Chapter 6 - Blood Is Thicker Than PoisonThe next morning, the mansion felt like a tomb. Lily was sleeping under heavy sedation in a fortified panic room beneath the estate, guarded by Marcus and four loyal elite enforcers.
Dominic and I sat in his private tactical armory. Wall-to-wall racks of assault rifles, tactical vests, and custom blades gleamed under the cold LED lights.
"Vincent controls the docks and the international shipping lanes," Dominic explained, loading a magazine into a suppressed Glock with practiced precision. "If we go after him openly, a full-scale turf war breaks out in the middle of Chicago, and the police—which he also owns—will crush us both."
"So we don't go after him openly," I said, leaning against a weapons bench. I was clutching my side, the pain refusing to subside. "Elena's dead man's switch failed, but Vincent doesn't know that yet. He thinks his data package went through."
Dominic paused, a slow, predatory grin spreading across his face. "He thinks he has total control. He thinks I'm blind."
"Exactly. We send him a ghost," I said, tapping the laptop screen I had brought with me. "We ping his primary offshore account using Elena’s terminal, making it look like she survived and is demanding double payment for the stolen files. If Vincent panics, he’ll try to meet her contact personally to tie up loose ends."
"And when he shows up," Dominic’s voice dropped an octave, "we catch him in the act."
"There's just one problem," I added, coughing slightly into my fist, trying to hide the dark stain appearing on my handkerchief. "Vincent won't go anywhere dangerous without an army. We need bait."
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Dominic looked at me, his eyes dark, heavy with a weight no man should have to carry.
"You," Dominic said. "You wear the silver wolf bracelet tonight. You walk right into his trap at the abandoned railyard on 4th Street. And I’ll be waiting in the shadows."
