Chapter 14 - The Hidden Ledger
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The next morning, Chicago woke up to a heavy blizzard and the silent drumbeats of a mafia war.
While the Commission prepared to raid Enzo's properties, Enzo's elite strike team hit a seemingly insignificant laundromat in the South Side. It was the front for Rossi's private accountant. Thanks to Adeline’s perfect memory of the safe's location and the code Rossi arrogantly used—Isabella’s birthday—they extracted the black leather ledger without firing a single shot.
Back at the penthouse, Adeline was sitting up in a plush velvet armchair, wearing one of Enzo’s oversized cashmere sweaters. She had a laptop open, cross-referencing the handwritten numbers in the ledger with offshore bank accounts.
Enzo stood behind her, watching her work with absolute fascination.
"Here," Adeline pointed a slender finger at the screen. "Rossi hasn't just been stealing from you, Enzo. He’s been skimming twenty percent off the top of the Romanos' union deals and forty percent from the Falcone family's casino profits."
Enzo leaned down, his face mere inches from hers. He could smell the soft scent of vanilla and antiseptic.
"He’s robbing his own allies," Enzo murmured, his breath brushing her neck.
"Exactly," Adeline replied, looking up into his dark eyes. "If you fight the Commission directly, you lose. But if you send these pages to Romano and Falcone… the Commission will tear itself apart before midnight."
Enzo looked at this beautiful, brilliant woman. She had been treated like dirt her entire life, whipped and degraded, yet she held more strategic genius in her mind than every mafia boss in the city combined.
"You are incredible," Enzo whispered, tracing the unbruised side of her cheek.
Adeline’s breath hitched. "I'm just a survivor, Enzo."
"No," he corrected softly, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. "You are my secret weapon."
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He turned to Luca, who was standing in awe by the door.
"Make the copies," Enzo ordered, his voice turning lethal. "Send them to every boss in the Commission. Let the wolves eat their own."
