KING OF THE UNDERGROUND CITY

The Accident

The north pier was deserted.

Dante watched from the shadows of a collapsed warehouse, his breath misting in the cold night air. The pier stretched out into the harbor, a skeletal structure of rotting wood and rusted metal. The water lapped against the pilings, black and cold.

Marco Ricci was late.

"Something's wrong," Aldo murmured beside him. "He's never late."

"Maybe he heard we were coming."

"Or maybe he's setting a trap."

Dante's hand tightened on his knife. "Then we spring it."

They waited in silence, the minutes stretching into an hour. The fog rolled in from the harbor, thick and white, swallowing the pier.

And then they heard it—footsteps, echoing off the wet wood.

A figure emerged from the fog, walking slowly, his hands in his pockets. Marco Ricci. He was alone, his face hidden by the shadows of his hood.

Dante stepped out of the shadows. "Marco."

The figure stopped. "Dante." Marco's voice was calm, measured. "I was wondering when you'd figure it out."

"You sold out my father. You brokered the deal that killed him."

Marco was silent for a moment. Then he said, "Your father was a fool. He was going to destroy the Families, start a war that would have killed thousands. I did what I had to do to stop him."

"You did what you had to do to save yourself."

Marco stepped closer. "I did what I had to do to survive. There's a difference."

Dante drew his knife. "You're going to tell me everything. Every name, every deal, every secret. And then I'm going to kill you."

Marco laughed—a cold, bitter sound. "You think you can kill me? I've been playing this game for twenty years. I know every player, every move, every countermove."

"Then you know this is the end."

Marco's smile faded. "You're wrong, Dante. This isn't the end. This is just the beginning."

And then the gunshots rang out.

---

Dante dove behind a stack of crates, bullets pinging off the metal. Aldo was beside him, returning fire with his shotgun.

"They're shooting at both of us!" Aldo shouted.

Dante peered around the crates. Marco was running, disappearing into the fog. But he wasn't the target—the gunfire was coming from the pier, from a group of figures emerging from the mist.

Caruso men.

"They're going to kill Marco!" Dante realized. "They're silencing him!"

"We need to get out of here!"

"No!" Dante was already moving. "I need him alive!"

He ran through the fog, bullets whizzing past his ears. Marco was ahead of him, stumbling, clutching his arm. He'd been hit.

Dante tackled him to the ground just as another volley of gunfire tore through the air above them.

"Stay down!" Dante shouted.

Marco gasped, his face white with pain. "They're going to kill me."

"I know. That's why I'm saving you."

Dante dragged him behind a stack of crates, returning fire with his pistol. Aldo was covering them, his shotgun booming through the fog.

"We need to get to the water!" Aldo shouted.

"The boat!"

"Too far!"

Dante looked around. The Caruso men were closing in, their figures dark against the fog. There was no time to reach the boat.

"There!" Dante pointed to a grate in the pier. "The tunnels!"

He dragged Marco toward the grate, bullets pinging off the wood around them. Aldo was right behind them, firing as he ran.

Dante yanked open the grate and pushed Marco into the dark. He followed, Aldo close behind.

They dropped into the water below.

---

The current was strong, dragging them through the dark. Dante fought to keep his head above water, one hand gripping Marco's collar. Aldo was beside him, swimming hard.

They emerged into a tunnel, the water shallow enough to stand. Dante dragged Marco onto a narrow ledge and collapsed beside him, gasping for air.

"We made it," Aldo breathed. "We actually made it."

Dante looked at Marco. The arms dealer was pale, shivering, blood seeping from a wound in his shoulder.

"You saved me," Marco said, his voice weak. "Why?"

"Because I need you alive. You're going to tell me everything."

Marco laughed—a weak, bitter sound. "They're going to kill me anyway. Might as well get it over with."

"Not if you help me." Dante leaned closer. "Tell me who else was involved. Tell me who else betrayed my father. And I'll protect you."

Marco was silent for a long moment. Then he said, "There was a network. A network of informants. They were everywhere—in the Families, in the tunnels, in your father's inner circle."

"Who was in charge?"

Marco shook his head. "I don't know. I never met him. He always communicated through intermediaries. But he was powerful. He had his fingers in everything."

Dante absorbed the information. A network. A shadow organization controlling everything from the shadows.

"Did you ever meet any of the intermediaries?"

"One. A woman. She ran a brothel in Sector Four." Marco's voice was fading. "Her name was Serena."

Dante felt a chill run down his spine. Serena Gallo. The madam who'd given him information. The woman who'd warned him about the rat in his crew.

She was part of the network.

"Serena," Dante repeated. "She was part of the conspiracy?"

"She was a go-between. She passed messages. She knew everything." Marco's eyes were closing. "She knows who betrayed your father."

Dante stood, his mind racing.

He needed to find Serena. He needed to find out who was behind the network. He needed to end this once and for all.

"What do we do with him?" Aldo asked, gesturing at Marco.

Dante looked down at the arms dealer. He was unconscious, bleeding, barely alive.

"Take him to Nina," Dante said. "She'll patch him up."

"And then?"

"And then I'm going to find Serena."

---

Dante moved through the tunnels, his footsteps echoing off the wet stone. His mind was churning, turning over the pieces of the puzzle.

Serena Gallo. The madam who'd warned him about the rat. The woman who'd given him information about the courier. The woman who'd been playing him all along.

She was the key. She knew who had betrayed his father. She knew who was behind the network.

And she was going to tell him.

He reached Sector Four and pushed through the door of the brothel. The room was dimly lit, filled with the smell of cheap perfume and smoke. A few women lounged on couches, their eyes wary.

"I need to see Serena," Dante said.

The women exchanged glances. One of them gestured toward the back.

Dante walked through the brothel, his hand on his knife. He pushed open the door to the back room.

Serena was sitting at a table, a glass of wine in her hand. She looked up when he entered, her face calm.

"I was wondering when you'd come," she said.

"You knew."

"I knew you'd find out eventually." She set down the wine glass. "I've been waiting for this moment for a long time."

Dante stepped closer. "You're part of the network. You've been passing messages for years."

"Twenty years." Serena's voice was soft. "I've been passing messages for twenty years."

"Who are you working for?"

Serena was silent for a long moment. Then she said, "I'm working for myself."

Dante's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I've been playing both sides." Serena stood, walking toward him. "I've been passing information to the Carusos. But I've also been passing information to you."

"Why?"

"Because I want the truth to come out." Her voice was fierce. "I want the Families to fall. I want the conspiracy to be exposed."

Dante stared at her. "You're trying to expose the conspiracy?"

"I've been trying for twenty years." Serena's voice was bitter. "But I couldn't do it alone. I needed help. I needed someone strong enough to fight back."

"And you chose me?"

"I chose the Ravello heir." Serena stepped closer. "I knew your father. I knew he was betrayed. And I knew you would be the one to avenge him."

"Who betrayed my father?"

Serena was silent for a long moment. Then she said, "I don't know his name. But I know where to find him."

Dante's heart pounded. "Where?"

"There's a vault. Not the one your great-grandfather built. Another one. Smaller. Hidden in the tunnels beneath the old DeMarco building."

"The DeMarco building?"

"It's where the network meets. It's where the mastermind hides." Serena's voice was barely above a whisper. "If you want to find him, that's where you need to go."

Dante absorbed the information. The DeMarco building. Luciano's building.

Was Luciano the mastermind? Or was someone else pulling the strings?

"Thank you," Dante said. "I won't forget this."

"Be careful, Dante." Serena's eyes were dark. "The mastermind is dangerous. He has eyes everywhere. He'll know you're coming."

"I'll be ready."

Dante turned and walked out of the brothel, his mind racing.

The DeMarco building. The hidden vault. The mastermind.

He was getting closer. Closer to the truth. Closer to the man who'd destroyed his family.

And when he found him, he was going to make him pay.