War plans
Chapter 28: War Plans
The problem with Lorenzo Vitale was that he looked entirely too calm when he was angry.
Not loud angry.
Not screaming angry.
Not throwing-things angry.
The dangerous kind.
The quiet kind.
The kind that changed city skylines.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Warehouse Twelve sat abandoned near the docks.
At least officially.
Unofficially...
It was currently occupied by a very unfortunate man.
A man tied to a metal chair.
A man who had made several terrible life choices.
A man who was rapidly discovering the consequences of those choices.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The shooter sat trembling beneath a single overhead light.
Blood stained his shirt.
Sweat covered his face.
Fear filled his eyes.
Reasonably.
Very reasonably.
The warehouse doors opened.
Silence.
Immediate silence.
Lorenzo entered first.
Black suit.
Perfect posture.
Dangerous eyes.
The usual.
Behind him came several captains.
Several soldiers.
Enough firepower to invade a small nation.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The shooter immediately started talking.
A mistake.
A desperate mistake.
"I'll tell you everything."
Silence.
Lorenzo continued walking.
Unhurried.
Unbothered.
Terrifying.
"I'll talk."
The man sounded panicked now.
Good.
Excellent.
Outstanding.
The shooter licked his lips.
"They paid me."
Silence.
"They told me where you'd be."
Another pause.
"We weren't supposed to miss."
The warehouse froze.
Immediately.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Lorenzo stopped walking.
The shooter looked hopeful.
The poor fool.
The complete fool.
Hope had no business being in this warehouse.
Not tonight.
"Who paid you?"
The question came softly.
Almost politely.
The shooter answered immediately.
"Romano."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
One captain sighed.
Immediately.
The universal sound of a man whose weekend had just been ruined.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Lorenzo nodded.
Once.
Slowly.
As though confirming information he already knew.
Because he did.
The shooter continued.
Desperately.
"I didn't know who she was."
Silence.
"I swear."
Another pause.
"I didn't know."
Interesting.
Very interesting.
For the first time all night, Lorenzo smiled.
The wrong smile.
The terrifying smile.
The smile people saw in nightmares.
"You shot at her anyway."
The hope vanished.
Immediately.
Reasonably.
Very reasonably.
Across the city, Amara Queen was also working.
Because of course she was.
A sane person would've gone home.
A sane person would've taken the day off.
A sane person would've processed their feelings after surviving a second assassination attempt.
Unfortunately...
Amara Queen was not sane.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The underground hospital was nearly complete.
Workers moved through the lower levels.
Electricians installed lighting.
Engineers tested systems.
Contractors finished final details.
The dream was becoming reality.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Amara walked through the facility with a clipboard in hand.
Immediately finding problems.
The betrayal.
The contractor betrayal.
Undefeated.
"This hallway is too narrow."
The project manager sighed.
Immediately.
The universal sound of suffering.
"By three inches."
Amara looked unimpressed.
Naturally.
"Three inches matters."
Silence.
The poor man nodded.
Rapidly.
Very rapidly.
Smart.
Very smart.
Her phone buzzed.
A text message.
Lorenzo.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Have you eaten?
Silence.
Amara stared at the screen.
Then at the half-empty coffee cup in her hand.
Then back at the screen.
The betrayal.
The concerned-man betrayal.
Undefeated.
She typed:
Coffee is food.
Three dots appeared.
Immediately.
Then:
No.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Another message arrived.
I'm sending lunch.
Amara rolled her eyes.
Immediately.
The audacity.
The complete audacity.
Don't.
The response arrived almost instantly.
Too late.
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The surgeon smiled despite herself.
A dangerous development.
A very dangerous development.
Meanwhile, Viktor Romano was having a bad day.
A very bad day.
The old mafia boss sat inside his office reading reports.
Missing shipments.
Lost money.
Failed attacks.
Disappearing soldiers.
The usual.
Except it wasn't usual.
Because Lorenzo was pushing back.
Hard.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
A coughing fit interrupted his thoughts.
Violent.
Painful.
Persistent.
The medication wasn't working anymore.
The realization irritated him.
Deeply.
His doctor had warned him months ago.
Rest.
Reduce stress.
Change his lifestyle.
The usual nonsense.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Viktor reached for another pill.
Then froze.
A photograph sat on his desk.
Amara.
Lorenzo.
Holding hands.
The picture that had started all this.
The picture that represented weakness.
Or so he'd thought.
Now he wasn't so sure.
Because instead of distracting Lorenzo...
The woman seemed to be making him stronger.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The realization settled heavily in his chest.
And for the first time...
Viktor Romano began wondering if he'd made a mistake.
A very large mistake.
A very expensive mistake.
A potentially fatal mistake.
Because somewhere in Chicago...
The king was moving his pieces.
And every move brought him closer to checkmate.
End Chapter 28