Page 110 of The Silent War

“It means money moved clean,” he said, it in a way that wasn’t mocking me for not understanding.

Bastion exhaled smoke slow. “I shot a man in the stomach at noon.”

“What?”

“Left him alive. Barely. He’s in a freezer until we decide what to do with him.”

“He lied about a shipment manifest.” Luca added.

“Oh my God?—”

“The rest are in concrete. And after that,” Bastion took a mouthful of his whiskey, “we raided Lorne Street warehouse.”

“Raided,” Luca echoed, lips twitched. “Six bodies. One surviving informant. Missing a thumb now.”

“And after that,” Bastion went on, like he was listing off errands, “we brokered a black-market trade deal for lithium stock futures. Luca’s team secured the assets.”

I blinked. “Are you running a cartel?”

“No,” Luca said mildly. “We run the infrastructure that supports three.”

Bastion hummed. “Four, if you count last months deal, but we’re still restructuring the funnel.”

My fork was frozen halfway to my mouth.

They kept going.

“I shut down an FBI probe before dinner. Waste of money. They never build a case.” Luca added.

“I buried a dead courier,” Bastion followed, “and paid off his mother so she could leave the country before she started asking questions.”

“Oh, and we bought out the private security firm your brother was negotiating with.” Luca added gently stroking my wrist, “Made them ours before his signature dried.”

I blinked. “You’re joking.”

They weren’t.

Luca hummed. “We own the name on your travel clearance now. Every time you cross a border, it pings us first.”

My throat tightened. “Why would you?—”

“You’re too important to leave unmonitored.” Bastion took another drag.

“You’re too theirs,” Luca corrected, tone sharp. “And they don’t deserve you.”

I tried to sit back. Tried to breathe.

That’s when I felt Luca’s hand.Sliding over the inside of my thigh resting it there.

Bastion’s traced my shoulder where my dress dipped, with his fingers

My jaw tightened. “You could’ve lied. I wouldn’t have known.”

“But you’d feel it,” Bastion said simply.

Luca rested his hand on my thigh under the table. “We don’t lie to you. Even when it would make you sleep easier.”

I took a slow inhale. “I guess I just thought you two glared at people all day. Probably in a casino. Or a nightclub. Maybe smoked a cigar. Bribed a few judges. Mafia movie basics.”