Chapter 252

#119

“How did you–” I start.

“I had my suspicions the moment I saw the messenger at the docks,” Dad interrupts quietly. “Adrian always had a sick flair for theatrical cruelty. It was his signature punishment for snitches, back when we still ran operations together. Nobody else I ever worked with had the stomach or the specific creativity for it.” He pauses. “The tapes confirmed it. Nobody was ever close enough to me during those missions to capture footage like that except him. I just… just didn’t want to believe it was true.”

Never in all my eighteen years on this earth have I seen heard my Dad hesitate or even stammer slightly.

“I assume he wanted something,” David says, looking directly at Eli now.

Eli hesitates slightly before answering. “He’s asking for a ledger.”

My father stiffens so violently his shoulders pull tight against the fabric of his suit jacket. I catch the shift in an instant.

“What’s in the ledger, Dad?” I ask, stepping cl