Chapter 4 - THE SECURITY FOOTAGE
It was 4:00 AM when the breakthrough happened. Alessandro had retreated to a makeshift command center in the clinic’s adjacent office. A bank of monitors illuminated his sharp, exhausted features.
The security footage from Il Cielo was high definition. Alessandro watched the scene again. 9:16 PM: Siena leaves for the powder room. 9:16:43 PM: The little girl enters. 9:17:42 PM: Siena collapses.
“Pause it,” Alessandro barked.
The tech froze the frame on the kitchen corridor. The woman in the red dress, the imposter, was slipping out the back service elevator. The camera angle was poor, catching only the back of her head.
“Run it forward, camera four, the alleyway exit,” Marco suggested, leaning over the console.
The screen shifted to the rain-slicked alley. The woman burst out of the door. As she ran toward a waiting black sedan, she slipped on the wet pavement. For a fraction of a second, she turned, looking back in panic, and the alley streetlight caught her face.
Alessandro stopped breathing. Marco gasped.
It wasn't a professional hitman. It was Isabella.
Isabella was the wife of Don Lucchese, the head of the rival family. But more importantly, years ago, before she was forced into a political mafia marriage, she had been Alessandro’s first love. She had similar features to me—dark hair, olive skin—but the resemblance wasn't enough to fool anyone up close. Hence the red dress, identical to mine, a visual trick to confuse the periphery guards in the dim lighting.
But why would Isabella do this? The Lucchese family was currently in a peace treaty with the Morettis. A hit on Alessandro would ignite a war that would burn New York to the ground.
Then, Alessandro noticed a second detail. The black sedan waiting for Isabella in the alley. The license plate was obscured by mud, but the driver’s arm rested out the window, tapping a cigarette. On his wrist was a heavy, custom platinum watch.
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Alessandro recognized that watch. He had gifted it to his underboss three years ago after a successful merger.
He slowly turned his head to look at Marco standing right beside him. Marco’s face drained of color as he realized what was on the screen.
