Wicked Games (Bishop Mafia Series 1)

Chapter 5

Copyright © 2014 by Athena Heart

"Elena is her father's sole beneficiary. That means the controlling shares of The Peridot and its franchises are in her hands. After Tino's embezzlement was found out, William had the will amended, so that the shares will be eventually under the control of the man Elena marries. We all know who that is since the marriage was planned when both of you were kids." Twenty - eight-year-old Louise Cali tapped his Parker pen on the papers in front of him.

"But I hold the Advisory rights?" Dean asked removing a cigarette from his lips.

"Yes. When Gloria signed the contract, Elena was just a few days short of turning twenty - one. If Gloria had signed the contract after Elena became twenty - one, it would have been worthless. But when Gloria agreed and signed the contract, she had handed the Advisory right ship to you, Dean. That means not a penny moves in and out of The Peridot without your permission." Louise waited, to study the expression on Dean's face.

The eagle - like eyes looked back at him, with a certainty of a plot forming in his head. Louise swallowed down the lump in his throat. He disliked being alone with the young Don. Dean had a way of making people nervous around him. The power emitting from his presence had a potency about it that made people choose their words wisely.

"When you marry her, those shares will officially be in your control. In other words, you get to decide if The Peridot stays up or will be torn down and each single matter pertaining to its operations would need your approval." Louise paused to look at his notepad, glad that he had something else to look upon rather than the Don's cold and expressionless face. "Elena will still hold the controlling shares together with you. In other words, you hold the power, so long as you remain husband and wife."

Dean snubbed the cigarette in the ash - tray. The chair swirled and he looked at the sunset. A year ago, two weeks before Elena's twenty-first birthday, Gloria had called the Bishops. The Peridot was on a titanic - set course, sinking into an ocean of debts thanks to the former general manager.

Answering the distress call, Dean and Leo had secretly flown to Florida. Rolphe Equinox, who had been secretly working with The Triglias, had taken hefty sums of loans with banks using The Peridot as a co - guarantor, faking Gloria's signature. Very craftily, he had sneaked small amounts of thousands on regular basis to The Triglias' Swiss bank accounts.

Enraged, Dean had pulled the trigger and Leo dumped Rolphe's cheating carcass into the ocean's depth. The Triglias had been smart. They had used different aliases to have the funds deposited into each of those accounts. A Swiss bank account would be untraceable. Left with no other choice, Dean had stepped in and paid for every single debt from his own pockets.

He had pulled The Peridot out of the quicksand and set her on concrete ground, free of debts. The Bishop Empire's businesses' shares were held and kept within only the male members of the family. Nonno Alessandro refused to let outsiders hold any number of shares in the Business Empire, not even the close-knitted circle of Associates. That was something Nonno had taught his young grandson, "The little foxes always spoil the vineyards. At first, they will be seemingly friendly and helpful. But then they will get hungry and begin to crave for bigger bites of the grapes."

Dean and his uncles were on a high pay scale. And he earned extra income from managing his father's business. But none of the Bishops, from Dean to his uncles and cousins, not one of them could sell their shares. That meant everything the Bishops had were private owned. Even Leo was not given a share though he was made a legal son to Roberto and Liza Bishop. However, like Dean he earned a high pay. And it was from this high income that Dean had paid every single debt The Peridot owed. All 2.7 million.