Chapter 8 - The Decryption
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The secure server room located deep beneath the Castellano estate was freezing cold, filled with the loud hum of massive cooling fans.
Nora sat in a rolling chair beside Silvio, Luca’s top cyber-security specialist. Silvio was a heavily tattooed man who looked more like a biker than a hacker, but his fingers flew across the mechanical keyboard with terrifying, absolute precision.
Luca stood behind Nora, his hands resting lightly on the back of her chair.
“The white card gave us backdoor access,” Silvio reported, his eyes glued to the dual monitors scrolling rapidly with green code. “Vanessa Thorne had top-tier clearance. She bypassed the Meridian corporate firewall completely. We are officially inside the offshore shadow ledgers.”
Nora leaned forward, her heart hammering against her ribs. “Filter the search for accounts linked to Gregory Whitmore. Check the Cayman Island shell companies.”
Silvio tapped a few keys. The screen flashed, bringing up a massive, complex spreadsheet.
“Got it,” Silvio whistled low under his breath. “Your ex-husband has been a very busy man, Mrs. Castellano. He’s running a massive washing machine for the Volkov syndicate. They funnel dirty cash through fake real estate acquisitions, and Gregory cleans it through Meridian’s hedge funds.”
“Look at the transaction fees,” Nora pointed at the screen, her eyes narrowing as she spotted the discrepancy she had suspected for years. “Gregory is supposed to take a four percent cut for his services. But these transfers to the Swiss accounts are showing a six percent diversion.”
Luca leaned closer, his chest brushing lightly against Nora’s shoulder. “He is stealing two percent off the top from the Russian mob.”
“Exactly,” Nora smiled, a cold, vindictive expression that she had never worn during her previous marriage. “He’s been skimming for three years. It equates to nearly fourteen million dollars. He hid my marital assets in the same Swiss account to avoid paying me in the divorce.”
“If Viktor Volkov sees this ledger,” Silvio noted grimly, “Gregory is a dead man.”
“Download the entire database onto a secure flash drive,” Luca ordered Silvio, his voice ringing with lethal authority. He looked down at Nora, profound admiration burning in his dark eyes.
“You found the knife, Nora,” Luca murmured, his breath warm against her ear. “Now, how do you want to twist it?”
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“I don't want to just give it to the Russians,” Nora replied, standing up from the chair and turning to face him. “I want Gregory to know that I am the one who ruined him. I want to look him in the eye when his entire world collapses.”
“Then we bring the knife to the gala,” Luca promised, offering her his arm.
