Chapter 7 - Betrayal in the Dark
At midnight, Atlantic Harbor Logistics was silent. The rain had cleared, leaving a damp, heavy fog wrapping around the harbor buildings.
Inside the executive suite, a single shadow moved through the darkness. The figure used an administrator keycard to bypass the outer security doors, moving with practiced ease toward Damien’s private office.
The figure reached the heavy mahogany desk, knelt beside the floor safe hidden behind the wall paneling, and pulled out a sophisticated electronic bypass device. The screen glowed faint blue as it began cracking the digital lock.
Click.
The heavy steel door of the safe swung open. Inside lay a single, black encrypted hard drive.
The figure reached in to grab it, but before their fingers could touch the metal, the overhead lights slammed on with blinding intensity.
"You always were impatient, Victor," Damien’s voice cut through the glare.
Victor Reyes spun around, reaching for a weapon inside his jacket, but the loud clack of three handguns cocking simultaneously froze him in place. Frank and two syndicate enforcers stood near the entrance, weapons trained squarely on his chest.
Damien walked out from behind the corner lounge, holding a glass of scotch. He looked entirely relaxed, though his eyes were cold enough to freeze blood.
"Damien," Reyes stammered, raising his hands slowly. "This isn't what it looks like. I came to secure the ledgers... I thought there was a security breach—"
"Save it," Damien said, taking a slow sip. "We intercepted the encrypted wire transfers from New York to your shell accounts in Zurich. We know about the agreement with the Solntsevskaya gang. Fifty million for the Syndicate’s supply routes."
Reyes’s face turned gray. "Damien, listen to me—"
"I don't care about the money, Victor," Damien interrupted, stepping closer. His voice dropped to a terrible, lethal register. "What I care about is the thallium."
Reyes blinked, panic flickering in his eyes. "What thallium? I don't know what you're talking about!"
"You gave Clara Hayes thirty thousand dollars to put heavy metals in Erin’s tea," Damien said, leaning down so his face was inches from Reyes's. "You poisoned my secretary. You poisoned my pregnant wife."
The lie about the marriage rolled off Damien’s tongue with dangerous authority, elevating the crime from simple corporate sabotage to an act of war against his family line.
Reyes gasped. "She... she was pregnant? Damien, I didn't know! Thorne told me to get rid of her! He said she was finding the discrepancies in the books! He bought the chemical from a contact in Canada! I just paid the girl!"
"Thorne bought it?" Damien asked softly.
"Yes! Yes! He has the rest of the supply in his home vault in Plymouth!" Reyes cried out, terrified. "I swear, Damien, I just wanted the ledgers! I didn't want to kill anyone!"
Damien turned his back on Reyes. "Frank."
"Yeah, boss?"
"Take him down to the docks. Make sure he learns how to swim with lead in his pockets."
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"Damien! No! Please!" Reyes’s screams echoed down the hallway as Frank’s men dragged him out of the suite.
Damien stood alone in his office, looking out at the foggy harbor. The fire inside him wasn't quenched—it had simply found its final target.
