Chapter 145: Chapter 145 Deception Unveiled
Caleb’s POV
I arranged to meet the informant at a small Italian restaurant in neutral territory, just blocks from the underground clinic that served our family’s medical needs. When Xavier and I walked through the heavy wooden doors, she had already secured a corner booth in the shadows.
"Good afternoon, Don Thorne. Mr. Black. How are both of you managing?" Her greeting carried the careful deference expected when addressing a mafia boss.
"Wait, you actually know who I am?" Xavier’s eyebrows shot up with genuine surprise.
"I work the high-stakes tables at the Darkstone on weekends." Her cheeks flushed slightly under our scrutiny. "You gentlemen are among our most generous players. I’m Mabel."
"Holy shit, that’s right! I definitely tried to get your number that one night..." Xavier’s recognition dawned with his trademark laugh. "But damn, without all that casino makeup and with your hair pulled back professional like that, plus those glasses, you look like a completely different person."
"Yes, I’m aware." Mabel shifted uncomfortably under our intense stares. "Thank you for agreeing to meet with me, Don Thorne."
"Listen, Mabel, I’ll be straight with you. When you slipped me that note, I figured you were looking for protection or a job. But now you’ve got my full attention." I leaned back in the leather booth, my hands folded on the table.
"Don Thorne, I only work at that clinic because I desperately need the money to support my sick mother, but I have to tell you, Dr. Edward is a man completely without honor, and what they’re orchestrating against you is absolutely disgraceful. Plus, everyone at the Darkstone has seen how much you despise that Rossi woman. Nobody in our circles can stand her, if we’re being honest." Mabel’s words sent Xavier into a fit of dark laughter.
"What exactly are they orchestrating, Mabel?" I leaned forward, my voice dropping to the dangerous tone that made grown men confess their sins.
"Your so-called fiancée isn’t carrying your child. That entire clinic appointment was nothing but theater. The doctor played you a recording from a completely different woman’s ultrasound. His plan was to maintain this charade through every appointment until after your forced wedding, then Yara would stage a convenient miscarriage." Mabel laid out the entire deception with the precision of someone who had memorized every detail.
"Cristo santo, Caleb, this nightmare just keeps getting deeper." I pressed my palms against my closed eyes, feeling the familiar rage building in my chest.
"There’s more you need to know. Your lieutenant Monica was the one who arranged the connection between Yara and this corrupt doctor." Mabel clearly had access to information that could destroy lives. "I was working the night shift before your appointment and overheard all of them planning every detail. That man is a complete disgrace to his profession, and I have no idea how the medical board hasn’t stripped his license."
"He won’t have one much longer, I can guarantee you that, Mabel." My voice carried the steel of a death sentence.
"Don Thorne, there’s another piece. You know Rita, the one who manages the VIP sections at the Darkstone?" Mabel continued, her voice dropping lower.
"Yeah, what about Rita?"
"She mentioned that the Rita who works in your organization’s personnel department is close with Monica and feeds her intelligence constantly. The moment you step foot in that casino, she’s on her secure phone alerting Monica to your whereabouts."
"So that’s how they always know my movements..." Xavier muttered, his hand instinctively moving toward the gun concealed beneath his jacket.
"Rita also overheard part of a conversation where Monica was boasting about having eyes and ears planted throughout your entire network, every business front your family controls. She claims to have detailed knowledge about your most private family matters."
"How could I have been so blind to the snakes in my own house!" The leather booth creaked as my hands clenched into fists.
We continued gathering intelligence for a while longer, and before departing, I handed Mabel one of my personal cards with an offer to discuss legitimate employment within our organization. She had refused any monetary payment for the information, so providing her with family protection seemed like the minimum gesture of respect. Having people I could actually trust working within my inner circle had become a matter of life and death.
Stepping out of that restaurant, my hands were practically shaking with the need to wrap them around Yara and Monica’s throats. That’s when Jude’s call came through, informing me he had located the casino server and developed a strategy to interrogate him. We raced back to the family compound immediately.
Jude had already prepared our questioning session in the main conference room of our legitimate business front. He contacted the catering company that supplied the casino, gathered background intelligence on the server who turned out to be a recent hire with gambling debts, then placed an order for beverage service with a specific request for that same worker. When the appointed time arrived, everything was in position. Jude, Xavier, and I positioned ourselves in the conference room, and the moment the server entered with his cart, we had him completely trapped.
"Have a seat, friend. We need to discuss some business," Xavier’s hand landed heavily on the server’s shoulder, guiding him into a chair with the kind of pressure that suggested resistance would be unwise.
"Curtis, you worked one of our private events here a while back. How did that evening go for you?" Jude opened with false courtesy while making it clear we had detailed records.
"It was a successful event, Don Thorne," the server responded carefully, using my proper title.
"Not successful for everyone involved," I interjected with ice in my voice. "But I definitely remember you." His eyes went wide with the terror of recognition. "You served me whiskey out on the private balcony, except it wasn’t just whiskey, was it, Curtis?"
"I... I... Don Thorne... I have no idea what you mean," he attempted to deflect, but his voice was already shaking.
"Oh, but you absolutely do," Xavier stated with deadly certainty. "And even if your memory needs refreshing, my friend, we’ve got it all on security footage." Xavier grabbed the remote and activated the wall-mounted screen, displaying the exact balcony footage showing the server handing me the glass. "Family compound, surveillance systems covering every inch. The equipment we use captures everything in crystal clear detail," Xavier explained with predatory satisfaction.
"P-p-please... I never... I..." He was stammering and sweat had started beading on his forehead despite the air conditioning.
"Curtis, let me make this very simple for you," I cut off his pathetic stalling tactics. "I had a full toxicology workup done at our family’s private medical facility. I have video evidence of you serving me that drink followed by footage of me stumbling off that balcony like a drugged fool. So you can either tell us every detail of what happened, or I make one phone call and you disappear into the East River with concrete boots. Your choice."
"Please don’t hurt my family, I’ll tell you everything," his resistance crumbled immediately like they always did when faced with real consequences. "I was desperate for work and I’ve got a daughter who needs surgery. Someone I trusted helped me get this catering position through the union. I swear on my daughter’s life, Don Thorne, I really needed that job," his terror was written across his face. "I wasn’t even supposed to work your event, it was my day off, but she specifically requested me for the team, convinced my supervisor to add me to the roster, even arranged extra payment for me to show up. When you stepped onto the balcony, she signaled me over and told me to deliver that glass. I give you my word, sir, I had no knowledge it contained anything but whiskey, I swear on everything I hold sacred. She was someone I trusted, she had gotten me employment, she worked directly within your organization, I never imagined she would orchestrate something so treacherous against the Don himself."
"You had no idea what was mixed into that glass?" Jude pressed, his voice carrying the quiet menace of a professional enforcer.
"She told me it was premium whiskey from your private reserve, and that’s exactly what it smelled like. So I served it as instructed. But then I watched how you left that balcony, Don Thorne, and I knew something was very wrong because I had been serving you drinks throughout the evening and you were completely coherent before that particular glass." Curtis had tears streaming down his face. "When I saw you struggling to maintain your balance, I tried to approach and offer assistance, but she blocked my path. She insisted your companion would handle taking care of you. After the event concluded, I cornered her and demanded answers because I knew something terrible had happened."
"What was her response?" I demanded, my voice carrying the promise of retribution.
"She threatened to have me blacklisted from every legitimate job in the city if I wanted to keep working." Curtis revealed he had been under constant intimidation.
"How incredibly low can a person sink!" I dragged my hands down my face in disgust at the depths of this betrayal.
"Who was this woman, son?" Jude asked with growing impatience and the barely controlled violence that preceded family justice.
"Monica," Curtis answered, sealing her death warrant with that single word.
"Perfetto! She’s a poisonous serpent who’s been feeding information to our enemies." My anger was building toward the explosion point that usually ended in blood on the walls.
"Alright, Curtis. We appreciate your cooperation with this family matter. We’ll ensure the catering company understands that you acted under duress and had no knowledge of the conspiracy, and we’ll make it clear that Monica no longer breathes the same air as decent people," Jude offered the kind of reassurance that came with family protection. "Take my card and contact me if you or your daughter need any assistance with medical expenses."
"That’s all? You won’t be... disposing of me?" Curtis looked stunned by the unexpected mercy.
"No violence necessary. You were manipulated by a traitor. You can complete your shift today without any concerns. This matter is settled," Xavier confirmed, though his tone suggested Monica wouldn’t be receiving the same consideration.
"Grazie, Don Thorne. Thank you for your mercy," Curtis expressed his gratitude as we exited the conference room, leaving him to contemplate how close he had come to becoming fish food in the harbor.
