Chapter 51 - The Voice of the Dead
The digitized voice of Cesare Moretti filled the Grand Hall, reverberating off the vaulted marble ceiling like thunder. It was not a recording captured in secret, but an official deposition, stamped with the unmistakable cryptographic seal of the Zurich Banking Tribunal.
"If this codicil is unsealed," Cesare’s voice echoed, cold and resonant, "it means my brother Antonio has executed what he long threatened. It means I am dead by his hand, and that my son Vincent was left to inherit ashes."
Antonio’s face drained of every ounce of color. The predatory arrogance that had defined him for decades dissolved into naked panic. He stepped back from the dais, his boots scuffing violently against the polished stone.
"Lies!" Antonio roared, his voice cracking as he swung toward the six Capos. "A fabrication! She hacked the terminal! She planted an algorithm!"
"The Zurich master key cannot be forged, Don Antonio," Capo Salvatore said, his hand resting firmly on the grip of the Beretta at his hip. The elderly boss took two deliberate paces away from Antonio, putting distance between himself and a marked man. "We all signed that covenant twenty-five years ago. Each of our bloodlines holds an encrypted key to the ledger. And that voice belongs to Cesare."
Vincent moved before anyone else could react. He closed the distance between himself and Antonio with lethal precision. His arm flashed forward, gripping Antonio by the throat and slamming the older man against the edge of the bronze conference table. The impact rattled the crystal carafes, sending red wine sloshing onto the white linen.
"You killed him," Vincent whispered, his voice dangerously low, vibrated with years of suppressed fury. "You looked me in the eye at eighteen, told me he died in a car accident in Palermo, and took his seat."
"Vincent, wait!" Antonio gasped, clawing at Vincent’s iron grip. "You don't understand what he was going to do—he was going to liquidate the family! He was going to dismantle everything our ancestors built!"
Maya whimpered, burying her face into the curve of my neck. I tightened my embrace around her, stepping back toward the reinforced security archway while keeping my eyes locked on the room. Every Capo had drawn their weapon now, but their barrels were no longer pointed at Vincent. They were aimed at Antonio’s personal bodyguards, who stood frozen, outmatched and outpositioned.
"Drop your weapons," Capo Salvatore commanded Antonio’s guards. "Before we paint this floor with you."
Metal clattered against marble as Antonio’s men surrendered.
Vincent’s fingers tightened on Antonio’s neck until the older man’s face turned purple. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't tear your throat out right here in front of the Commission."
May you like
"Because..." Antonio choked out, his bloodshot eyes darting toward Maya, "because if I die tonight... the trigger file activates. The external buyer... Cesare made a deal with... they already have her location."
Vincent froze, his knuckles whitening.
