Chapter 10 - THE RUBY NECKLACE
Adrian stared at the glittering ruby in the velvet box.
“A necklace?” he asked, confused. “Mom, Marcus doesn't want jewelry. He wants the port territory.”
I lifted the heavy gold chain from the box.
“This isn't just a necklace, Adrian. It’s an insurance policy.”
I turned the massive ruby pendant over. On the back, almost invisible to the naked eye, was a tiny seam.
I used my fingernail to pop the gold backing open.
Inside the locket wasn't a picture.
It was a micro-SD card.
“Your father knew that one day, someone like Marcus would try to take the city,” I explained, pulling the tiny memory card out. “Vincenzo spent the last ten years of his life compiling a digital ledger. Every bribe Marcus ever paid. Every politician he bought. Every body he buried.”
Adrian’s eyes widened in realization.
“It’s a kill switch,” he breathed.
“Exactly,” I said. “If Marcus attacks us, this ledger goes directly to the FBI, the IRS, and every rival Marcus has on the East Coast. It would dismantle his entire syndicate in twenty-four hours.”
Adrian took the memory card from my hand, holding it like it was made of glass.
“Why didn't Dad ever tell me about this?”
“Because he hoped you would never have to use it,” I said softly. “He wanted you to be legitimate, Adrian. He wanted this war to die with him.”
Adrian closed his fist around the card.
His posture changed. The fear was gone, replaced by the cold, calculating strength of a true leader.
“Call Marcus back,” Adrian told his men. “Tell him I’ll meet him at the neutral zone. The old steel mill on 4th Street. Midnight.”
“I’m coming with you,” I said.
Adrian immediately shook his head. “Absolutely not. It’s too dangerous.”
“I am the one who holds the leverage, Adrian,” I said firmly, taking the micro-SD card back and placing it securely inside the ruby locket. I fastened the necklace around my neck. The heavy stone rested against my collarbone like armor. “Marcus respects the old ways. He knows I am Vincenzo’s widow. If you go alone, he’ll treat you like a boy. If I go, he’ll know we are serious.”
Adrian looked at me, seeing the absolute resolve in my eyes.
He nodded. “Marcus’s men will search us. They’ll take our weapons.”
“Let them,” I said. “The only weapon we need is right here.”
At 11:30 PM, we arrived at the abandoned steel mill.
The rain was coming down in sheets.
Inside the cavernous, rusting building, Marcus was waiting.
He was an older man, leaning on a silver cane—the same man I thought I had hallucinated in the mirror. He was surrounded by a dozen armed men.
Adrian and I walked in, flanked by only two of our own guards.
Marcus smiled, a predatory grin that made my stomach turn.
“Eleanor,” Marcus crooned. “You look as beautiful as the day Vincenzo stole you from me.”
“Save the flattery, Marcus,” I said coldly.
Marcus laughed. He looked at Adrian. “So, boy. Do you have the deed to the ports?”
“No,” Adrian said calmly.
Marcus’s smile vanished. His men raised their guns.
“Then you die tonight,” Marcus snarled.
I stepped forward, pulling the heavy ruby necklace from my collar so it rested on the outside of my coat.
“No one is dying tonight, Marcus,” I said, my voice echoing off the steel walls. “Because if a single bullet is fired, the contents of this locket go straight to the federal prosecutor.”
Marcus squinted at the necklace.
“A bluff,” he scoffed.
“Open it, Adrian,” I said confidently.
Adrian reached toward my neck, pressing his thumb against the hidden seam.
The gold backing popped open.
Adrian froze.
He looked inside the locket, his breath hitching.
May you like
He looked at me, panic flooding his eyes.
The locket was empty.
