Chapter 117 The Valentino Meeting

Chapter 117 The Valentino Meeting
Gyran's POV

I was in my office at Sentinel when Patricia knocked on my door. She had that look on her face that meant something important was about to happen.

"Gyran, can I see you for a moment?" she asked.

"Sure."

I followed her to her office and she closed the door behind us. A man was sitting in one of her chairs and I knew immediately who he was. Antonio Valentino. Head of the Valentino family.

"Gyran, this is Antonio Valentino," Patricia said. "He's one of our major investors."

"Nice to meet you," I said and shook his hand.

"Sit down please," Antonio said.

I sat and waited. Antonio was maybe sixty with gray hair and expensive clothes. He had the kind of face that looked friendly but his eyes were cold.

"Patricia tells me you've been doing excellent work," Antonio said.

"I try my best."

"She also tells me you have extensive knowledge of the Junkies organization. Is that correct?"

So we were just going to be direct about it then. I nodded. "I used to work with them yes."

"Used to?"

"I'm trying to leave that life behind. That's why I took this job."

Antonio smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. "Of course. But sometimes our past experiences can be valuable. I'd like to ask you some questions about the Junkies if you don't mind."

"What kind of questions?"

"How many active members do they have right now? What territories do they control? Who are the key decision makers?"

I pretended to think about it. "I've been away from them for a few weeks now so my information might be outdated."

"That's fine. Whatever you know would be helpful."

This was the moment. I could tell him the truth and betray everyone I knew or I could lie and hope he believed me. I chose option three which was giving him information that was technically true but completely useless.

"Last I knew they had about two hundred active members," I said. "Maybe a few less after the Dynasty war. They control the west side docks and some of the downtown clubs. The main decision makers are Marcus Chen and Braydon Hayes but Hayes has been stepping back lately."

All of that was public knowledge. Anyone who paid attention to the mafia world would know those basic facts.

"What about their security systems?" Antonio asked. "Their safe houses and meeting locations?"

"They move around a lot. I never knew all the locations even when I was working with them."

"But you must know some."

"There's a warehouse on Fifth Street. An office above a restaurant on Hamilton. A house in the suburbs but I don't remember the exact address."

Two of those locations had been abandoned months ago. The third one was real but it was just used for storage now.

Antonio leaned back in his chair. "What about their current operations? What are they focused on?"

"Mostly legitimate business now actually. They're trying to clean up their image. Less drugs and weapons and more real estate and investments."

"Interesting," Antonio said. "And how would you assess their current strength? Are they vulnerable?"

This was the important question. What I said next would influence how the Valentinos saw us.

"They took heavy losses in the Dynasty war," I said. "A lot of good people died. But they're still organized and they still have resources. I wouldn't call them vulnerable exactly but they're not as strong as they were a year ago."

Antonio nodded like he was filing that information away. "One more question. If someone were to move against the Junkies right now what would be their best approach?"

I met his eyes. "I wouldn't recommend moving against them at all. They might be weakened but they're still dangerous. Starting a war with them would be costly for everyone involved."

"Even if the war could be won quickly?"

"There's no such thing as a quick war between families. It always drags out longer than you think."

Antonio smiled again. "You're probably right. Thank you for your honesty Gyran. This has been very helpful."

Patricia walked me back to my office, and I sat down at my desk, trying to look normal. My hands were shaking a little. I'd just lied to the head of the Valentino family and if he found out I was dead.

I stayed at work for another few hours doing regular tasks. Then I went home and waited until Evelyn was asleep before calling Braydon.

"We need to talk," I said when he answered.

"What happened?"

"Antonio Valentino showed up at my office today. He asked me questions about the Junkies."

"What did you tell him?"

"Mostly useless stuff. Old locations and basic information he could get anywhere. But the fact that he came himself means this is serious. They're planning something big."

"Did he say what?"

"No but I could read between the lines. He asked if the Junkies were vulnerable and what the best approach would be to move against them. He's thinking about starting a war."

I heard Braydon curse on the other end. "When?"

"He didn't give a timeline but my guess is within the next few months. They think we're weak after the Dynasty situation."

"We need to tell Marcus."

"I know. But we also need to be smart about this. If we react too obviously the Valentinos might realize I fed them bad information."

"So what do we do?"

"We prepare quietly. Shore up our defenses and make alliances. And I keep working at Sentinel and feeding them false intelligence."

"That's risky."

"Everything about this situation is risky. But it's better than waiting for them to hit us when we're not expecting it."

Braydon was quiet for a moment. "Alright. I'll talk to Marcus tomorrow. But Gyran you need to be careful. If they suspect anything they'll kill you."

"I know."

After I hung up I sat in my office for a long time thinking. I'd wanted a legitimate career and a normal life. Instead, I'd ended up as a double agent playing both sides of a potential war.