Chapter 8 - The Basement Ledger
The ledger was not just a list of crimes.
It was a map of people who had spent twenty years pretending to be respectable.
Judges. Contractors. A deputy commissioner. Two union officials. Three charities. Seven companies with innocent names. Beside each was a number, a date, or an initial.
Stefano looked through the pages and grew quieter with each one.
"These are my father's accounts," he said. "But some entries are after he died."
"Vincent kept the system."
"He improved it."
Father Michael crossed himself. "That is not the word I would use."
We had two problems. Claire was being held somewhere near the river, and the ledger was valuable enough to get everyone around it killed.
"We copy it," I said.
Stefano looked at me. "Already happening."
Marco was photographing every page.
"We send it to the police."
"Which police?" Stefano asked.
I hated that he had a point.
Father Michael said, "Federal prosecutors."
Stefano's eyes shifted to him.
"You have one?"
The priest sighed. "Contrary to popular belief, confession is not my only social network."
For the first time that night, I almost laughed.
We sent encrypted copies to a federal prosecutor Father Michael trusted and to a journalist Paula had named on the tape. Then we left the original ledger in locker 314 and took a decoy.
Stefano insisted I wear a coat over the red dress.
"Vincent asked for the dress," I said.
"Vincent is not getting what he asks for tonight."
"My sister might disagree."
His gaze softened. "Your sister is part of why we're going."
"Part?"
"You are the other part."
I looked away before the words could become something I was not ready to understand.
Marco found three possible buildings that matched Claire's description. We split the search. Stefano and I went to an abandoned boat-repair warehouse on the river.
The gray door stood open.
Inside, a single light burned over a chair.
The chair was empty.
On it sat Claire's phone.
I ran toward it.
Stefano caught my arm.
"Don't."
"That's her phone."
"Exactly."
A red dot appeared on his chest.
I saw it before he did.
"Stefano!"
I slammed into him.
A shot cracked through the warehouse.
We hit the concrete together.
The bullet struck the chair and sent Claire's phone spinning across the floor.
Then the lights went out.
May you like
From somewhere above us, Vincent's voice came through a speaker.
"Happy birthday, Nora. Let's see whether Stefano chooses better this time."
