Page 78 of Veil of Obsession

I slam my laptop shut, my breath ragged, sharp, uneven as I stare at the mirror positioned in front of me, at my own reflection.

I just hacked into the system of one of the most dangerous organizations in the world. For him.

And the worst part? I’d do it again.

30

Lucio

Idon’t know why, but the alarms blare all throughout Emiliano’s home office, the robotic voice repeating the words over and over.

“A security breach has been detected. A security breach has been detected.”

“Fuck,” Eli curses under his breath, pushing back his chair. “Call Matteo. I need to go check on the security of the penthouse.”

I slip out my phone. Matteo lets the call ring only once before he answers.

“Yes?”

“There’s been some sort of security breach,” I say. “Eli wants you to figure out what the fuck is going on and fix it. Whatever it is.”

“I know,” he tells me.

Frowning, I ask him, “How do you know? You’re at your apartment.”

“I get notified the moment there’s a security breach. Tell Eli everything looks fine on the surface level, but it could take a couple of weeks for us to track since this wasn’t just a random phishing email that caused it. Someone was actively crossing our firewalls.”

A sinking feeling tells me that I might have an idea as to who it might be, but instead of telling my brother the truth, I go for the obvious suspect.

“It’s probably the Outfit.”

“Very likely, but it’ll still take us a couple of weeks to know for sure. For now, we need to get guards stationed outside the doors ’til we’re able to solve this.”

I end the call with Matteo, slipping my phone back into my pocket, but the weight of suspicion lingers, pressing against the base of my skull.

A security breach. Not random. Not an accident.

Someone actively worked to get into our systems, past the firewalls Matteo has spent years fortifying. And I know exactly who the real culprit is.

The thought of her sneaky little hands in my world sends a slow, dark thrill through me.

I should be pissed off. I should be furious. Instead, my lips curl, amusement curling low in my gut. The little mouse just can’t help herself. Can’t help sneaking, spying, prying.

I knew I shouldn’t have tested her patience, how she’d respond to me disappearing. But I wanted to see how she’d react when she didn’t have any access to me.

Eli exhales sharply, dragging a hand through his hair as he storms inside. His patience, already worn thin, is gone.

“Fucking hell,” he mutters. “First, this killer that’s fucking shit up, and now this. I swear to God, if this is the Outfit…”

He doesn’t finish his sentence, but I know how it ends. If this is the Outfit, there will be bodies.

Good thing it’s not.

I keep my expression blank, rolling my shoulders as I lean against the desk, watching as my brother takes the seat behind it.

Matteo’s right. It’ll take weeks to track who did this. But I don’t need weeks. I already fucking know.

And the worst part? I don’t even care.