Leo turned his head slightly and addressed the Richmond Police Chief, Connor Brogan:
"Such a minor case, and the chief of police himself has to attend?"
Before Brogan could respond, Christoph—still hoping to provoke Leo into lashing out—cut in:
"Chief Brogan is here to ensure American justice is served! After all, everyone knows Mr. Valentino is the biggest real-estate boss in Richmond.
There are even rumors he's the shadowy godfather behind the city's largest gang.
This is a battle between the strong and the weak, and we are here to make sure the weak don't get bullied!
Our friends in the media below are the witnesses to this righteous confrontation!"
Christoph's grandstanding shut the chief up before he could say anything.
Brogan could only spread his hands at Leo and give him a helpless look.
Leo understood. Connor was a regular at the Lynchburg Hotel, and he and Leo had a close personal friendship.
But in this moment, he had to play his part.
Leo gave Christoph a cold glance:
"Enough listening to the dog bark."
He walked into the courthouse without another word.
"Hmph! Just his last struggle!"
Christoph sneered.
In his entire career, Lamb & Hammon had never lost a case—especially with Evan Neal, from Virginia's oldest firm, Cravasse & Neal, as his attorney.
After the usual courtroom preliminaries, Evan proved why he was considered top-tier.
He delivered a fiery condemnation of Leo, painting him as a thug who terrorized association members.
Several jurors visibly glared at Leo in anger.
The case was straightforward and soon reached its second-to-last step:
the plaintiff's personal testimony.
Evan handed Grelick a prepared statement.
As Virginia's top lawyer, Evan was confident:
as long as Grelick read it, Leo would lose without question.
Grelick took the paper with a heavy heart and walked slowly to the stand.
Christoph flashed Leo a triumphant smirk.
"This one's in the bag."
"Please proceed with your statement."
the judge prompted.
"Your Honor, my name is Grelick Anders.
I'm the owner of Anders Construction and a member of the Virginia Builders Association.
I will now give my testimony."
Christoph's grin grew even wider.
But Grelick's next words wiped it clean off his face.
"President Leo Valentino did not pressure or bully me in the association.
In fact, he helped me a great deal.
After the Bubble House fiasco nearly bankrupted me, he gave me a second chance."
"That's a lie! Your Honor, he hit him with an ashtray!
Look at the bandage on his head!"
Christoph shouted, face twisting in fury.
Grelick immediately shot back:
"This cut on my forehead? I got it at a construction site.
It has nothing to do with Mr. Valentino."
"Grelick! Think carefully about what you're saying!"
Christoph roared, eyes bloodshot.
The judge and jurors sat stunned.
No one expected the plaintiff to drop the entire accusation mid-trial.
Especially the judge, who was already mentally rehearsing how to explain this fiasco to Mayor Eamon.
"After deliberation by the jury, this court finds the plaintiff has voluntarily withdrawn the complaint. Case dismissed."
Bang! went the gavel.
Christoph, shaking with rage, kicked his table and screamed:
"No one makes a fool of Lamb & Hammon! I promise you'll pay for this!"
He stormed out of the courthouse, already planning to call Bazzini and have Grelick killed.
But Leo and Grelick were faster.
A Lincoln Continental was already waiting out front.
Grelick turned and gave Christoph a mocking smile before sliding into the car and speeding off.
That evening, at Lamb & Hammon's Richmond branch:
"Useless! You incompetent fool!"
Robert Davis was roaring at Christoph over the phone.
"Get your ass back to New York.
This war is far from over."
Christoph hung up, his face dark.
He left the building, got into his car, and headed north.
On the long Richmond–New York highway, he was rehearsing excuses to dodge blame with Robert.
Halfway there, his driver spoke quietly:
"I'm sorry, sir. They have my family."
Christoph blinked in confusion.
He turned—and saw the driver slowing down, opening the door, and diving out.
BOOM!
The car exploded in a fireball that lit up the night.
Robert Davis didn't even hear about Christoph's death until three days later.
He took the call in his office.
On the other end was Mr. Cotton, repeating the same line as before:
"Worthless. Purely worthless. Stop with these crooked little games.
Use your company's strength. Crush him properly, out in the open."
Robert held the phone with both hands respectfully.
"Understood, sir.
I'll go to Richmond personally."
A week later, the Virginia Real Estate Union was officially founded.
Its president? Robert Davis of Lamb & Hammon.
Attending the grand opening were Governor Harry and Richmond Mayor Eamon.
The event was lavish, filled with press and well-wishers.
Robert stood at the podium:
"Lamb & Hammon is committed to delivering top-quality construction with a customer-first philosophy.
Every company that joins our association will enjoy the same preferential loan rates that we do.
Our experienced design and construction teams will support your projects.
And by uniting, we aim to raise the standards of all builders in Virginia, while ensuring rogue outfits disrupting the market are forced to shut down."
He gestured to a waiter who handed him the first application.
"As you can see, the smart ones don't wait.
I hadn't even finished my speech and we already have our first eager member."
Robert opened the envelope, preparing to read it aloud.
His face immediately darkened.
He glanced around, wanting desperately to avoid saying the name—but he had no choice.
"Congratulations to… Valentino Construction, our association's very first member."
Leo's logic for joining was simple:
If you want to be the stick in the mud? Fine. I'll be in there too. Let's see who really enjoys it.
Two days later, a land auction.
The last prime parcel in Jackson Ward.
Leo bid $15 million, hoping to lock it down.
Robert outbid him at $20 million without blinking.
After the auction, over a light lunch, Robert approached Leo with a sneer:
"Your money has limits.
Ours is unlimited.
Sooner or later, you'll crack."
Leo remained calm.
"True enough.
Lamb & Hammon has such deep pockets, you just paid double for a parcel you could've won for half.
Very impressive."