Exposed to the CEO Behind the Mafia Mask (by Silver Spoon) novel Chapter 264

Chapter 264: Chapter 48 One Last Chance

Gemma’s POV

The Thorne family operations center buzzed with unusual chaos before everyone suddenly rushed out for the day. Only Ivy and I remained in the secure headquarters, settling into an unexpected pocket of silence. I was about to suggest we grab coffee when my phone cut through the quiet with Xavier’s ringtone.

"Gemma, I need you here fast," Xavier’s voice carried an edge I rarely heard from the family’s consigliere.

"What’s happening, boss?"

"Bring Ivy and get to the Don’s compound immediately. Tell her it’s family business related if necessary. My driver is already waiting in the garage. Gemma, I mean right now."

Something in his tone made my stomach clench. In the Thorne organization, when the consigliere sounded this urgent, it meant serious family matters were at stake. "Xavier, is everything alright?"

"God, I hope so." His heavy exhale told me everything I needed to know.

After instructing the security team to handle any communications and lock down the operations floor, I grabbed my purse and headed straight for Ivy’s office. Within minutes we were speeding through Brooklyn traffic toward Don Caleb’s heavily fortified compound.

"Gemma, what do you think is going on?" Ivy’s voice carried worry as she gripped the door handle, her wedding ring catching the streetlight. Even as the Don’s wife, she still felt anxiety when family emergencies arose.

"No clue, but I was just thinking things had been too peaceful in our territory lately."

"Are you seriously complaining about peace, woman?"

"Honey, working in that crime family gives us many experiences, but peace definitely isn’t one of them," I replied with dry humor, earning a nervous laugh from her.

The moment we stepped into Caleb’s compound, my eyes locked with Dominic’s across the crowded room. Everyone was there, including the other family wives, but before I could process the situation fully, Ivy collapsed right in the doorway.

Dominic kept trying to catch my attention, hovering nearby with that predatory grace all made men possessed, but I maintained my distance and focused on appearing professional. Whatever was happening here, I wouldn’t let our personal drama become the center of attention during family business.

What followed was an emotional whirlwind that shook the very foundations of the Thorne organization. The revelation that Caleb was Max’s biological father hit everyone like a thunderbolt. In our world, bloodlines determined everything - succession, loyalty, and power. Ivy’s confession about her pregnancy, their tearful reconciliation, watching the Don and his queen finally forgive each other after so much pain and family betrayal. It was impossible not to cry watching two people who belonged together, whose union strengthened the entire organization, finally finding their way back.

Just when we thought the drama was over, that hurricane named Veronica stormed through Caleb’s front door. The Don’s manipulative ex-girlfriend had spent the entire week terrorizing our legitimate business fronts, and now she was bringing her chaos into the family compound. The screaming match between her and Zoe, our intelligence coordinator, was so intense that everyone ended up shouting at that manipulative woman. It would have been entertaining if it weren’t potentially dangerous to family security.

But the most beautiful moment came when they told Max the truth about Caleb being his father. In mafia families, discovering your true parentage, especially when it connected you to the Don himself, was life-changing. Watching them embrace, seeing the pure joy and recognition in both their faces as Max realized he was legitimate family heir, was deeply moving. The tears came again, and I escaped to the kitchen to make chamomile tea for everyone since emotions were running so high.

That’s where Dominic cornered me.

"Gemma, we need to talk." His voice was soft as he approached, but I could see the dangerous intensity that marked him as one of the family’s most ruthless capos.

"Now you want to have a conversation?" My sarcasm cut through the kitchen’s warmth.

"Gemma, please, hear me out first, then judge me." His eyes held a pain that I refused to let affect me. He had betrayed me, humiliated me in a way that went against everything the family stood for about protecting what belonged to them.

"Dominic, nothing you say can justify what you did." I moved away from the counter, focusing on arranging teacups on a tray with shaking hands.

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