Chapter 4 - THE ROSARY
The revelation tasted like ash.
Damian stood in the dingy diner breakroom, the child's drawing trembling in his grip. He had bought Hector Vargas ten years ago to eliminate the Navarros, securing his own syndicate's grip on the East Coast shipping lanes. He had thought he was a king moving pawns.
Instead, the surviving Navarro princess had crawled out of the blood, waited five years in the shadows, and married him just to gut his empire from the inside out.
"She knows," Damian whispered.
"Mr. Russo?" Sal whimpered from the floor.
Damian walked out without another word. The rain was coming down in sheets now. He dialed Tommy. "Forget the Feds. Contact Hector Vargas. Tell him the Navarro girl is alive. If we want our money back, we have to flush her out."
In the penthouse, Lena closed the ledger. She walked over to the sofa and gently brushed a curl from Leo’s forehead. The boy stirred, murmuring something about trains in his sleep.
"Doña Elena," Marco said sharply from the window. "We have a problem."
Lena stood up. "Vargas?"
"No. It’s worse." Marco turned, his face pale. "It’s one of our own."
Lena’s phone buzzed on the counter. It was a restricted number. She answered, putting it on speaker.
"Hello, Lena," a woman’s voice purred. It was Celeste.
Lena’s eyes narrowed. "You have terrible timing."
"Oh, I think my timing is perfect," Celeste said, the sound of a roaring car engine in the background. "You left your husband’s estate in quite a hurry. But you didn't just take his money, did you? You took his insurance policy."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Damian keeps a physical ledger," Celeste said, her voice dropping into a frantic whisper. "Account numbers, bribes, the names of every judge and politician in his pocket. It was hidden behind the cedar chest. I saw him open the floorboard once. When you left, he tore the room apart looking for you. He left the safe open."
Lena froze. "You stole it."
"I want out, Lena. Damian is unhinged. If he finds out I was in the room when he lost everything, he’ll kill me just for witnessing his humiliation." Celeste took a shaky breath. "I want two million of the money you drained. In cash. I’ll give you the ledger. You can hand it to the Feds and bury him forever."
Lena looked at Marco. This was the final nail. With that ledger, Damian wouldn't just lose his money; he would spend the rest of his life in a supermax prison.
"Where?" Lena asked.
"The old railyard at the edge of the city. Thirty minutes."
The line went dead.
Marco shook his head. "It’s a trap. Damian put her up to this."
"Damian doesn’t share power, and he certainly doesn't share secrets with mistresses," Lena said, grabbing her coat. "She's telling the truth. She’s terrified."
She turned to Marco, slipping a heavy silver rosary from her pocket. It had belonged to her father. She pressed it into Marco’s hand. "If I don't come back, take Leo to the airstrip. Use the jet. Keep him safe."
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Before Marco could argue, the penthouse door exploded inward. Wood splintered across the marble floor as three heavily armed men stepped into the apartment. They wore Vargas’s tactical gear.
Damian hadn't sent them. He had just pointed them in the right direction.
