MAFIA'S THORN

CHAPTER EIGHT

ALTON'S — POV

It has been four hours since I left the party to take care of an emergency I received. Viktor whispered to me that there was an ambush in place near the gray mansion.

I had to get Flarie out of there to make sure she is safe. I can't imagine her getting hurt. Why? That's what I can't explain. But, she doesn't understand that the places which she goes to are dangerous.

Rain beats against the tall windows of my study more insistent now than before and the glass trembles slightly with each gust of wind.

I’m seated behind my desk when Erdo walks in, closing the door quietly behind him. His dark hair shinning under the bright light.

He doesn’t appear nervous, but I know him too well to see the tension in his shoulders, he walks to the table and takes the chair across from me without a word. Erdo has been with me since we were young, I trust very few people and he’s one of them.

“What did you find in New Jersey?” I ask.

He pushes a thick folder across the desk. “The materials for the Flow Hotel are compromised.”

I lean back slowly, the chair creaking under my weight. “How serious is it?”

Erdo exhales deeply. “The steel is low-grade, it won’t hold the required load long-term. The bricks fail compression tests, the wood hasn’t been properly treated and the gravel mix is unstable, too much silt.” He looks around the study and continues “If we keep building, it won’t hold.”

The Flow Hotel isn’t just another project. It’s expansion, credibility and visibility on the East Coast.

“How did this pass procurement?” I ask.

“It didn’t,” Erdo replies. “It was pushed through.”

“By who?”

“Michael Hardwood. Head of procurement, New Jersey branch.” he states.

I nod once. “Embezzling?”

“Yes. For months.”

I tap my fingers on the desk. "Does he know we’re aware?”

Erdo holds my gaze, then drags a hand across his jaw. “No. He thinks he’s clean.”

“Good.”

"I followed the supplier's trail," he continues, "shell companies. No real quality control and no certifications that hold up under scrutiny. He deliberately avoided established vendors.”

“For profit,” I say.

Erdo nods slightly. “That’s part of it.”

I watch him. “And the rest?”

A small pause. “He’s been bought by the Castaro clan.”

Of course, the Castaros don’t move without measuring the outcome first. “What did they offer him?”

“A payout big enough for him to retire comfortably,” Erdo says. “But that’s not the real incentive.”

I say nothing encouraging him to go on.

“They want the Flow Hotel to fail. If it collapses structurally or financially, publicly, our stock drops which will cause investors to panic.”

“And they step in,” I finish, “through Key Construction.”

Erdo nods, “They position themselves as the stable alternative.”

I think through the chain reaction, media coverage, lawsuits, market collapse. “So the sabotage is strategic.”

“Yes. The money is just a bonus.” He responds.

I open the folder, a stack of photos spills across the desk. Warehouses, men loading trucks, a handshake captured from across the street. “What stage is construction in?”

“Early foundation work. Most structural materials haven’t been installed yet.”

“It's good we caught this bullshit early.”

“Barely,” Erdo replies.

I glance up. “What else?”

He rubs his jaw. “They also promised him access to their cocaine distribution network. A percentage of territory in New Jersey.”

“He wants power,” I chuckle.

“And a different life, too” Erdo adds.

“And he thinks betrayal gets him there.”

“Yes.”

I tap the desk again. “Did they ask anything else of him?”

“Yes. Quietly encourage dissatisfaction at the branch. Delays. Budget pressure. Internal tension.”

“To make people nervous.”

“Exactly. If the hotel fails, important staff may resign and the Castaros will recruit them.”

“Has he approached anyone directly?”

“Two engineers.”

“Names?”

“Andrew Rutherford and Bradley Jacobs.”

“Committed?”

“No. Just unsettled.”

“Unsettled becomes disloyal under pressure.”

Erdo doesn’t disagree.

“And the financial side?”

“The transfer is scheduled in two days time at night. Seven figures. From a Castaro front to his offshore account.”

“Two days?” I ask.

“Yes. During a scheduled site inspection.”

“They want confirmation,” I say. “That the sabotage is working.”

"That’s my assessment.”

My right hand lifts to rub my temple, my mind already calculating solutions. This is exactly what we would do.

“First,” I say, “we secure the site. Replace every compromised material quietly without making announcement ”

“Agreed.”

“Second, we monitor the transfer and let it go through. We let the Castaro's believe their plan is working.”

Erdo's brows knit together. "And then?”

“We privately bring him in, no noise, no audience and make him talk. Also we set him up and make it look like he took the money and disappeared."

A faint smile touches his face. “yes boss.”

"I want everything; Names, contacts, routes and any other little thing.

Erdo’s smile deepens. “That’ll fracture trust between him and the Castaro's."

“It buys us time.” A flash of Lightning illuminates the room with white light that disappears quickly.

“There’s one more thing,” he says.

I look at him. “Go ahead"

“I intercepted part of an encrypted conversation. They have a second option if the material sabotage fails.”

Hmmmmmm. “What kind of option?”

Erdo’s voice drops. “An accident that will get people taking, something chaotic enough to hurt our workers."

“How soon?”

“Within the month.”

I push away from the desk and head towards the window light glows beneath the storm fogged by streaks of rain dripping down the glass. “How many of ours are on-site tomorrow night?”

“Minimal crew. Standard security rotation.” he replies behind me.

“Double it." Then I quickly shake my head, " no triple it. Erdo keep him no rumors.”

“I’ll handle it.”

I turn around to face him, scrutinizing him. He looks worn out. "we're not just protecting a building Erdo, we’re protecting people.”

Holding my gaze. “I know.”

“And I'm not going to bury innocent employees because someone got greedy for a larger paycheck.”

“You won’t,” he reassures firmly.

I step closer to him and loosen my shirt cuff “You’ve done a good work.”

He gives a faint shrug “It’s my job.”

“It’s more than that.”

Erdo flashes a genuine but tired smile. “We built this together.”

He is right. Every negotiation, sleepless nights and risks that could have brought us down, Erdo has been besides me through all of it. “Are you sure he’s the only one involved?”

Erdo’s smile fades into seriousness. “I’m certain he’s the only one knowingly working with them,” he says carefully. “But I can’t guarantee no one else has been influenced.”

Nodding I fold my arms across my chest. “We proceed carefully,” I say. “Tomorrow we secure the site."

Erdo stands and grab his coat from the chair, slipping it on. "I’ll return to New Jersey tonight.”

“Take two men you trust. No one from the branch.”

“Got it.” He moves toward the door, then pauses. “Alton.”

“Yes?”

“If they’re planning something chaotic… it means they’re desperate.”

“Desperate men make mistakes,” I say.

He studies me. “Sometimes they think bold moves will save them.”

He’s not wrong. The door clicks shut behind him and my study falls back into silence.

I walk back towards the desk losing my tie in the process.

My phone vibrates on the desk I frown, It's a secure line, only a handful of people in this world have that number.

Picking up the phone, I open the message flashing on the screen, she’s being tailed. Every muscle in my body goes still.