Salvatore's death created exactly the kind of power vacuum Serena had anticipated.
Within twenty-four hours of his funeral, three of the old man's former allies were making moves to claim territory they thought was now up for grabs. The Chicago family was pushing east, the Miami operation was expanding north, and the West Coast syndicate was testing their reach across the country.
All of them had made the same critical error: they assumed that with the old king dead and the new king's legitimacy in question, the Valentino empire was vulnerable.
They were about to learn otherwise.
"Elena," Serena said, studying the intelligence reports spread across the conference table, "get me Commissioner Rodriguez on the phone."
"The police commissioner?"
"The police commissioner who owes his posi
