Four Orphan Girls Raised To Be The Mafia Heir’s Wife. And I Only Wanted His Empire. Chapter 07
The Recording
I need an ally. Someone inside Victoria and Camille’s circle. Someone close enough to hear the things that never leave those rooms.
I choose Harper.
She’s been riding high. Camille kept her word. Victoria now brings Harper to private sit-downs with the wives of other family heads. She’s learning how the household runs, how alliances are maintained over dinner tables and whispered favors. Being groomed as the last girl standing.
She thinks she’s safe.
I meet her on the rooftop of the annex. It’s the only spot in this house without cameras. No bugs. No staff passing through. Just concrete and sky.
I set a voice recorder between us and press play.
Her own voice fills the air. Her and Camille. Every detail she fed about Piper and Daniel. The addresses. The schedule. And then her voice, eager and willing, asking what she gets in return.
Harper’s face goes white. Not embarrassed-white. Scared-white. The kind of white that means she’s calculating how fast this could get her killed.
“Iris. What do you want?” Her voice is barely a whisper.
I look at her. Steady.
“I want you to think. Really think. About what happens next.”
I let the silence sit.
“You were Camille’s knife. You cut Maisie. You cut Piper. She’s grateful now. But what happens when the wedding is done and you’re the only loose end left? A girl who knows where all the bodies are buried.”
Harper flinches like I hit her.
“In this family, loose ends don’t get severance packages. They get handled. You know that.”
She’s shaking now. Arms wrapped around herself. She knows. She’s always known. She just didn’t want to look at it.
“What am I supposed to do?” Her voice cracks.
“Help me. Be my eyes and ears. Everything Victoria plans, everything Camille says. It comes to me. And when this is over, you walk away. New name. Clean money. A life no one in this family can touch.”
I tell her enough to show I’m serious. Not all of it. Just enough to make her understand that I’ve been building this for years. Quietly. Patiently. While they all thought I was broken.
She’s silent for a long time. Then she nods. Once.
“If they find out, we’re both dead.”
“They won’t.”
“Promise me. When it’s done, you let me go.”
“I promise.”
From that night, everything Camille whispers to Victoria, everything Victoria plans for Alistair, flows to me through Harper. My ghost in their inner circle.
Three months later, my moment comes.
The Kain family’s fiftieth anniversary gala. Every family in the city sends their people.
This is more than a party. It’s a declaration. Alistair’s first time hosting as the face of the Kain operation. His chance to prove to the old guard that he’s ready to lead.
The venue is packed. Men in black tie who run ports, construction, real estate. Their wives. Their underbosses. The legitimate faces of illegitimate empires, all in one room.
Alistair takes the stage. Spotlight. Confidence. He announces a major expansion. New territory. New partners. A deal that would double the family’s reach within two years. He sells it like it’s already done.
Applause. The elders at the head table nod. The other families look impressed.
Then I walk up.
Black suit. Heels on marble. I take the microphone from his hand.
“Excuse me, Mr. Kain. I have a different perspective.”
The room dies. Every sound. Every breath. Two hundred people staring at me who just did something no one in this world does. Challenge the heir. In public. In front of every family that matters.
Alistair leans in close. His voice is ice. “Iris. Get off this stage or I will have you dragged off.”
I don’t look at him.
“Mr. Kain’s plan has holes. The partners aren’t vetted. The risk exposure is massive. If this falls apart, it doesn’t just lose money. It makes this family look weak in front of everyone in this room.”
“I have a better way. Lower risk. Faster return. I’ve already sent the details to every elder at this table.”
Silence. The kind of silence that means everyone is holding their breath, waiting to see who dies first.
Alistair’s jaw is locked so tight I can see the muscle jumping. His hand twitches at his side.
In front of every family head in this city, his own assistant just told them he’s not ready.
He opens his mouth to give the order.