Chapter 12 - The Ghost in the MachineWhen a predator threatens your home, you do not build higher walls. You find the predator’s supply line, and you burn it to the ground.
By midnight, the library of the estate was transformed into a militarized war room. Elena had taken Nico to a secure wing of the house. Marcus and I sat at the massive oak desk, surrounded by laptops, encrypted servers, and three of the most ruthless forensic accountants in the country.
"Romano is arrogant," I said, staring at the digital web of offshore routing numbers projected on the screen. "He thinks he cornered me by freezing the foundation's legitimate accounts. He assumes I will play defense."
"He covered his tracks perfectly," one of the accountants sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. "His holding company, Aegis Sovereign, is registered in the Caymans. It’s an impenetrable black box. We can't prove he's using cartel money, and we can't trace the fifty million back to him."
"Every black box has a key," Marcus said, pacing behind my chair. He looked dangerous—a lethal shadow pacing a cage. "But if Romano controls the European money, the only people who know his routing ciphers are the men who used to deposit the cash."
The room went dead silent.
I looked at Marcus. The realization hung heavily in the air between us.
There was only one man alive who knew how the Moretti empire had wired its dirty money to Alessio Romano. Only one man who possessed the exact digital footprints required to expose Aegis Sovereign to the international authorities.
"Lucian," I whispered.
My ex-husband. The violent king I had dethroned. He was currently sitting in a high-security federal holding facility in Manhattan, cooperating with the DOJ while awaiting his final sentencing.
"Serena, no," Marcus said instantly, stepping forward, his protective instincts flaring. "You are not going to see him. It’s a manipulation tactic. Lucian will try to use this to regain control over you."
"He has no control over me," I replied, my voice hard as diamonds. I stood up, grabbing my tailored trench coat from the back of the chair. "Alessio Romano thinks he has me trapped because he holds the purse strings. But he forgot that I hold the architect of his entire system."
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I looked at Marcus, the fierce, unyielding devotion in his eyes making my heart skip a beat. But I did not need him to save me. I needed him to stand beside me.
"Call the warden at the Manhattan Federal Detention Center," I commanded. "Tell them Serena Moretti is coming. And tell them to wake my ex-husband up."
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