Mateo coughed, wiped soot from his mouth, then barked a laugh.“Well,” he rasped, “on the bright side, that’s at least six forms I don’t have to falsify.”
Dominic pushed himself upright with a grunt, staring at the fireball where the house had been.“Absolute fucking tragedy.Somewhere, a real estate agent just felt a disturbance in the force.”
Luca rolled his eyes, dragging air back into his chest.“You’re both idiots.”
But he was already reaching for his phone, turning away from the wreckage.
Going back to her.
He knew, with absolute certainty, that he always would.
Chapter Fifteen
“So,” Dominic said,breaking the silence, “we didn’t get our traitor.”
Luca’s house still smelled faintly of antiseptic and gun oil.Someone had opened windows, letting in the cool night air, but the tension clung to the room anyway.The dining table had become a command surface again, maps and devices scattered across it like they’d always belonged there.
Mara was curled up on the couch beside Luca, knees tucked in, his arm a solid band around her shoulders.She hadn’t let go of him since they’d walked in.He hadn’t even thought to try making her.
“No,” Elias said calmly.“But we got confirmation.”
Mateo leaned back in one of the chairs, fingers steepled.“Confirmation that someone else is setting the board.”
Dominic grimaced.“Which begs the question—do we shut it all down?”
The room stilled.
Elias’s gaze lifted, sharp.“I considered it.”
That earned attention.
“Then why aren’t we?”Luca asked.
“Because shutting down doesn’t erase what we’ve already built,” Elias replied.“It just hands it over to people who don’t care about the Code.The networks would still exist.The money would still move.The traffickers would still operate—just without us leading with a code and interfering where we need to.And because,” he continued, voice lowering, “the moment we disappear, whoever did this knows they’ve won.”
Mara shifted slightly, pressing closer to Luca.He felt the tremor she tried to hide.
