I am not yet sure Mario Conti makes that mistake, but I’ll hold off on that judgment for a while.
Lorenzo sets his folder down. “Conti Enterprises has expanded significantly over the last eighteen months. Restaurants. Real estate holdings. Import and distribution contracts. A private logistics arm. Two hospitality acquisitions pending. A minority stake in a development project near the river.”
“All of which we reviewed from publicly available information,” I say. “There are gaps.”
“There will always be gaps in what’s available to the public,” Lorenzo says.
“Yes,” I agree, acutely aware that Mario’s eyes remain on me. “But the question is whether those gaps are harmless, proprietary, or dangerous.”
Ainsley opens her tablet. “From what we could evaluate, the largest concerns are vendor due diligence, beneficial ownership transparency, cross-entity contracting, employment classification, licensing, and possible money laundering exposure.”
Lorenzo’s expression stays pleasant. “That is a long list.”
“It’s a fairly normal list,” Ainsley says. “For a company expanding this quickly.”
“Normal,” Mario repeats.
She looks at him. “Normal does not mean minor.”
For the first time, Mario’s attention leaves me fully.
He studies Ainsley.
A lesser man might dislike being challenged by two women like this.
Especially a man who, I discovered, has only been in the United States for a couple of years and came from a very old world culture.
I have to admit that I was expecting it. Especially of men who recently came to the United States from an area steeped in those kinds of traditional values.
Mario Conti does not appear offended.
He appears to be deciding whether he approves.
“And you handle investigations?” he asks her.
“Internal investigations, remediation plans, policy audits, employee reporting structures, document retention, and regulatory response.”
“Efficient,” he says.
Benjamin steps in smoothly. “On my side, I would want to review existing corporate structure, vendor contracts, pending acquisitions, insurance coverage, and any licensing arrangements tied to the hospitality and logistics divisions.”
Lorenzo nods. “You’d have access to what you need.”
“All of what we need?” I ask.
The room goes still again.
Lorenzo turns to me.
Mario already has.
I lean back, matching Mario’s posture before I realize I’ve done it. “Because this kind of engagement only works if access is real. If we’re brought in to polish surfaces, we can do that, sure. But then you don’t really need us.”
What are you doing? Shut your mouth. Who cares if that’s all they need?
But I keep going. Like an idiot.
“If you want meaningful compliance infrastructure, I need accurate entity records, contract histories, licensing files, pending disputes, internal policies, vendor lists, leadership charts, and a clear understanding of who has authority to approve what.”
