Chapter 4 - A Threat in the Shadows

The next afternoon, the violence arrived sooner than expected.

Théo Lindqvist was in the middle of sweeping up the final remnants of the day's hair products when the front glass of his luxury salon shattered into a million glittering pieces.

Three men in heavy charcoal overcoats stepped through the ruined frame, their heavy boots crushing the glass. The leader was a man known in the underworld as "The Sledge"—a brutal enforcer for the Valenti family with a reputation for leaving no witnesses.

"Where is she?" Sledge barked, slamming a heavy iron pipe onto the marble reception desk.

Théo dropped his broom, his face turning the color of chalk. "I... I don't know what you're talking about. We had a private event yesterday—"

"Don't lie to me, hair-cutter," Sledge growled, grabbing Théo by his designer collar and slamming him against the mirror. "A girl. Smelled like the sewer. Dragged half the city’s dirt on her head. Who bought her out of here?"

"I did," a calm, terrifying voice echoed from the shattered entrance.

Sledge froze. He slowly turned his head to see Adrian Kane standing in the doorway, flanked by Marco and four massive men carrying concealed submachine guns beneath their tailored coats. Adrian wasn't wearing his overcoat today; his black silk shirt clearly showed the outline of his tactical vest beneath.

"Kane," Sledge spat, dropping Théo. "This is Valenti territory. You're out of bounds."

"Suffolk Street was my territory, yet your boys tried to put three holes in my liver on Thursday night," Adrian said, walking into the salon with a slow, predatory stride. "I consider this a retaliatory strike. And as for the salon... Mr. Lindqvist is under my payroll now."

"Valenti wants the girl, Kane. She's a vagrant. A nobody. Hand her over and maybe we forget about the Suffolk Street misunderstanding."

Adrian stopped six inches from Sledge. Despite the enforcer’s massive size, Adrian completely dominated the space, his dark eyes radiating absolute malice.

"Go back to Dominic," Adrian whispered, his voice dangerously soft. "Tell him that the girl he's looking for doesn't exist anymore. Tell him Catherine Sterling sends her regards."

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Sledge’s eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated shock. The name operated like a curse. Before he could raise his weapon, Marco stepped forward and drove the butt of his pistol directly into the enforcer’s jaw, sending him crashing through a display case of expensive shampoos.

"Clean this up," Adrian told Marco calmly, not even looking back as he walked out of the ruined salon. "And make sure Théo gets a new storefront. Somewhere with better security."