Chapter 1: The Genesis Ledger
“This isn’t just about the money or the territory,” Elena whispered, her voice a razor in the dark. “He knows about the Genesis Ledger.”
Vincent’s blood stopped cold.
The Genesis Ledger wasn’t a book of accounts; it was a digital vault. It contained thirty years of blackmail—corrupt judges, compromised senators, and the dirty secrets of every major crime syndicate on the Eastern Seaboard. It was his ultimate insurance policy, buried so deep not even his wife knew it existed.
“How do you know about that?” Vincent demanded, his voice a lethal, barely audible rasp.
“Because my agency has been looking for it for a decade,” Elena replied smoothly, her shaking hands finally steadying. “I’m not a maid, Torino. I’m a federal agent. I was planted here to find it. But your nephew beat us to the punch. He made a deal with the Volkov cartel. He gives them the Ledger, they give him the muscle to wipe out the rest of your loyalists.”
Before Vincent could process the weight of the double betrayal, heavy footsteps stopped right outside the closet door.
“I’m going to check the master bath,” one of the gunmen grunted.
“You,” Marcus commanded the other. “Check the closet.”
Elena’s eyes locked onto Vincent’s. The federal agent and the Mafia don shared a single, unspoken understanding: We go loud.
She drew her 9mm. Vincent reached blindly behind him, his fingers finding the heavy, solid brass handle of a custom shoehorn. It wasn’t a gun, but in Vincent’s hands, anything was a weapon.
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The closet door yanked open. Light spilled in.
Vincent didn't hesitate. He lunged out of the darkness, driving the brass handle straight into the gunman’s throat. The man collapsed with a wet gurgle, his assault rifle clattering to the hardwood.
