THE FORGED TICKET IN THE NIGHT

Anna lay flat against the cold tar of the roof, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

She had to suppress the urge to scream, to climb back down the vent and fight for the brother she had just found. But she remembered Dominic’s command. She had the key. She had the weapon that could destroy Vincent.

She scrambled across the adjoining rooftops, climbing down a rusted fire escape two buildings over.

She ran to a payphone outside a 24-hour diner. Her hands shook violently as she dug a quarter out of her torn pocket and dialed the number Dominic had made her memorize in the car.

Marcus answered on the first ring.

“Anna? Where is he?”

“They took him,” she sobbed. “Silas took him. Marcus, you have to help him!”

“Where are you?” Marcus demanded, his voice tight with fury.

She gave him the cross streets.

“I’m five minutes away,” Marcus said. “Stay hidden.”

When Marcus’s armored SUV pulled up to the diner, Anna practically dove into the backseat.

“They took him back to the estate,” Marcus said grimly as he sped through the morning traffic. “We intercepted Vincent’s radio traffic. He’s calling a meeting of all the capos in the main ballroom. He’s going to execute Dominic publicly and declare himself the new head of the family.”

“We have to stop him,” Anna pleaded.

“I only have ten loyal men left, Anna,” Marcus said, hitting the steering wheel in frustration. “Vincent bought the rest. We can't breach the front gate without a bloodbath, and Dominic would be dead before we crossed the lawn.”

Anna squeezed the stuffed bear in her hands.

“We don't need to use the front gate,” she said, her voice suddenly steady. “Thomas told me about the secret passages when I started working there. He drew me a map in case I ever needed to escape.”

Marcus looked at her in the rearview mirror. “Can you get us into the basement?”

“I can get us straight into Vincent’s office,” she said.

Thirty minutes later, Anna and Marcus, flanked by three of Dominic’s most trusted guards, slipped through an old prohibition-era drainage tunnel that emptied into the estate’s wine cellar.

The house above them was buzzing with tension. Dozens of Vincent’s men were securing the perimeter, completely unaware that the real threat was already inside the walls.

Anna led them up the narrow servant stairs, bypassing the main hallways. They reached the hidden panel behind the bookshelves in the library, which connected directly to Vincent’s private office.

Marcus pushed the panel open. The office was empty.

“Where is the post office box key?” Marcus asked quickly.

Anna ripped the seam of the stuffed bear and pulled out a small, brass key.

“This is it,” she said. “But we don't have time to go to a post office.”

“We don't have to,” a voice croaked from the doorway.

Anna and Marcus spun around, weapons raised.

Mrs. Gable, the silver-haired housekeeper, stood trembling in the doorway. Her face was bruised, and she looked terrified.

“Put the gun down, Marcus,” Mrs. Gable wept. “I didn't want to hurt Dominic. Vincent forced me to set the fire. He told me he would kill my grandchildren if I didn't help him.”

“Why should we believe you?” Marcus snarled.

“Because I know where Vincent keeps his personal safe,” she said. “And I know the combination.”

Anna lowered her guard slightly. “Why are you helping us now?”

“Because he has Dominic kneeling in the ballroom,” Mrs. Gable sobbed. “He’s going to kill the boy I helped raise. I can't let him do it.”

She walked over to a heavy oil painting behind Vincent’s desk and swung it open, revealing a wall safe. She quickly dialed the combination.

The heavy steel door clicked open.

Marcus pulled out a stack of documents. “These are bank transfers. Wire logs. Proof that Vincent has been stealing from the Commission for twenty years.”

But Anna wasn't looking at the papers.

She reached into the back of the safe and pulled out a long, velvet jewelry box.

She opened it.

Resting on the black satin was a stunning, incredibly expensive diamond necklace.

Marcus stopped breathing. “Where did he get that?”

“What is it?” Anna asked.

“That’s the necklace Dominic bought for his fiancée, Elena, five years ago,” Marcus whispered, horror dawning in his eyes. “She was wearing it the night she was killed in a supposedly random mugging.”

Anna felt a chill run down her spine. Vincent hadn't just killed their mother and brother. He had murdered Dominic’s fiancée to ensure Dominic remained isolated, broken, and entirely dependent on Vincent’s guidance.

“He’s a monster,” Anna whispered.