Chapter 6 - Healing and Whispers of Conspiracy
The days that followed felt like a surreal dream to Nadia. The sprawling Falcone estate, once a cold fortress of intimidation, transformed into a sanctuary of absolute luxury and care. A team of top-tier medical specialists monitored her health daily, ensuring both she and the baby were thriving. Servants who once looked through her with indifference now bowed their heads respectfully, addressing her as Mrs. Falcone.
Yet, peace in the underworld was rarely permanent.
Two weeks after the fall of the Rossi family, Lucas sat at his grand oak desk in the study, reviewing encrypted financial ledgers. Gino stood before him, his face etched with a grim, serious expression.
"We audited the Rossi accounts, boss," Gino reported quietly, placing a thick manila folder on the desk. "Most of it matches up with their known drug and weapon syndicates. But... we found a series of encrypted wire transfers originating from an offshore account in Zurich, routed through a shell company registered in Geneva."
Lucas looked up from the ledger, his gray eyes narrowing. "Geneva? The Rossi family didn't have the international reach to operate out of Switzerland. Who owns the shell company?"
"That’s the problem, sir," Gino said, his voice dropping an octave. "The ultimate beneficiary of that account isn't Donald Rossi. It’s registered under a corporate entity called Vanguard Holdings. And according to our deep-web intelligence, Vanguard is controlled by a man we thought was dead—Viktor Vance."
Lucas stood up so fast his chair scraped loudly against the hardwood floor. The name hit him like a physical blow. Viktor Vance—a ruthless European syndicate leader who had tried to assassinate Lucas five years ago, the very attack that had driven his car off the cliff and caused his amnesia.
"Vance is alive?" Lucas hissed, his hands gripping the edge of the desk so tightly his knuckles turned white.
"It gets worse, boss," Gino continued grimly. "We decrypted the internal notes attached to those wire transfers. They weren't paying the Rossis for protection. They were paying them to keep tabs on someone in Providence. Someone who arrived in the city five years ago under an assumed name... and who happens to be Nadia’s brother."
Lucas’s blood ran cold. Nadia’s brother. The very brother Nadia had been searching for when she took the job as a maid in this house.
"Where is he?" Lucas demanded, his voice trembling with a terrifying realization. "Where is Victor Petrova?"
Before Gino could answer, the secure intercom on the desk chimed sharply. A frantic security guard's voice echoed through the speaker:
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"Boss! We have a security breach in the east wing! Someone has bypassed the perimeter sensors and left a package outside Mrs. Falcone’s private chambers!"
Lucas didn't wait to hear another word. He drew the concealed Sig Sauer pistol from his holster, kicked open the study door, and sprinted down the corridor like a man possessed.
