Chapter 14 - The Judas Kiss in the House of Russo
The bullet grazed my shoulder,
a hot iron brand that sent me reeling against the stone railing.
I felt the warmth of my own blood soaking through the blue silk,
but I didn't fall.
Victor was on her in an instant,
disarming her with a brutal efficiency that left her pinned against the wall.
"It’s over,
Sofia,"
he said,
his voice a low,
vibrating growl.
"The files are gone."
"The accounts are being frozen as we speak."
Sofia laughed,
even as he choked the life out of her.
"You think...
this was me?"
"I’m just the face,
Victor."
"The Syndicate...
they don't care about our name."
"They care about the ports."
"And they’ve already moved on to the next puppet."
"Look at your brother,
Victor."
"Look at Marco."
I froze.
Marco was standing behind me,
his gun leveled not at the mercenaries,
but at Victor’s back.
"Marco?"
I whispered,
the world turning cold.
"The safe house,"
I realized.
"You said you moved Emily."
"But you didn't,
did you?"
Marco’s eyes were dead,
void of the brotherhood I had seen earlier.
"Victor is a dreamer,"
Marco said.
"He wants to make the company legitimate."
"He wants to pay taxes and follow rules."
"The Syndicate offers a different path."
"A path where we don't have to hide who we are."
"And the girl?"
Victor asked,
his voice breaking for the first time.
"Where is my daughter,
Marco?"
"She’s with Dr. Pierce,"
Marco said.
"On a boat headed for international waters."
"If you want her back,
you’ll sign the transfer of power."
"You’ll give the Syndicate the Atlantic terminals."
"And you’ll retire to a quiet life in the mountains."
I looked at the flash drive in my hand.
The evidence.
The key to everything.
"He won't sign,"
I said,
stepping forward,
ignoring the pain in my shoulder.
"Because if he signs,
you’ll kill her anyway."
"That’s how the Meridian works."
"They don't leave witnesses."
"They don't leave heirs."
I held the drive over the edge of the balcony,
over the burning remains of the ballroom.
"Drop the gun,
Marco,"
I said.
"Or the data burns."
"And without this data,
the Syndicate can't access the offshore funds."
"You’ll have a throne,
but no gold to sit on it."
Marco hesitated.
The greed in his eyes battled with the cold logic of the betrayal.
"You’re bluffing,"
he said.
"You love that girl too much."
"I love her enough to make sure she never has to grow up in a world where you’re in charge,"
I said.
And then,
I did something no one expected.
I didn't drop the drive.
I swallowed the small,
silver chip.
"Now,"
I said,
a grim smile on my face.
"If you want the money,"
"you’ll have to keep me alive."
"And you’ll have to take me to the boat."
"Because I’m the only one who can unlock the encryption."
The stalemate was absolute.
Victor looked at me,
a mixture of horror and admiration in his eyes.
"Claire,
no..."
"Take me to my daughter,"
May you like
I commanded Marco.
"Or kill me now and explain to the Syndicate why three billion dollars just vanished into thin air."
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