Chapter 6 - THE SURGEON'S GAMBIT
The safehouse was a windowless bunker masquerading as an old boiler room. Inside, it was fully stocked with weapons, medical supplies, and an encrypted computer terminal.
As soon as the heavy steel door locked behind us, Alessandro swayed, gripping the edge of a metal table. I saw the dark stain spreading across the side of his black shirt for the first time.
“You’re shot,” I stated, moving toward him.
“A graze,” he grunted, batting my hand away as he booted up the terminal.
“Don't be an idiot,” I snapped, forcing him to sit. I grabbed the first-aid kit from the wall. I was no trauma surgeon like Leah, but being married to the Chicago syndicate boss meant I knew how to dig out a bullet. I cut his shirt open. It wasn't a graze. A 9mm slug was lodged deep in his obliques.
I poured iodine over the wound. He didn't even flinch. He just watched my face as I worked.
“Hand me the drive,” he said, his voice tight with pain.
I retrieved the pouch and plugged the micro-SD into an adapter. The screen flickered to life. Rows and rows of offshore bank accounts, shipping manifests, and a list of internal payouts appeared.
I scrolled to the bottom, looking for the name of the traitor receiving Marino’s money.
The screen highlighted a single alias: The Architect. Beside it, a routed IP address and a physical location.
“Maso,” I breathed.
Alessandro’s eyes darkened. “No. Not Maso. Look at the payout dates.”
I checked the dates. They matched every major hit the Falcone family had taken over the last year. But they also matched something else.
“These funds were routed to the Caymans through the dummy corporation my uncle set up,” Alessandro realized, his voice turning to ice. “Don Carmine.”
His own uncle. The man who had raised him.
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Before we could process the betrayal, Alessandro’s burner phone vibrated. He put it on speaker.
Maso’s voice came through, breathless and panicked. “Boss. It was a trap at the clinic. Carmine’s men were waiting. They took Leah and Camila. Carmine says if you want them back, you bring the drive to the old steel mill on 4th. Alone.”
