22. Massimo
Chapter 22
Massimo
D aniele and I are in the living room reviewing a planned shipment. The door is closed, affording us some privacy while we wait for Aldo to join us. He returned this morning from a two-day stakeout at Elio Morretti’s old estate in New York City.
Elio hasn’t returned since we attacked his Manhattan house a few weeks back. Our men take twenty-four-hour shifts watching his place, but I’m not optimistic that he’ll be back. If he knows what’s good for him, he’ll have left New York for good, because the moment he steps out of hiding, we’ll be ready and waiting for him.
In the meantime, we need to find the rat. Every day that passes, with no indication of who it is only makes us look weak. The other families are watching our every move, waiting for us— for me —to slip up so they can strike and take everything my father and his father worked so hard for.
“Come in,” I call in answer to the knock at the door.
Aldo enters, closing it behind him. “Apologies for my tardiness, there was something I had to take care of.” He takes a seat on the couch across from me and next to Daniele.
I slide the documents I was reading onto the coffee table, resting my elbows on my parted knees. “While you were away, Margot found an envelope. It was hidden in this room with a USB drive, newspaper clippings and phone records in it. The documents look like they were the originals of the doctored ones you were given.”
“Oh?” There’s a flicker of something in Aldo’s gaze, but it's too quick for me to fully decipher. It’s enough to send a trickle of doubt down my spine.
Sitting taller, I mentally shake off the feeling and continue, “It’s safe to say that somewhere between the documents being handed to you and you bringing them to my office, they were switched out. The question is, by who?”
Aldo nods in agreement. “I took a call and left the documents on the kitchen counter. They must have been watching me and took the opportunity because it couldn’t have been more than five minutes before I returned.”
“You’re not to blame for this, Aldo,” I reassure him.
Aldo has worked for my family for years. I’ve brought him into the fold because he’s someone we can trust. Is he? Without a shadow of a doubt, I know he has nothing to do with this. That doubt I felt a moment ago was unwarranted; he’s done nothing but show loyalty for decades.
Turning to Daniele, I incline my head, indicating for him to share what he’s found out about the contents of the envelope. He sighs, frustration and exhaustion seeping from his body—he’s a mirror of how we all feel.
“Callum had to work his magic on this one. The contents of the USB were encrypted, and it took him longer than normal to get into it. I switched off when he tried to talk me through the steps, but he confirmed it was created by the same person who hosted the live feed of Aurora being tortured by Anastasia when they made their demands.”
That’s something, but it’s not enough for us to make any real progress, which we’ve been lacking ever since we found Aurora. I crack my neck to ease the tension that’s been building since the start of this meeting. “Okay. That’s good to know, but we’ve taken care of him so it doesn’t move us any further forward. What I want to know is how it ended up in my house, stuck to the back of a credenza?”
Daniele shrugs, running a hand through his hair. “The simple answer? No idea. Callum’s helping me scour all of the footage we have, but I’m not holding my breath that we’ll find anything. This has been well thought through and whoever it is clearly has people on their side that could help with hacking into our systems and erasing recordings.”
“So what do we have?” I snap.
“I’ve sent the envelope to a forensics guy Leonardo recommended. He’ll look for DNA or prints, but he’s backed up at work and has to fit us in without raising suspicions, so that could take some time.”
Standing, I move to the bar in the corner of the room. We’re nowhere new and at every turn, it feels like we’re ten steps behind.
Pouring three tumblers of whiskey, I return to the couches and hand them out. “Let’s figure out a way forward. There haven’t been any more attacks since the warehouse, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be and we need to get ahead.”
Aldo sips his drink before placing it on the table. “You’ve been at this for weeks, Daniele. It’s not a question of capability, because we all know you are more than capable, but it’s evident that you’re exhausted. Besides, you’ve got your hands full with Anastasia and we can’t afford to lose focus there. Let me take this off your plate.”
My attention shifts to Daniele, who lifts a shoulder. Nodding, I instruct, “Daniele, I want you to keep looking for Anastasia. She can’t have just disappeared into thin air. Hand over whatever you have on the rat to Aldo, and we’ll reconvene at the end of the week. It goes without saying, if you get a break before then, let me know.”
“Yes, boss,” they reply in unison.
“Good, now that we have that sorted, has there been any luck with finding the guy that was trailing Margot?”
Daniele nods, shifting forward in his seat. “Yes, Angelo provided a good description of the guy. We’ve got it circulating and I’m confident that we’ll have him soon.”
My relief is palpable. “Okay. If she wants to go anywhere, I want at least four men with her.”
“ Capisco ,” Daniele replies before continuing, “If there’s nothing else…”
I wave my hand, indicating that they’re free to leave.
Daniele stands, inclining his head to me before turning to Aldo. “Come, let me get my files for you and we can go over them.”
They leave the living room, and I walk to the window, staring out at the gardens in front of me. It’s not just my life at risk now, whoever is intent on taking down my family has their eyes set on Margot too, otherwise, why would they be following her?
I’ll be damned if I let them touch her. A possessiveness takes root in my chest at the thought of her. I’m becoming far too attached to someone I married because it was convenient.