The dinner was supposed to be a formality.
A controlled gathering. A show of unity. A reminder to the fractured cartel factions that Alessandro Ricci still commanded the room-not through fear, but through presence.
It was meant to stabilize the board.
Instead, it exposed the rot beneath it.
The long dining hall gleamed under soft golden light. Crystal glasses, polished silver, plates arranged with the precision of a ceremonial offering. Every detail was calculated, every seat assigned with intent.
Power always had a seating chart.
Elena sat to Alessandro's right, as she had begun to do in recent weeks. It was no longer unusual. The room had grown accustomed to her presence, though some still watched her with thinly veiled suspicion.
Across the table, Valerio poured himself wine. To his left sat Lucia, one of the financial coordinators. Beside her, Tomas's empty seat remained-a quiet reminder of the betrayal that had already surfaced.
No one mentioned it.
But everyone felt it.
"Let's keep this brief," Alessandro said, voice calm but firm. "We all know why we're here."
Valerio nodded. "Supply routes in the north have stabilized. The Balkan line is quiet again."
"Too quiet," Marco muttered.
Lucia spoke next. "Financial recovery is underway. But we've lost two major partners in the last week."
Alessandro's gaze sharpened. "Voluntarily?"
"No," she said. "They were... persuaded."
"By whom?"
She hesitated.
And in that hesitation, something shifted in the room.
Elena noticed it first-the subtle glance exchanged between Lucia and Valerio. Not long enough to be obvious. But long enough to matter.
Lucia cleared her throat. "We're still investigating."
Alessandro leaned back slightly. "You've had three days."
Silence.
Marco's eyes narrowed. "What aren't you telling us?"
Lucia's fingers tightened around her glass. "It's complicated."
"No," Alessandro said quietly. "It's not."
The room felt colder suddenly.
Elena's pulse quickened. The air had changed-the way it did just before a storm broke.
"Talk," Marco said.
Lucia swallowed. "One of the withdrawals came from inside our own channels."
No one moved.
Alessandro's voice dropped to a dangerous calm. "Be specific."
Lucia hesitated again.
Valerio shifted in his chair. "Maybe this isn't the time-"
"It's exactly the time," Alessandro cut in.
Lucia exhaled slowly. "The order came from one of our internal authorization codes."
"Whose?" Marco demanded.
Lucia's eyes flickered toward Valerio.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Valerio's face hardened. "Careful."
"I'm just stating what the system shows," Lucia said quietly.
Marco stood abruptly. "You're telling me he signed off on the transfer?"
Valerio pushed his chair back. "I didn't sign anything."
"But your code did," Marco shot back.
"That's impossible."
Elena watched the exchange, her mind racing. Codes weren't just numbers-they were trust. Access. Authority.
If Valerio's code had been used, then either he was lying... or someone close enough to him had betrayed them all.
Alessandro didn't raise his voice. He didn't stand.
But the stillness in his posture was more threatening than any outburst.
"Valerio," he said quietly. "Look at me."
Valerio did.
"Did you authorize the transfer?"
"No."
"Did you share your code?"
Valerio's jaw tightened. "Never."
Alessandro held his gaze for a long, silent moment. "Then someone close to you did."
Lucia spoke softly. "There's more."
Every head turned toward her.
"The code wasn't just used once. It's been active for weeks. Small authorizations. Minor route changes. Nothing big enough to trigger alarms."
A slow bleed.
Marco cursed under his breath. "Someone's been feeding them information from inside the table."
Elena felt a chill creep up her spine.
Not just betrayal.
Strategic betrayal.
"Who had access to Valerio's code?" Alessandro asked.
Lucia opened her tablet, scrolling. "Only three people."
"List them."
Lucia swallowed. "Valerio. His assistant. And..."
Her voice faltered.
"And who?" Marco pressed.
Lucia's eyes lifted slowly.
"Me."
The room exploded into motion.
Marco reached for his gun instinctively. Chairs scraped loudly against marble. Valerio stared at Lucia as if seeing her for the first time.
"You're joking," he said hoarsely.
Lucia shook her head, eyes glossy but steady. "I wish I were."
"You expect us to believe this?" Marco demanded. "You just admit to it?"
"I didn't say I did it," she replied. "I said I had access."
Alessandro's voice cut through the tension. "Sit down."
Marco hesitated, then obeyed.
Alessandro looked at Lucia. "Explain."
Her hands trembled slightly. "Two months ago, someone approached me. They knew everything-my accounts, my family, my brother's debts."
Marco's expression darkened. "So you sold us out."
"I didn't," she said sharply. "I refused."
"Then how did they get the code?"
Lucia swallowed. "They didn't. I think... I think they cloned it."
Valerio frowned. "That's not possible. Those codes are biometric."
Lucia nodded. "Yes. But I remember something. A system check. A 'security update' request. It came through official channels."
Marco's eyes narrowed. "Who sent it?"
Lucia hesitated.
Alessandro didn't blink. "Say it."
Lucia's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Marco."
The room went still.
Marco froze. "What?"
"The request came from your terminal," Lucia said. "I thought it was routine."
"That's insane," Marco snapped. "I never authorized anything like that."
Valerio stood slowly. "Then someone used your access."
Elena's heart pounded. The betrayal wasn't just at the table.
It was the table.
Alessandro rose to his feet at last. The room seemed to shrink around him.
"No one leaves," he said calmly.
Marco looked at him. "Boss, you know me."
"I do," Alessandro replied. "That's why we're going to solve this without blood."
Valerio scoffed. "You still think this is salvageable?"
Alessandro's gaze hardened. "Everything is salvageable until it isn't."
Elena stood beside him. "Who benefits most from turning you against each other?"
Silence.
Then realization dawned across several faces at once.
Valeria.
"She's not just attacking from the outside," Elena continued. "She's poisoning the inside."
Marco clenched his fists. "Then we flush her people out."
Alessandro nodded slowly. "Yes. But carefully."
Lucia's voice trembled. "What happens to me?"
Alessandro looked at her-not with rage, but with calculation. "For now, you stay exactly where you are."
Marco frowned. "That's risky."
"It's necessary," Alessandro said. "If she believes the breach is still hidden, she'll make another move."
Valerio leaned back slowly. "You're setting a trap."
Alessandro's eyes darkened. "I'm setting a table."
And this time, the traitor wouldn't leave it alive.
Elena felt the weight of it all settle into her chest.
The war had changed again.
It wasn't just about enemies anymore.
It was about trust.
And trust, once broken, was far harder to rebuild than any empire.
