"The Maid Called the Mafia Boss and Whispered, “Come Home—Your Mother Is Being Hurt”… Then He Claimed Her Before the Entire City / Chapter 7 / 10

Chapter 7 - The Declaration"Complete that sentence, Matteo," Luca whispered, his voice vibrating with pure, unadulterated death. "Complete that sentence, and I will tear your empire down before the sun rises tomorrow."

Matteo gasped for air, his eyes bulging with terror as he looked into Luca’s demonic gaze. The four Rossi enforcers reached for their weapons, but within a fraction of a second, fifty Moretti guards in the room drew their silenced sidearms, pointing them directly at the enforcers' heads.

Chief Miller, who was attending the gala, stepped forward nervously. "Luca... please. Not here. It’s a public event."

Luca didn't look at the police chief. He kept his grip firm on Matteo's throat for three agonizing seconds, letting the rival don taste absolute powerlessness.

Then, Luca let go. Matteo collapsed to the floor, coughing violently.

Luca pulled out a silk handkerchief, casually wiped his hand, and stepped back to Naomi’s side. He put his arm around her waist, pulling her flush against his side in a possessive, unbreakable grip.

He looked around the room at the five hundred most powerful people in the city.

"Listen to me carefully," Luca’s voice boomed across the silent ballroom, echoing off the high ceilings. "Tonight, I make one thing clear to this entire city."

He looked down at Naomi, his dark eyes filled with a fierce, burning passion that took her breath away.

"Naomi Carter is not a servant," Luca declared loudly. "She is the savior of my mother, the guardian of my household, and effective tonight... she is the future matriarch of the Moretti empire."

A collective gasp echoed through the room.

Naomi turned her head to stare at Luca in total shock. "Luca... what are you saying?" she whispered frantically under her breath.

Luca didn't answer her verbally. Instead, right there in front of the entire city elite, the mayor, the media, and his rival enemies, Luca Moretti dropped to one knee on the polished floor.

He reached into his tuxedo jacket and pulled out a velvet ring box. He opened it to reveal a magnificent, rare ten-carat emerald-cut diamond ring—the legendary Moretti ancestral ring, passed down through four generations of mafia queens.

"Luca..." Naomi gasped, her hand flying to her mouth.

"You proved your loyalty when you had nothing," Luca said, his voice deep and filled with undeniable sincerity. "You protected what was mine when everyone else tried to steal it. Naomi Carter... will you rule this city by my side?"

Isabella pressed a small, portable electronic chime on her wheelchair.