Chapter 7 - The Shadow over the Harbor
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At 01:15 AM, three dark SUVs sped down the rain-slicked highway toward the industrial district of the Chicago harbor.
Inside the lead vehicle, Alessandro sat in the rear seat with a silenced pistol resting on his lap. Beside him sat Rocco, who was checking the high-capacity magazines for his tactical rifle.
"We have six men stationed outside the perimeter of Warehouse 14," Rocco reported, reading from a tablet. "Matteo has four of his personal guards inside. No sign of the Valenti clan yet."
"Matteo thinks the ambush is scheduled for Saturday," Alessandro said, staring out the tinted window at the passing streetlights. "He believes he still has forty-eight hours to collect the final vault codes from the doll’s receiver."
"He betrayed his own blood for a Valenti alliance," Rocco grunted, disgust evident in his voice. "Our father would turn in his grave."
"Our father was too trusting," Alessandro replied coldly. "That is why he died in an alley behind a restaurant. I will not make the same mistake."
The convoy turned off their headlights as they entered the gravel driveway of the shipping yard. Huge rusty shipping containers towered over them like iron monoliths, casting long, dark shadows across the wet pavement.
The three SUVs rolled to a silent stop behind a stack of lumber thirty yards from the entrance of Warehouse 14.
Alessandro stepped out into the chilly night air, pulling his collar up against the drizzle.
"Rocco, take the rear exit," Alessandro ordered. "Marco, disable the security cameras on the outer fence. I go in through the front door alone."
"Don Alessandro, going in alone is too dangerous," Rocco protested. "Matteo’s men are armed."
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Alessandro looked at his chief enforcer with an expression that froze the blood in Rocco’s veins.
"They are armed with weapons I bought them," Alessandro said evenly. "Let us see if they have the courage to pull a trigger against the man who feeds them."
