The Mafia's Undoing-Chapter 189: The Devil’s Bargain

We were in Senator Ashford’s Manhattan office on a private floor, which was secure.

He just wanted to talk with Tony and me, and no recording devices were allowed at the entrance as security swept us.

Senator Clinton Ashford was a man in his mid-50s, looking polished in an expensive suit. He had dangerous eyes, which indicated how connected and powerful he was.

"Thank you for coming. Please, sit."

We sat feeling wary and tensed. "You dropped the charges. Why?" Tony asked.

His smile was cold and calculated. "Because I never needed you convicted. I needed you compliant.

"You see," He continued. "I represent certain interests. Powerful interests from people who want specific things."

"What things?" Tony asked again.

"Access and influence. We do money laundering through legitimate investment vehicles."

Tony immediately refused and stood up. "Absolutely not. We don’t do that. We won’t."

"Sit down, Mr. Marvin. You do now, or the charges come back. With more real evidence this time that will be irrefutable."

"You fabricated evidence before-" Tony said grimly.

"And I’ll do it again, but better this time and more convincing. You’ll both go to prison for a minimum of twenty years. Your children will be orphaned or worse."

I too was furious, and I stood up. "You’re threatening our children?" I raised my voice at him.

"I’m offering protection, Mrs. Marvin. Work with me, and your family thrives. You all prosper, and your lives are in safety. Refuse, and everything burns to ash."

"We dismantled a criminal empire. We’re not rebuilding one." I held my ground.

"You’re not building anything. You’re only facilitating. Clean money becomes dirty, dirty becomes clean. These are simple transactions, and you barely get your hands dirty."

Tony’s voice was cold as ice. "Who are you working for?"

"People you don’t want to meet. These are people who don’t accept ’no’ as an answer, and they are people who make problems disappear permanently."

"We need time to think about this," Tony said.

"You have 48 hours, and then I need your answer. It’s either compliance or consequences, so choose wisely."

"And if we go public to expose you and your corruption?" I asked.

Ashford laughed. "With what evidence? You mean our conversation? It’s your word against mine. I’m a United States Senator with impeccable credentials, and you’re accused criminals who just avoided prison. Who do you think the public will believe?"

We left feeling defeated and trapped. There were no good options.

While driving home, Tony punched the steering wheel repeatedly.

"SON OF A BITCH!"

"Tony, calm down-"

"We can’t calm down! We’re completely trapped! It’s either we become criminals, or we lose everything we’ve worked so hard for!"

"There has to be another way out of this," I said, trying to pacify him.

"WHAT WAY? HE HAS ALL THE POWER! GOVERNMENT RESOURCES! CONNECTIONS! EVERYTHING!"

My hand moved to my stomach as I could already feel the stress and danger looming ahead.

"Tony, please. The baby, I can’t handle this level of stress. It’s not safe."

He stopped and looked at me, and then realized. "I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Take deep breaths, okay, we’d be home soon."

That night at home, I was cramping, bleeding, and spotting.

"Tony. Something’s wrong, I think it’s the baby."

I was rushed to the emergency room at Manhattan Presbyterian. Dr. Roberta Stephens, an OB specialist, was examining me, carrying out an ultrasound, checking vitals, and fetal heartbeat.

"You’re experiencing a threatened miscarriage from stress-induced. The baby’s okay right now, but you’re on the edge, and you need complete bed rest immediately. No stress whatsoever, please, just complete rest."

"I can’t. We have situations we need to handle-"

"Do you want to keep this baby, Mrs. Marvin?"

"Yes. Of course."

"Then bed rest. It’s non-negotiable, and we’re making no exceptions. You do not need stress, or you will miscarry."

I was crying. "I can’t lose this baby now. Not after everything we’ve survived."

While I was on bed rest, Hector was taking care of Rose.

I watched them from my bedroom as he made her breakfast, played with her, and read her stories.

"Hector? Why is Mummy in bed all day?"

"She’s growing a baby. It’s tough work. We need to be extra good and quiet so she can rest."

"A baby? A real baby like a sister or brother?"

"We don’t know yet. But exciting, right?"

Rose nodded enthusiastically. "I want baby sister!"

Hector smiled genuinely and seemed happy. "Me too or brother. Either one is good."

Their bond was strengthening like real siblings. They were loving and protective, and it was beautiful to see.

Bella visited to bring food and support. James was with her.

"What are you going to do about Ashford?"

"I don’t know. It’s either we comply and become criminals ourselves or refuse and lose absolutely everything."

James spoke up, sounding thoughtful. "I’ve dealt with corrupt politicians in my architecture career. Government contracts, bribes, kickbacks, you name them. They always have vulnerabilities."

"You have experience with this kind of corruption?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Sometimes I fought it, and sometimes I documented it. I built cases against them."

"How?"

"By providing documentation and evidence. You need to record conversations without their knowledge. This helps in building an airtight case."

Tony and I were still deciding and planning.

"So we pretend to comply, but we gather evidence against him," Tony asked James carefully.

"That’s incredibly dangerous." I retorted.

"Everything in our lives is dangerous, but we’re exceptionally good at dangerous," Tony said.

"We need FBI support. Agent Timothy needs to be involved." I told him.

We called Timothy to explain the situation about Ashford’s threats and his impossible demands.

"I can’t officially investigate a sitting U.S. Senator without substantial evidence."

"Then we get you that evidence. We record him and document everything to build an airtight case."

"That’s extremely risky. If he discovers what you’re doing-"

"We know the risks. But it’s the only way, actually, to be free of this; we accept it."

Elliot and Jeff came to take the kids for the weekend so I could get complete rest.

"You need to eliminate all stress for the baby’s sake. We’ll handle Rose and Hector."

"Thank you both. For everything you do for us." I said to them.

"You raised me from childhood, Katherine. This is nothing compared to that sacrifice."

Hector was excited. "Uncle Elliot! Can we go to the natural history museum?"

"Absolutely, and then ice cream afterwards," Elliot answered him.

Rose jumped up and down. "Ice cream! Ice cream!"

These were everyday childhood moments, the joy amidst our chaos, giving hope.

We were alone during the weekend, as I was on bed rest with Tony here, caring for me.

We made love gently and carefully. I, on bed rest, desperately needed the connection.

Our lovemaking was slow and tender as Tony whispered to me, caressing my whole body. "You’re carrying our child. Nothing in this world is more beautiful."

"I’m scared. What if I lose the baby? What if all this stress-"

"Sshhh... you won’t. You’re strong, and this baby is strong. It’s giving Marvin strength, just like a survivor."

Our gentle intimacy was filled with deep connection, hope, love, and affirmation.

"We’ll survive this... just like we’ve survived everything else thrown at us," Tony said softly.

"Promise?"

"I promise." He responded as he kissed my cheeks.

The FBI provided us with sophisticated recording equipment. It was a hidden wire in professional-grade.

"You meet with Ashford, get him talking, and admit everything on record."

"What if he suspects we’re wired?"

"Don’t let him suspect. Your lives literally depend on it."

Tony and I began preparing, rehearsing, and planning every word and every response.

"We can do this. Together."

"Together. Like always."

Our meeting with Ashford was 48 hours later in his office at the exact location.

Tony and I were wired with the FBI monitoring remotely and recording everything.

"Senator Ashford, we’ve decided to accept your terms. We’ll facilitate your laundering operations."

He smiled, looking satisfied and victorious. "That’s a smart decision. Brilliant one. Now, here’s exactly how it works-"

He explained everything: the names, accounts, shell companies, operations, connections, and criminal networks.

We had it all recorded with the FBI getting everything. We were almost done with enough evidence when Ashford’s phone buzzed. As he read a text on his phone, his face hardened, his gaze meeting ours and knowing.

"You’re wired. Aren’t you?"

He stood, and the security entered immediately, their guns drawn, looking dangerous.

"Search them. Thoroughly."

They found the wires and ripped them off. Apparently, destroying them.

"You tried to trap me. That was a huge mistake."

The FBI burst in through multiple doors. "FBI! DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"

There was a gunfight in the office, and the entire office was in complete chaos.

I ducked to protect my stomach.

Tony covered me, shielding and protective as always.

Ashford’s security was firing, and the FBI was equally returning fire. Bullets were flying, and the glass was shattering.

Ashford escaped through the back exit in a private elevator. He was gone.

The operation completely failed, and our evidence was lost and destroyed.

And now, we’d made an enemy of a U.S. Senator with unlimited resources and absolutely no conscience.

"We’re dead," I whispered. "He’ll eradicate us now and show no mercy."

Tony held me. "Then we disappear. We run so we can protect our family; however, we must."

"Run to where? He has government resources and intelligence connections. We can’t hide anywhere."

"Then we fight one final time to end this threat permanently."

But how? How do we fight power like this?

We didn’t have an answer; it was just our determination and overwhelming fear.