She Was Left to Freeze on Christmas Night — What the Mafia Boss Did Next Shocked Everyone
Clara sat there, stunned. Her mouth hung open. The weight that had been crushing her chest for two years simply vanished.
«You,» she whispered. «You just… Why?»
«Because,» Tony said, reaching out to cover her hand with his large, warm one, «I don’t like bullies. And I realized last night that I’ve been letting one live in my house for too long.»
Clara looked at his hand on hers. It felt electric. «What happens now?»
«Now,» Tony said, standing up. «You rest. And when you’re ready, we go shopping. Because I burned your uniform, and you are never wearing one of those again.»
«I can’t accept this,» Clara protested weakly. «I can’t pay you back.»
Tony turned at the door, a small, rare smile playing on his lips. «I didn’t ask for payment, Clara. But if you insist… you can join me for dinner tonight. Not serving it. Eating it.»
He left the room, leaving Clara staring at the fire, her heart racing faster than it ever had in the cold. But downstairs, the atmosphere was far from romantic. Marco was waiting in the hallway, his face grim.
«Boss,» Marco said. «We have a problem.»
«Lana?»
Marco nodded. «She didn’t just leave. She went straight to her father. And the Vances? They aren’t taking the breakup well.»
The peace at the Moretti estate lasted exactly six hours.
By early afternoon, the snow had stopped, leaving the world buried in a pristine white blanket. Inside, Clara was tentatively exploring the library, wearing a cashmere sweater and jeans that Tony’s assistant had miraculously procured for her. She felt like an imposter, but every time she passed a mirror, she saw a woman who was slowly coming back to life.
Tony was in his office—the «War Room»—staring at a bank of monitors.
«They froze the accounts,» Marco said, typing furiously on a laptop. «The Vance family bank handles forty percent of our laundering operations. They’ve flagged everything for suspicious activity. The IRS will be sniffing around by tomorrow.»
Tony clenched his jaw. «I knew they would try financial blackmail. It’s the only move bankers know.»
«It gets worse,» Marco said, hesitating. «They’ve cut off the supply chain for the shipping containers in the Newark port. They’re squeezing us, Enzo. They want you to crawl back.»
Tony slammed his fist on the desk. «I’d rather burn every dollar I have than marry that woman.»
«Boss, you need to see this,» a security guard interrupted, pointing to one of the monitors.
On the screen, a black SUV was pulling up to the main gate. It wasn’t a tactical team. It was a single car. A woman stepped out.
It was Lana. She was wearing a white fur coat and huge sunglasses, looking like a movie star. She held a large envelope in her hand and waved it at the security camera.
«Let her in,» Tony ordered, his eyes narrowing.
«Boss, it could be a trap,» Marco warned.
«She’s alone. Bring her to the foyer. And keep Clara upstairs.»
Ten minutes later, Lana stood in the grand foyer, looking around with a sneer. When Tony descended the stairs, she smiled—a cold, calculated expression that didn’t reach her eyes.
«Merry Christmas, darling,» she cooed.
«You have five minutes,» Tony said, stopping at the bottom step. «Before I have security throw you into a snowbank.»
«Always so aggressive.» Lana sighed. She tapped the envelope against her palm. «I’m here to offer a truce. My father is very upset, Enzo. He thinks you’ve been irrational. He’s willing to unfreeze your assets and forget this whole ‘maid incident’ if you issue a public apology and set a date for the wedding. Let’s say… Valentine’s Day.»
Tony laughed. It was a dark, dry sound. «You think I can be bought? You tried to kill an innocent woman, Lana. We are done.»
Lana’s smile vanished. «She’s a nobody, Enzo. A servant. And you’re throwing away an empire for her? For what? A warm body in your bed?»
«She has more dignity in her little finger than you have in your entire bloodline,» Tony said. «Get out.»
Lana’s face twisted into something ugly. «I thought you might say that. That’s why I brought an insurance policy.»
She opened the envelope and pulled out a photograph. She held it up.
Tony squinted. It was a grainy photo taken from a distance. It showed an older man walking out of a bakery in Chicago. He looked tired, wearing a worn-out coat.
«Arthur Thorne,» Lana said, her voice dripping with malice. «Clara’s father. Sweet old man. Lives on 4th Street.»
Tony’s blood ran cold. «If you touch him…»
«Oh, I don’t have to touch him,» Lana said lightly. «My father has associates in Chicago. They’re watching him right now. If I don’t call them in…» she checked her diamond watch. «Thirty minutes to tell them everything is resolved, they’re going to pay Arthur a visit. And accidents happen so easily in the winter. Slippery sidewalks… gas leaks…»
«You wouldn’t,» Tony growled, stepping forward.
«Try me,» Lana hissed. «You humiliated me, Enzo. You chose her. Now you have a choice. You can have your little maid, but her father dies. Or you can kick her out, send her back to the gutter where she belongs, and marry me. If you do that, Daddy Thorne lives to gamble another day.»
Tony froze. He was trapped. He knew the Vances. They weren’t tough like his men, but they were cruel. They would hire someone to burn a house down with a man inside just to make a point.
He looked up toward the landing of the second floor.
Clara was standing there. She had heard everything. Her face was as white as the snow outside. She was gripping the railing so hard her knuckles were translucent.
«Clara…» Tony said, his voice cracking.
Clara walked down the stairs slowly. She looked at the photo in Lana’s hand, then at Tony. She saw the pain in his eyes. She saw the impossible choice he was facing.
She walked past Tony and stood in front of Lana.
«You are a monster,» Clara said quietly.
Lana laughed. «And you are a pest. A cockroach that needs to be crushed.»
Clara turned to Tony. Tears were streaming down her face, but her voice was steady. «Tony. You saved my life. You paid my father’s debt. You gave me the best Christmas I’ve ever had. I won’t let you lose your family’s empire for me. And I won’t let my father die.»
«Clara, no,» Tony said, reaching for her.
Clara stepped back. «I’ll go.» She looked at Lana. «If I leave—if I disappear and never see him again—you leave my father alone.»
«Clara, stop!» Tony roared. «I will handle this.»
«You can’t handle them without starting a war that will get people killed!» Clara cried out, looking at him with tragic love. «I’m just a maid, Tony. You’re the King. It was a nice dream. But it’s over.»
She turned to Lana. «Call your men off. I’m leaving.»
Lana smirked, victorious. «Smart girl. You have ten minutes to pack your rags.»
«No,» Tony said.
The air in the room changed. It became heavy, charged with ozone. Tony reached behind his back and pulled a gun from his waistband.
Lana gasped. «Enzo! You can’t shoot me. I’m a Vance!»
«I’m not going to shoot you,» Tony said calmly. He walked over to the main doors and locked them. Click.
He turned back to them, his eyes burning with a chaotic, terrifying light. «You threatened my family, Lana. And whether she admits it or not, Clara is family now.»
He looked at Marco. «Marco, lock the estate down. Jam all cell signals outgoing from this house. No one calls Chicago. No one calls anyone.»
«Enzo, what are you doing?» Lana shrieked, looking at her phone as the signal bars vanished. «If I don’t call in twenty minutes, then…»
«We have twenty minutes,» Tony said, grabbing Lana by the arm and dragging her toward the library. «Marco, get the team ready. We’re going to Chicago.»
He looked at Clara. «I told you I’d protect you. I meant it. We aren’t surrendering. We’re going to war.»
The library of the Moretti estate became a war room. The heavy oak doors were bolted shut. Outside, the blizzard had passed, but inside, the temperature was reaching a boiling point.
Lana Vance sat in a leather chair, her hands tied loosely with a silk tie. Marco had provided it not to hurt her, but to keep her from clawing at the specialized signal jammer sitting on the desk. She looked smug, checking the grandfather clock in the corner every few seconds.
«Fifteen minutes, Enzo,» she taunted. «You can’t fly to Chicago in fifteen minutes. Even your private jet isn’t that fast. My father’s men are already parked on Fourth Street. If I don’t call, they go in.»
Clara stood by the fireplace, shaking. She wasn’t shaking from the cold anymore. She was shaking from terror.
«Please,» she whispered to Tony. «Just let her call. I’ll leave. I’ll sign whatever you want. Don’t let them hurt my dad.»
Tony ignored her. He was pacing behind his desk, phone in hand. He had unjammed a single frequency, a secure encrypted line that only he could use.
«You’re right, Lana,» Tony said, stopping to look at her. «I can’t get to Chicago in fifteen minutes. But I don’t have to be there to burn your world down.»
He hit dial.
«Who are you calling?» Lana scoffed. «The police? They’re on my father’s payroll.»
«No,» Tony said darkly. «I’m calling a man who values money over laws. And thanks to you, I just made him very rich.»
The call connected.
«Yeah?»
«Vinnie,» Tony barked. «It’s Moretti.»
«Mr. Moretti!» The voice on the other end was nervous but eager. «I got the wire transfer. Generous. Very generous. The girl’s debt is cleared, and then some. We’re square.»
«We’re not square yet,» Tony said, his eyes locking onto Lana’s terrified face. «I have a job for you. A bonus. Double what I just sent you.»
«I’m listening.»
«You know where Arthur Thorne lives. Fourth Street.»
«Yeah, I know it. I’ve been, uh, watching the place.»
«There are two men in a sedan parked outside,» Tony said, glancing at the description Lana had foolishly provided earlier. «They work for the Vance family. In twelve minutes, they are going to try to enter the house and harm Arthur.»
Clara gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.
«Harm the old man?» Vinnie sounded offended. «That’s bad for business. He’s a good earner now.»
«I want you to stop them,» Tony commanded. «Take your boys. Go there. Now. And Vinnie? I don’t want them arrested. I want a message sent.»
«Understood, Boss,» Vinnie said. The line went dead.
