.
It was almost pathetic watching her flag down a standard yellow taxi, struggling to heave her heavy suitcases into the trunk.
She had spent her whole life relying on men with power to solve her problems.
Now, the man she relied on was drowning, and she was the anchor dragging him down.
I took a sip of my black coffee, feeling absolutely no remorse.
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She had kissed my husband with a smile on her face.
Now, she was learning the true cost of breaking a Bennett treaty.
