“There's also been talk,” I add slowly, my voice taking on a conversational tone, “about a journalist sniffing around Bennato's operations.”
They shift again, and this time, the reaction is more pronounced. Eduard stiffens slightly, his shoulders drawing up toward his ears. Peter's brow dips in concentration as if he's trying to remember something important. Andrei chuckles like it's nothing, but the sound is forced and hollow.
“Anyone know who she is?” I continue to study each face. “Young. Cuban American. Tenacious.”
A glimmer of something passes over Anatoly's face. Recognition? Worry? Fear? It's gone too quickly for me to be certain, but it's enough to make my instincts scream.
“No one?”
They all shake their heads, but some do it more convincingly than others. Artur's denial is firm and immediate. Peter looksgenuinely puzzled. But Anatoly's response comes a fraction of a second too late, and Eduard won't meet my eyes at all.
“Then if you find anything, you'll bring it to me directly. Is that understood?”
A chorus of yeses fills the room, accompanied by nods and assurances of loyalty. But obedience means nothing when I no longer know who I can trust. Words are cheap, and loyalty can be bought by the highest bidder.
I dismiss them with a wave of my hand, watching as they file out of the room. Each man leaves differently. Artur walks with the confidence of someone who has nothing to hide. Peter moves with purpose, already planning his next steps. Eduard hurries out like he can't wait to escape my presence. Anatoly maintains his swagger, but I notice his hands trembling slightly. Andrei offers one last smile that doesn't reach his eyes.
Sergey remains, as I knew he would. He's been my second-in-command for years, my most trusted advisor and enforcer. If I can't trust him, then I can't trust anyone.
“Well?” he asks once the door closes behind the others.
I lean back in my chair and let out a slow breath. “I didn't see it. Not clearly. Not in any of them. If there's a traitor, they're hiding it well.”
Sergey's mouth pulls into a thin line. “What now?”
“We dig.” I stand and walk to the window, pulling back the curtain to look out at the city sprawling below. “We watch. We listen. We set traps.”
The idea of setting traps for my own men leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. These are people I've trusted with my life, my secrets,my empire. The thought that one of them might be betraying me to my enemies makes my blood burn with rage.
“I want you on this personally,” I tell him, turning back to face him. “No one else. Quietly. Whoever it is, they're close enough to do real damage.”
Sergey gives a short, clipped nod. “I'll start surveillance immediately. Phone taps, financial records, travel patterns. If someone's been feeding information to Bennato, they've left a trail.”
“Good. But be careful. If they suspect we're onto them, they might run. Or worse, they might escalate.”
The thought of escalation makes my skin crawl. If the mole decides to make a preemptive strike, Elena becomes an obvious target. She's my weakness, and everyone just confirmed they know about her existence whether they said it aloud or not.
“Sergey,” I add, my voice dropping to a whisper. “I want protection on Elena doubled. No one gets near her without my explicit permission.”
Something shifts in his eyes. Surprise? Resentment? It's gone before I can analyze it properly.
“Of course,” he replies. “'ll assign additional guards immediately.”
He turns to leave, but I stop him with a raised hand.
“And Sergey,” I add, my voice low and deadly serious. “If you find something, bring it to me first. No one else. No matter what you discover, no matter who it implicates, you come to me.”
He glances back, his expression blank. “Of course.”
The door closes behind him with a soft click, leaving me alone with my thoughts and my fears. I walk back to the window and stare out at Miami, thinking about all the ways this could go wrong.
If there's a mole in my organization, they know about Elena. They know she's here, under my protection, sharing my bed. They now know exactly how to hurt me. The realization makes my hands clench into fists.
I've spent years building walls around myself, keeping everyone at arm's length to avoid exactly this vulnerability. I've been careful never to care too much about anyone, never to let emotion cloud my judgment. But Elena has shattered those defenses with her stubborn courage and fierce independence. Now, that weakness could destroy everything I've built.
But as I stand here, watching the sun climb higher over the city I've claimed as my own, I realize something that should terrify me but doesn't. I don't care. Let them come for me. Let them try to use her against me. I'll burn this entire city to the ground before I let anyone hurt her.
The mole thinks they hold power over me. They believe knowing about Elena gives them leverage. But they're wrong. It doesn't make me weaker. It makes me infinitely more dangerous.
