Page 46 of Scarlet Promise

It’s hard to go that deep underground without major help, and the help would have to come from an individual, not a bratva or mafia. Because someone, somewhere, within those organizations will know something. And people talk.

Unless he’s done it alone.

If so, there must be a paper trail. There’s got to be something.

Maybe Santo could help… But the moment the idea comes to me, I dismiss it.

I already owe him. And adding another favor on top of the first with my insult to him wedged in the middle isn’t smart. It’s asking for trouble.

There’s a knock on my door, and I look up to see the young soldier, Elisei. He looks hesitant but staunchly determined at the same time.

“Can we speak, sir?”

“My door’s open.” I gesture him inside.

He studies the bookshelf for a moment, and I’m curious about the hesitation. This is a guy with ambitions, something to prove, so whatever’s causing this is big or complicated. At least to him.

“Sir. I may be out of line, but…I feel someone’s still in your bratva who might not be as loyal as they claim.” He stops, considers his words. “Or perhaps that’s not right. Perhaps it’s more they know more than they’re letting on. Things are in transition, so sometimes knowledge can be seen as betrayal.”

“If it’s someone who knows where Melor is, then that’s a betrayal,” I say.

He swallows. “I can see that, but while I’m not comfortable naming names, I’d suggest you don’t sit back on this. I’d look into it.”

“Are you sure, Elisei?”

“If this person is a traitor? There are different ways of looking at it, like having information you’re not sure what to do with, and keeping it back out of malice or to help the enemy. I don’t know that. But I do know there is someone you might want to investigate further.”

He goes silent.

Then he adds, “I also don’t want to be seen as a mole or a rat to the other men, or to you. So I felt, after much thought, that I should let you know that you may want to look into things and come up with your own conclusions.”

I nod. “And if this person was out to cause trouble?”

“Then I’d have no hesitation in letting you know. My ultimate loyalty is to you and the bratva and the opportunities here.”

He’s smart, and he’s not shielding his ambitions.

“Thanks for coming forward. I’ll look into it.”

When he’s gone, I sit back and go through the list of men still in the bratva, including those high up. But there are fewer of them than there are of the men, and there aren’t that many of them, either. I don’t think it’s anyone high up. The risk to those guys hiding something is too great.

If anyone, it’d be someone with more to gain. Someone in the lower ranks.

Someone who was friendly with Melor.

Everyone was friendly, so that’s not the right word. Jovial. Friends. That vibe. Who among those remaining had that kind of rapport with Melor?

There’s only one I can see.

Kion.

He was one of the men who refused to give me the time of day when I arrived. Kion isn’t so low that he needs this. He’s middling, someone who could coast on the job, so his snub ofme definitely stemmed from loyalty to what I thought was my grandfather, a dead man, but is, in reality, to Melor.

So looking at it that way, with the focus pulled out a little, along with the fact that he didn’t go on the raid, and he never warmed to me, makes it odd that he’s still here.

Actually, it makes zero sense for a man like that to suddenly support me.

All the men like him left.