Chapter 157: The First Test

The phone call came at 3AM.

Anya woke to the vibrating of her phone. Viktor stirred beside her.

"Elena?" Anya answered, already wide awake.

"We have a situation. Morozov territory. Someone struck three of Dmitri's operations tonight. Simultaneous. Professional job."

Cold shot through Anya's veins. "Casualties?"

"Five dead. Two wounded. All Morozov men." Elena's voice was clipped. "Dmitri is calling for emergency council meeting. He is... not happy."

"I'll be there in thirty minutes. I'll brief everyone." Anya hung up.

Viktor was already up, pulling on a shirt. "How bad?"

"Bad enough that Dmitri went around protocol. He's supposed to go through me first before calling a full council meeting." Anya started to dress. "This is either a legitimate emergency or an internal power play."

"Or both."

They arrived at the council building to find everyone already gathered. Dmitri pacing. Irina watching. Anthony with his arms crossed, looking worried.

"About time," Dmitri said when Anya walked in.

"I came as soon as I heard. What happened?" Anya took her seat at the head of the table. Professional. Calm. Though her mind was already spinning.

"What happened is someone is targeting my operations. Killing my men. And the council did nothing to stop it." Dmitri's face was red. "Six months. That's all it took for the protection you promised me to fail."

"Let's walk through it. Facts only." Anya pulled up a screen. "Where were the attacks?"

Dmitri reported. Three Queens locations. Struck within one hour of each other. No witnesses.

"Professional job," Viktor commented.

"Who has that kind of capability?" Anya asked.

"Mercenaries. Former special forces." Anthony said.

"The Syndicate?" Irina offered.

"The Syndicate's operation is over. Sokolov is in prison." Anya shook her head. "This is not the Syndicate."

"Then who?" Dmitri snapped. "And more importantly, what is the council going to do about it?"

"We're going to investigate. Gather intel. Identify the threat." Anya's voice was calm, professional. "Then we take it out."

"That's not good enough. My men are dead now. I need action now."

"Action without intel is suicide." Anya looked him in the eye. "I understand you're upset. But rushing in without knowing who we're dealing with is exactly what they want."

"They?"

"Whoever did this. Testing us. Testing the council." Anya stood, walked over to the map. "Three coordinated strikes require coordination. Intel on your operations."

"You're saying I have a leak."

"Someone knew when and where to hit you." Anya marked the locations. "What do they have in common?"

Dmitri considered. "Cash drop. Weekly collection sites."

"So whoever hit them knew your cash flow. Your schedules." Anya turned back to face the group. "Insider information."

"An inside job." Irina's voice was contemplative. "Someone feeding intel to an outside actor."

"Or someone inside making a power play." Anthony looked at Dmitri. "Any lieutenants looking to make a name for themselves?"

"No. My men are loyal." Dmitri's voice was defensive. But with an edge of uncertainty.

"Loyalty can be bought," Viktor said. "Especially with better terms."

"I know my people—"

"Kozlov thought he knew his people too." Irina's voice was soft, but cutting. "Until his daughter showed him betrayal. Trust is good. Verification is smarter."

Dmitri fell quiet.

"Here's what we do," Anya said. "Elena, full intel sweep. Security footage. Witness interviews. Forensics."

Elena nodded.

"Viktor, coordinate with Chen. FBI intel on mercenary activity."

"On it."

"Anthony, reach out to Italian contacts. See if anyone's heard whispers about new players."

"Understood."

"Irina, canvass Russian community sources."

"I'll make calls."

"And Dmitri." Anya looked at him. "Audit your organization. Every lieutenant with access to operations. Find the leak."

"And if I don't find one?"

"Then we know the threat is external. But if you do find one, we deal with it internally. Council approval. No independent action." Anya's voice was ice. "This is what we agreed to. Unified response. Not fragmented retaliation."

Dmitri looked like he wanted to argue. Then he nodded. "Fine. But if this happens again—"

"It won't. Because we're going to find who did this and take them out." Anya returned to her seat. "The council exists to protect its members. That's the whole point. But protection requires information and coordination. Not panic and revenge."

The meeting went on for another hour. Plans put in place. Resources allocated. Tasks assigned to everyone.

When it was over, Dmitri came to Anya.

"I shouldn't have called the meeting without going through you first."

"Yes. You were testing to see if I'd defend you." Anya didn't relent. "If the council was real."

"And?"

"And I defended you. That's what we do." Anya looked him in the eye. "But don't test me like that again. The structure exists for a reason."

"Understood." He paused. "You handled that well."

"Go. Find your leak."

Dmitri walked away.

Viktor remained. "That was close."

"But we held firm." Anya sat heavily in her chair. "The first real test. Someone hits one member and every other questions if protection is real."

"You proved it was. Mobilized resources. Demonstrated unity." Viktor sat next to her.

"This time. But what if it's worse next time?"

"Then we respond. Worrying about what-ifs doesn't help." Viktor took her hand. "Focus on the immediate threat."

Anya nodded.

Her phone buzzed. Elena.

"We have something. Security footage from one of the hit locations. You need to see this."

"Send it."

The video popped up on Anya's screen. Grainy. Nighttime. But clear enough.

Six men in tactical gear. Moving like they were trained. Killing guards. Grabbing cash. Out in under five minutes.

"Run facial recognition," Anya ordered.

"Already did. No hits. They wore masks the entire time."

"Weapons?"

"Military grade. Not available on the street."

"So professionals. Well-funded. With access to equipment and training." Anya continued to study the video. "This isn't a random crime. This is a message."

"What message?"

"That the council isn't as strong as we think. That we can be targeted. That protection has limits." Anya looked at Viktor. "Someone's testing our defenses."

"The Syndicate?"

"Maybe. Or someone new. Someone who sees opportunity in what we've built." Anya stood. "Either way, we need to find them fast. Before Dmitri loses faith. Before the other families start to question the council's value."

"We will."

"We have to." Anya walked to the window. Dawn breaking over the city. "Because if the council collapses now, after everything we've built, it'll be worse than before. Scattered families fighting amongst themselves. Easy prey for anyone with ambition."

"That won't happen."

"Not if I can help it." Anya turned back to the table. "Get Chen on the phone. I want a meeting. Today. We need FBI intel on this."

Viktor made the call.

Anya looked at the security video. Six professionals. Unknown affiliation. Hitting council territory.

The first real test of the new order.

And she was determined to pass it.

Whatever it took.