Chapter 58 Chapter 58
The photos lay scattered across Alexander's desk like accusations. Damien, at fifteen sitting on a park bench with ice cream dripping down our hands. At sixteen, dancing at some school event I had forgotten existed. At seventeen, with our arms around each other and smiles that belonged to people who still believed in happy endings.
"Childhood sweethearts," Alexander said, and his voice was silk over steel. "First loves. Inseparable according to the records until his family moved away. You never thought to mention this?"
"It was over a decade ago. It meant nothing." I kept my voice steady even though my pulse hammered in my throat. "People change. We were kids."
"Were you? Because these photos tell a different story. They tell me you have been lying since the moment you walked into The Syndicate. That every word out of your mouth has been calculated to protect him."
"No. I joined The Syndicate because I needed protection from people who wanted me dead. Damien was in my past, and I left him there." The lie tasted like ash. "If I still cared about him, why would I be here? Why would I risk everything to work for you?"
Alexander stood and walked to the window. His reflection in the glass was unreadable, and that terrified me more than his anger would have. "You know what I think? I think you are playing both sides. Feeding information to Damien while pretending to be loyal to me."
"That is not true."
"Then prove it. Give me something I can use against him. Intel about his operations. Locations of his safe houses. Names of his suppliers." He turned to face me. "Show me where your loyalty really lies."
My mind raced. I could give him small things. Pieces of information that would not hurt Damien but would satisfy Alexander's suspicion. Old safe houses Damien no longer uses. Suppliers who had already been compromised. Enough truth to make the lies believable.
"There is a warehouse on Fifth Street. He uses it to store weapons shipments before distribution. Guards rotate every twelve hours, and the security is minimal because nobody knows about it." The words came out smooth, and I hated myself for how easily deception flowed. "Hit it during shift change, and you will catch them vulnerable."
Alexander studied me for a long moment. "If you are lying to me, I will know. And when I do, your sister will pay the price before you."
"I am not lying. Check it yourself."
He nodded slowly. "I will. And Lisa? Do not make me regret trusting you."
I left his office with my hands shaking and my stomach in knots. The warehouse I had given him was real, but Damien had abandoned it three weeks ago. Alexander would find nothing except empty crates and dust. It would buy me time, but not much.
I went straight to the restroom and locked myself in a stall. Pulled out my phone and typed a quick message to a number only Damien and I knew. "Alexander knows about our past. Be careful."
The response came thirty seconds later. "Are you safe?"
"For now. But he is watching me closer."
"I trust you. Do what you need to do to survive."
I deleted the messages and splashed cold water on my face. The woman staring back at me in the mirror was a stranger. Hollow eyes and sharp cheekbones and a hardness around the mouth that came from too many lies.
The next two days passed in careful performance. I attended meetings, took notes, and acted like the loyal soldier Alexander needed me to be. But at night I worked. Dug through files and records looking for anything that could shift suspicion away from me.
And that was when I found it.
Three shipments were intercepted in the past month. Two safe houses were raided with perfect timing. Someone was feeding information to Victor, and the pattern was too precise to be a coincidence. I cross-referenced shipping dates with personnel schedules and tracked communication logs against raid timelines.
The digital footprint was subtle, but it was there. Someone had accessed classified files the night before each intercepted shipment. Someone with high-level clearance who knew exactly what to look for.
Robert Chen. Alexander's second in command. The man who had been with The Syndicate for fifteen years and had Alexander's complete trust.
My hands shook as I copied the files onto an encrypted drive. This was proof of a mole, but it was also dangerous. Accusing Robert without presenting it carefully would look like desperation. Like I was throwing someone else under the bus to save myself.
I needed to be strategic. One wrong move and Alexander would see through me.
On the third day, Marcus found me in the archives room. He closed the door behind him, and his expression was grave.
"We have a problem," he said quietly. "Alexander knows there is a mole. Someone is feeding information to Victor about our operations."
My blood went cold. "How does he know?"
"Too many failures. Too many coincidences." Marcus leaned against the wall. "He has narrowed it down to five people. You are one of them."
"That is insane. I have done nothing but prove my loyalty."
"I know. But the timing is suspicious. You show up, and suddenly we start losing ground to Victor?" He ran a hand through his hair. "I believe you, Lisa, but Alexander does not trust easily. Watch your back."
After he left, I sat in the silence and tried to think. The encrypted drive in my pocket felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. I had evidence that could clear my name, but using it meant exposing Robert. And Robert had resources. Had the power to destroy me before I could destroy him.
Unless I was smarter. Unless I made Alexander see the truth without Robert knowing I was the one who exposed him.
That night, I went home and found Mia waiting on my doorstep. Her face was pale, and her hands were shaking, and I knew something was wrong before she even spoke.
"We need to talk," she said. "Now."
Inside, I locked the door and turned to face my sister. I saw the fear in her eyes and the bruises on her arms.
"What happened?"
"Alexander came to see me today. Asked me questions about you. About your past. About Damien." Mia wrapped her arms around herself. "He knows Lisa. He knows everything."
"What did you tell him?"
"Nothing. I swore I did not know anything. But he did not believe me." She pulled up her sleeve, and I saw the dark purple fingerprints on her pale skin. "He said next time he would not be so gentle. That if you are lying to him, I will pay the price."
Rage flooded through me, hot and violent. "He touched you?"
"He wanted to send a message. To remind you what is at stake." Mia's voice broke. "I am scared, Lisa. I do not want to die because of your choices."
"You will not. I promise you will not." I pulled her into a hug and felt her shake against me. "I am going to fix this."
But even as I said the words, I did not know if I could keep that promise. Did not know how to protect her, Damien, and myself all at the same time.
Mia left after midnight, and I lay awake staring at the ceiling. Planning. Calculating. Trying to find a way out that did not end with someone I loved in a grave.
The next morning, Alexander summoned me to his office. His expression was cold when I entered, and there was a new file on his desk.
"I have a new assignment for you," he said without preamble. "One that will prove your loyalty once and for all."
"What kind of assignment?"
"Damien Kane has been a thorn in my side for too long. His operations interfere with ours. His reputation makes people question my authority." Alexander opened the file and slid a photograph across the desk. Damien was leaving a building I did not recognize. "I want you to sabotage him directly."