The Commission
Aria's POV
The elevator wires snapped when we were between the fifteenth and sixteenth floors.
My stomach flew into my throat as we fell. Marco grabbed me and pressed us both against the wall while Luca hit every emergency button he could reach. The elevator car shook and groaned like a dying animal.
"Hang on!" Dmitri yelled, bracing himself in the corner.
We dropped three more floors before the emergency brakes kicked in. The car jerked to a sudden stop that threw us all to the floor.
"Everyone okay?" Kai asked, blood dripping from a cut on his forehead.
I nodded, even though my whole body ached. "Someone doesn't want us at this meeting."
"No kidding," Marco said sadly. He was already on his phone, calling for help.
We were supposed to be on the twentieth floor of the Meridian Hotel in exactly ten minutes. The National Crime Commission only met twice a year, and this was my first time being asked. Missing it would be seen as weakness. Showing up late would be seen as rudeness.
Both could get me killed.
"How do we get out?" I asked.
Luca was studying the control panel. "Emergency hatch in the roof. But it's a long climb."
"Then we climb."
Twenty minutes later, we burst through the stairwell door onto the twentieth floor, sweaty and tired. The hallway was lined with men in black suits - protection for the most powerful crime families in America.
"Cutting it close, Torrino," said a woman's voice.
I turned to see Isabella Marchetti, head of the Chicago family. She was about forty, with sharp eyes and a smile that could cut glass.
"Elevator trouble," I answered.
"How unfortunate." Her tone made it clear she knew it wasn't a mistake. "The Commission doesn't like to be kept waiting."
"Then let's not keep them waiting."
The meeting room was huge, with a round table that could seat thirty people. Today, only twelve chairs were filled - the heads of the most powerful crime groups in the country. And now they were all looking at me.
Commissioner Ricci - my recently discovered father - sat at the head of the table. His face gave nothing away as I took the empty seat marked with my name.
"Now that we're all here," Ricci said, "let's begin. Miss Torrino, you're here to be properly recognized by the National Commission. Are you prepared?"
I nodded, my mouth suddenly dry.
"First question," said a man with a thick Boston accent. "You've been in power for one week. Already, there are stories that you're going soft. Explain."
I'd expected this. "I'm changing business practices to focus on long-term profit over short-term fear."
"And what happens when people stop being afraid of you?" asked Isabella.
"They start respecting me instead."
Several Commission members laughed. Not in a good way.
"Respect doesn't pay the bills," said an elderly guy from Miami. "Fear does."
"Fear is temporary," I shot back. "Someone stronger always comes along. But if people trust you, if they gain from working with you, they'll protect your business even when you're not around."
"Pretty words," said a woman from Las Vegas. "But this isn't business school. This is survival."
"Which is exactly why I'm changing things. Vincent's ways made enemies. I'm making friends."
"Vincent was strong," the Boston man said. "He held territory for thirty years."
"And where is he now?" I asked quietly.
The room went quiet. Finally, Commissioner Ricci spoke.
"The question before us is whether Miss Torrino has the strength to lead her family and honor her promises to the Commission. I propose we test this."
My blood went cold. "What kind of test?"
"Each family here has a problem that needs solving," Ricci stated. "You'll choose one and handle it personally. Success means full Commission recognition. Failure..."
He didn't need to finish. Failure meant death.
"What are the options?" I asked.
Isabella leaned forward. "The Morettis are moving drugs through my area without permission. I want them stopped."
"The Sullivans are trying to muscle in on our gambling operations," said the Boston man. "They need to be reminded who runs what."
"Someone's been stealing from our truck shipments," added the Miami man. "Find them and make an example."
"Human trafficking ring operating in our casinos," said the Las Vegas woman. "Shut it down."
I listened to each problem, my heart sinking. They were all asking me to hurt people. To be exactly the kind of boss I was trying not to be.
"I choose the trafficking ring," I said eventually.
Several eyebrows went up. It was the most dangerous choice - trafficking operations were usually protected by corrupt officials and violent criminals.
"Interesting choice," Isabella said. "Most would pick something easier for their first test."
"I didn't come here to take the easy path."
"You have seventy-two hours," Commissioner Ricci stated. "Stop the crime ring, and you'll have full Commission backing. Fail, and the Torrino land will be redistributed among the other families." "Understood. "
As the group broke up, the other crime bosses approached me one by one. Some offered help, others made subtle threats. All of them were measuring me, deciding if I was a friend or an enemy.
Isabella was the last to speak with me.
"You remind me of myself at your age," she said. "Idealistic. Determined to change things."
"What happened to that idealism?"
"Reality. You'll learn soon enough that in this business, good intentions get you killed."
"Maybe. Or maybe it's time someone proved that wrong."
Isabella smiled. "I almost hope you succeed. Almost."
As my team and I headed back to the stairs, Kai pulled me aside.
"The trafficking operation," he said softly. "I know where it is."
"Where?"
"Your uncle Tony's new casino. The one that just opened downtown."
My stomach dropped. The test wasn't just about proving myself to the Commission. It was about ruining my own family.
"There's more," Kai continued. "I intercepted some messages. The trafficking ring isn't just working in the casino. Tony's running it."
I felt sick. My uncle - the man challenging my fortune - was selling human beings.
"We have to stop him," I said.
"Aria," Marco said, joining our chat. "If we move against Tony, it'll look like you're using Commission business to settle family disputes."
"And if I don't, innocent people suffer."
"There's something else," Luca added, appearing at my shoulder. "I just got word from our friends. The elevator cables didn't snap by chance. Someone cut them."
"Who?"
"Someone with access to the hotel's repair areas. Someone who knew exactly which elevator we'd be using."
The possibilities hit me like a physical blow. Someone on the Commission had tried to kill me before I could even take the test.
"Which means," Dmitri said sadly, "this whole thing is a setup. They don't want you to succeed."
As we stepped into a different lift, my phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number.
"Your test starts now. But you should know - Tony isn't the only family member involved in trafficking. Check your mother's medical papers. You might be shocked what you find. - A Friend"
The elevator doors closed, and I stared at the message in fear.
What lies was my mother hiding? And how many people of my own family were working against me?