CHAPTER 12
Amara’s POV
This was familiar territory. I knew The Obsidian Syndicate‘ s systems inside and out. After all, I had been their Donna. Every password, every backdoor access point, every financial loophole – I had created and approved them. My fingers danced across the keyboard, digging deeper into encrypted files with each click uncovering another layer of the Syndicate‘ s dealings.
The financial records were as I had expected: meticulously maintained yet ripe. with discrepancies. Luca‘ s touch was all over this. He had always prided himself on presenting a flawless facade while hiding the rot underneath.
A small smirk tugged at my lips as I bypassed another layer of security. Too
easy.
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And then it wasn’t.
The cursor froze mid–command. A pop–up window blinked on the screen and the red. text practically screaming at me:
ACCESS DENIED.
I frowned, refreshing the page, but the same message appeared. My fingers moved quickly, attempting another route. Still locked. I tried a different backdoor access, one of the more obscure ones. No luck.
The pit in my stomach grew as I realized this was not a glitch. Someone had noticed my activity.
“Damn it,” I muttered as I worked quicker, searching for a way to unlock
them, but it was all futile. The system was shutting me out completely.
Whoever was on the other end wasn‘ t just blocking me they were cutting me off
entirely. Only one person would have ordered this.
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Luca.
My phone buzzed on the desk, and I jumped at the sudden noise. The screen lit up with an incoming call: Luca Moretti.
I hesitated for a moment, biting the inside. of my cheek. Then, with a sharp exhale, I swiped to answer.
“What do you think you‘ re doing?!” Luca‘ s accusatory tone hit me immediately.
“What do you think you‘ re doing?” I shot back, ignoring the tremor of irritation in my own voice. “Why was I locked out?”
He barked a bitter laugh, the sound was devoid of humor. “Locked out? You‘ ve
got some nerve, Amara. Do you really think I would let you snoop around while you are in the enemy’s base? If you want access, here’s the deal, leave the Vitalus Circle. Leave Matteo Vitale and come back where you belong. That’s the only way.”
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“Are you serious?” I spat, the anger bubbling up in my throat. “You are not stupid enough to think I would actually-”
“Don’t push me,” he interrupted.
“I’m not stupid enough to hand over my Syndicate‘ s secrets while you are playing house with Matteo. I would rather burn those files to the ground.”
I stood abruptly, pacing the room as my grip on the phone tightened. “So, what? You are holding my own access hostage? Trying to force my hand? You‘ re pathetic, Luca.”
“You‘ re the one undermining and betraying your own family!” he snapped.
“You have sided with our enemy, and now you‘ re digging into the Syndicate‘ s business like a common thief!”
“Betray?” I hissed, the word was very much familiar to me, unfortunately. “I was the one betrayed first! Or have you conveniently forgotten what you did? You and your entire Syndicate deserve exactly
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what’s coming to you, and I’m just here to make sure you get it.”
There was a pause, but the silence wasn’t empty, that even with the distance between us, I could feel his anger, and hear it with the way he breathed deep.
“You’ll regret this,” he growled. “If you don‘ t leave Matteo and come back, your access stays locked. And don’t forget, some of your assets are still under the Syndicate‘ s management, Amara. Don’t test me.”
“You’ve already taken enough from me,” I said coldly. “Try me.”
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