Chapter 3 - The Interrogation of Victor Salvatore
The holding cell in the sub-basement smelled of rust and damp concrete.
Victor sat handcuffed to a bolted iron chair, his immaculate suit wrinkled, his silver hair slightly disheveled. The arrogance that had defined his demeanor upstairs had evaporated, replaced by a cold, calculating defiance.
When I unlocked the cell door and stepped inside, he looked up, a thin, cynical smile playing across his lips.
“You’re wasting your time, Alessandro,” Victor said, his voice raspy. “Even if you kill me, the machinery is already in motion. Julian Vance doesn't rely on one man. By tomorrow afternoon, the federal indictment regarding your tax shelters and off-book shipping operations will be unsealed by the U.S. Attorney’s office. Your empire is collapsing whether I’m breathing or not.”
I pulled up a metal chair, sat down directly across from him, and rested my hands on my knees. I didn't raise my voice. I didn't threaten him. I simply looked at him the way a master chess player looks at a pawn that has strayed too far from the back row.
“Federal indictments?” I asked calmly. “Victor, you’ve been running my administrative office for twenty-five years. Do you honestly believe I keep my real books in a digital server connected to the municipal grid?”
Victor’s smile faltered for a split second.
“Every file you leaked to Julian Vance over the past three months was a honey-pot,” I continued, watching the color drain slowly from his cheeks. “Synthetic shell corporations, fake bank accounts in the Cayman Islands, and decoy shipping manifests designed specifically to entrap corporate raiders who think they can play mafia.”
He stared at me, his eyes widening in sudden, unadulterated horror.
“You... you knew?” he whispered.
“I didn't know you were the rat until tonight,” I admitted honestly. “I knew someone was leaking. A syndicate of our size always attracts parasites. But I never imagined it would be you, Victor. I trusted you with my life. And you traded my heartbeat for a corporate golden parachute with Vanguard Logistics.”
“You became weak, Alessandro!” Victor suddenly snapped, straining against the handcuffs, his face flushing crimson. “You spent millions turning a criminal syndicate into a legitimate shipping conglomerate, playing philanthropist, building parks, and buying politicians instead of expanding our territory! Vance offered vision. He offered a modern empire where men like us don't have to hide in the shadows!”
“Men like us?” I stood up slowly, looking down at him with absolute contempt. “You were never a man of the river, Victor. You were a bureaucrat wearing a gangster’s suit. You forgot that an empire built on betrayal always collapses under its own weight.”
I turned toward the cell door, pausing with my hand on the latch.
“Gabriel,” I called out.
May you like
The heavy door swung open, and my head of security stepped inside.
“Bring in the federal prosecutor’s liaison,” I instructed. “Let’s show Mr. Salvatore what kind of federal indictments are actually waiting for a man who conspires in interstate racketeering, corporate espionage, and attempted assassination.”
