Chapter 12: The Final Truth
"The Drake family..."
Leo chewed on the name, and everything suddenly clicked.
No wonder!
To quietly swallow and launder billions of dollars in assets without a trace - the Romano family, those gun-toting upstarts, could never pull that off. Only a top-tier powerhouse like the Drake family, with their overwhelming influence, had that kind of capability.
"Two years ago, Luke achieved a breakthrough with a core patent technology. The Drake family had their eye on this prize and wanted to force a buyout, but Luke flat-out refused."
Alice said through gritted teeth, "The Drake family's terms were... after laundering the assets, they'd take thirty percent, and the technology would be theirs. Now, Luke's core technology has long since ended up in the Drake family's energy company! I was just a powerless pawn!"
Thirty percent...
Leo sneered.
Thirty percent of billions of dollars meant over three billion dollars.
These people had traded Luke's life for a feast.
Mario's eyes widened - this was the first time he'd learned the truth.
"What? You... you're with the Drake family?"
So from the very beginning, the Romano family had just been a knife in someone else's hand.
Alice nodded. "Yes! The entire plan was designed by Evan Drake from the Drake family!"
"I can help you find them! I have evidence of all the Drake family's transactions!"
"Let's work together! With your abilities, plus the inside information I can provide, we can definitely take down the Drake family! Then we can split Luke's technology patent..."
Alice lifted her head, tears and snot streaming down her face, putting on a pitiful expression.
"Leo, for Luke's sake, for telling you who the real culprits are, please spare me!"
"I had no choice back then - if I didn't do what they said, the Drake family would have killed me too! I still love Luke. I dream about him every night... I know I was wrong. Please, I'm begging you, give me a way out. I'm willing to hand over all the evidence I have stored in a safe deposit box in Manhattan to help you take them down!"
Looking at Alice's face - fake to the extreme, yet so humble right now - Leo smiled.
Leo stared at her quietly for a few seconds.
Then he lowered his gun.
SMACK!
A loud slap struck Alice hard across the face.
The force whipped her head to the side, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.
"Work together?"
Leo scoffed, his eyes full of mockery.
"A dog that betrays its master thinks it can negotiate with me?"
"You think naming the Drake family will buy you a way out? In my eyes, traitors are lower than scum."
Alice fell into despair and played her last card, crying pitifully. "Leo... please... for the sake of the love Luke and I once shared... I know I was wrong... I really know I was wrong..."
BANG! BANG!
Two gunshots, clean and decisive.
Both Alice's and Mario's kneecaps shattered simultaneously, blood spraying.
"Ahhhh!"
They both screamed in agony, writhing on the ground.
BANG! BANG!
Leo fired two more shots, shattering their wrists.
"This is for Luke."
Leo looked down at the two pieces of trash lying in pools of blood.
"Die slowly. Let Luke in heaven hear your screams."
Mario's body collapsed heavily onto the muddy ground, the rain quickly diluting the bloodstains.
Alice let out a hysterical scream, her whole body going limp.
Leo holstered his gun, leaving them to suffer in their pools of blood.
At the rate they were losing blood, they'd last about half an hour.
That half hour would be their best punishment.
"Rest in peace, Luke."
Leo turned back to Luke's gravestone and poured the remaining half bottle of whiskey in front of it, letting the liquor mix with rainwater and seep into the soil.
"I'll settle your debts, one by one. The Romano family is already destroyed. The Drake family... won't escape either."
Leo lit a cigar, took a deep drag, and exhaled smoke that was quickly scattered by the autumn rain.
The Romano family was just a local gang in Chicago, but the Drake family was a dragon entrenched in New York.
They were a true top-tier powerhouse with overwhelming influence.
But no matter how strong they were...
He would avenge Luke.
He would reclaim Luke's technology.
Behind him, Olivia walked over with two team members and made a throat-slitting gesture. "Boss, cleanup complete. All core members of the Romano family have been... The ledgers, drugs, and weapons found in the manor have been submitted to the FBI and DEA."
"Good!"
Leo nodded.
He never killed innocents, but for a gang like the Romano family that built their empire on bloodshed, he showed no mercy.
"Olivia."
"Yes."
"Look into the Drake family's intelligence."
The rain grew heavier.
Leo took one last look at Luke's gravestone and turned to leave.
Behind him, Alice and Mario's screams echoed through the rainy night, growing weaker and weaker...
Half an hour later.
Olivia strode in from outside in her combat boots.
"Go ahead."
Leo took a casual drag on his cigar.
"The Drake family intelligence."
"Already found it. The Drake family - first among New York's five great families, with assets worth hundreds of billions. Their patriarch dominates Wall Street. The Drake family's eldest son is the group CEO, and they also have two senators in the family, plus a Deputy Secretary of Defense..."
Hearing this, Leo sighed and waved his hand to cut her off. "That's it?"
Olivia froze, looking somewhat worried.
"Boss, that Evan is the one who targeted Luke's company. The Drake family isn't like the Romano family collecting protection money - they can trigger a financial tsunami with a snap of their fingers. Even for you, if you go after them directly, you'll probably face crazy pressure from the federal higher-ups!"
Leo scoffed and glanced at Olivia dismissively. "You think I care about pressure from the Pentagon? I'm sighing because everything you found is just useless crap that's public knowledge!"
Olivia was immediately speechless. "Boss, what do you mean?"
"Hundreds of billions in assets? Senators? Not worth mentioning!" Leo stubbed out his cigar and snorted coldly. "What I need are their internal cracks! If there are five great families in New York, are the other four really happy letting the Drake family be on top? Break them down from the inside - got it!"
"Understood! I'll get right on it!" Olivia looked embarrassed and quickly turned to leave.
She'd barely walked away when Leo's phone vibrated in his pocket.
The screen showed Chloe's name.
"What's up?" Leo answered.
"Leo..." Chloe's voice on the other end sounded unusually tense. "Are you free tonight? I'd like to take you to dinner, just the two of us..."
Leo was silent for a few seconds, but eventually agreed.
"Alright, got it."
After all, Chloe was one of his few friends.