Chapter 25 | Nick
Nick
Alexis and I continued to sneak around for a week, which then turned into another week. I was growing increasingly uncomfortable with lying to Michael and Bianca, and knew we needed to figure out a solution sooner rather than later.
The problem was that I didn’t know what the solution was.
I knew Alexis was applying for jobs in Manhattan at big IT and AI firms, and I wanted her to get one of those jobs and kick major ass.
But I also understood that having me as her partner would make things difficult.
Those companies required all sorts of background checks—of the employees and their partners—and I couldn’t subject myself to any of those.
Being in the mafia was an off-the-books endeavor, and working in Corporate America was exactly the opposite. As the days wore on, I felt like we were heading toward the inevitable realization that we both had lives that just didn’t fit.
Every time I brought it up to Alexis, she swore we’d make some decisions soon, but we both knew we were stalling. Still, I could tell that she didn’t like keeping secrets from Bianca, so it was just a matter of time before we had to figure things out.
To make matters worse, Alexis had discovered some alarming security breaches on Michael’s cell phone and his home security system, and Michael had replaced both. I’d gotten a new phone to be safe, and so had Alexis and Bianca.
Two additional shipments of unauthorized firearms showed up at the ports, which was extremely worrisome. It was imperative that all firearm and drug shipments had Michael’s approval, and he ramped up his communication with Leo to figure out how illicit shipments were slipping by.
On the morning of the second unauthorized shipment, we stood in the early dawn on the Red Hook, Brooklyn dock as Michael stared with narrowed eyes at the docked cargo boat. A muscle ticked in his jaw, and I could feel the rage emanating from his frame.
“Where the fuck did this boat come from?” he asked the stevedore on duty.
“I don’t know, Mr. Caruso. We saw it on the horizon, and it came from the south. There were no men on it. It’s as if they vanished. I wish I could tell you more.”
Michael slowly turned his head; his eyes filled with fury.
“I pay you to know everything. Do you think your minimum wage salary is going to keep Hillary in those expensive boots and stocked with the Birkin bags she adores?” he asked, referencing the stevedore’s wife.
“I can cut it off at any moment, Theo. Do I need to do that today?”
“No, sir,” Theo said, swallowing thickly. “I’ll work with your men to trace everything we can on the ship.”
“The serial numbers will be filed off the guns, and my men already searched for drugs and girls. None on this ship, which I’d count myself thankful for if I were you.”
Theo nodded, the movement shaky.
“Someone’s stockpiling weapons and preparing for an attack,” Michael said, a warning in his tone.
“I want logs of every person who comes within five miles of this port, Theo. I’ll have my Director of Digital Security set up an encrypted email, and I’ll expect the log every morning at three a.m. before the new shift starts at four. Are we clear?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Don’t make me regret leaving you in charge here.” He patted Theo’s face several times. “Understood?”
Theo nodded and pivoted to rush to the boat to help Michael’s men filter through the inventory.
Once we were back in the SUV, I asked, “Who is your Director of Digital Security? Haven’t heard that one before.”
“Alexis for now,” Michael said, rubbing his eyes in frustration. “I really need to pay her for all the work she’s been doing.”
“I know she appreciates staying with you and being close to Bianca. I’m sure she’s happy to help.”
Michael’s gaze drifted to me and he studied me as the silence grew thick. “You two grew close when you guarded her.”
“We did.”
Michael’s eyes lingered on me as I wondered if he knew of my feelings for Alexis. Keeping secrets from him wasn’t allowed with the oath I pledged to him, and I felt like a piece of shit for not telling him. Opening my mouth, I decided to confess just as his phone rang.
“Yes?” He scowled into the phone. “Okay, can you meet me at our spot at Fort Tilton beach? Good. See you there in fifteen minutes.”
Clicking off the phone, his expression grew serious. “One of Oskar’s men was arrested for drunk driving last night. He offered to turn on Oskar in lieu of prosecution, and Leo has information for us.”
“That could be huge.”
Michael nodded. “We’ll talk more at dinner tonight. For now, let’s focus on figuring out what the hell’s going on. I refuse to allow another shipment to slip in under my nose. And if someone’s stockpiling for a war, I damned well want to know who.”
We rode in silence to Fort Tilton, a latent understanding passing between us: if someone was stockpiling weapons and keeping it from Michael, then the war they wanted to wage was on him.
Armed with that heavy knowledge, we headed to meet Leo.
Alexis
My fingers roved over my keyboard in my office as I completed the additional encryption I’d installed on Michael’s Wi-Fi. The original encryption was fine for everyday Wi-Fi users, but with the recent breaches, I wanted extra firewalls.
I clicked enter, and smiled. “There. Much better.”
Rising, I headed to his office to restart the router. When I returned to my laptop, I pulled up the available networks and located Michael’s which I’d affectionately renamed “SFH740479!*0969.” Of course, SFH stood for “Siver Fox Hottie,” which was my favorite nickname for Michael.
I logged into his router on an incognito browser just to double check the connected devices and my mouse arrow hovered over one I’d never seen. “What the fuck?”
There was a device named CAM09368 and I looked toward the ceiling as I racked my brain.
I’d renamed all the outside security cameras, and they all appeared on the list I was seeing.
The names were similar: CAM69409, CAM53098, and so on, but I had an excellent memory and didn’t remember entering the specific sequence CAM09368.
I checked the number of cameras listed—fourteen total—but something felt off.
If someone had hacked in and attached a new camera to the Wi-Fi, they could’ve deleted the old one to ensure the number of devices remained the same.
I’d created encryption that didn’t allow the cameras to be named the same twice as a precaution, just in case we were hacked, which I didn’t think was possible with my encryption skills. Sitting back in my chair, I blew out a huge breath.
“Someone with some good fucking hacking skills is watching us,” I whispered. I was sure of it. There couldn’t be any other possible explanation.
Standing, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck rise. Fear snaked down my spine at the knowledge that everyone in the house was possibly being surveilled. Walking into the foyer, I found Chris there. He usually stayed at home as a lookout when Michael needed Joaquin and Enzo with him.
“Hey, Alexis. You good?”
“Um, not really. Can you come out back with me for a second?”
His eyebrows lifted. “Is everything okay? You look spooked.”
“I kind of am. I think someone planted a camera in the back yard. Can you come with me while I look?”
He hesitated. “We should call Michael and wait until he gets home.”
“He told us last night at dinner that he and Nick will be out all day. I can’t wait that long. If you don’t come with me, I’ll just do it myself.” Pivoting, I pulled my phone from my pocket and headed toward the kitchen.
Chris muttered something that sounded like “stubborn Rossi women” and followed me into the back yard.
I searched my phone for the app I needed and held it high as I rotated it around.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m using a RF triangulation app to pinpoint where a signal is coming from.” I walked around the yard, monitoring where the signal grew weaker and then stronger. Approaching the gate, I unlatched it and walked through.
“Alexis, you need to stay inside the fence,” Chris said, following me.
“The signal is stronger over here...”
I walked toward Nick’s BMW, alarmed when the signal grew even stronger.
“What the fuck?” I breathed. Lowering to my knees, I felt underneath the driver’s side of the car. My hand ran over a bump and I tugged it, wrenching it free. Pulling it out, I examined it as Chris crouched beside me.
“Is that a camera?”
“Yes. A very small one. Take it and let me make sure there aren’t more.”
He took it and I slipped my hand back under the car. Feeling around, I felt another longer object and tugged that one, but it wouldn’t budge.
Lowering on my stomach, I tried to peer up to see it. I reached for it again, gripping it and pulling.
A small beep sounded.
It took a moment for my brain to register what was happening.
Another beep sounded.
Gasping, I rolled to my feet and yelled, “Bomb!”
I was able to run a few feet before the explosion detonated behind me in the loudest sound I’d ever heard. My body was lifted from the ground and I felt myself flying as I heard Chris scream beside me.
Intense pain ricocheted through my body before I crashed to the ground in a lump of muscle and bone. And then, I closed my eyes as I lost the battle with unconsciousness.