Dominic has been pulling out all his skills to come up with a way to find a location using the code the guys in Chicago hacked from the email. I can’t believe he found a location. Although I shouldn’t be surprised given his skills. It just felt like some curse had come to get us when neither of us we could hack the code in the email.
“Not Rio de Janerio, it’s in Mato Grosso do Sul.”
“Where the fuck is that?”
Dominic flicks his flash pen and the computer screen across from Massimo comes on.
An image of a fucking luxury estate comes on the screen. It looks like a combination of a European castle and a villa. The building itself is endless.
“I wasn’t expecting that.”
“Nor us. The structure goes underground too. I think that’s where they must be keeping Eric. If he’s designing weapons or whatever then it fits they’d have some undetectable facility.”
“How the hell did you do it?” I have to know.
“I created a virus.” Dominic smirks. “It was the only fucking way to attack the encryption on the firewalls long enough to allow me to pin a location on where the email was sent from. Now we have a location I’m hoping I can insert my spyware into the surveillance system to see what’s going on inside. That’s going to be the hard part. But we’re ready to go.”
“Good, so here’s the plan so far, but feel free to add to it, Pakhan,” Massimo begins. “Me and Dom will go with you. We’ll be taking our soldiers. I think a combination of the Bratva and the Syndicate will be a good stronghold. My longtime friend Don Alejandro Ramirez has offered to lend us assistance as we will be going to his territory.”
Don Alejandro Ramirez is a cartel king, Massimo has been trying to get him to join us since he reformed the Syndicate. He was a friend of his father’s and the only guy with one sure seat in the Syndicate. It almost felt like the rest of us had to earn our place.
“I do know. That sounds like a good plan. Thank you.”
“No worries. Tristan and the Chicago crew will be here watching L.A and the enforcers will continue to keep watch over Olivia’s mother. I want to fly our first thing in the morning. I assume Olivia be joining her mother later today.”
I stare at him, wondering how I’m going to answer that question.
I would say if this were a question of his wife, Emelia, he’d have her right by his side and he’d understand. But I wasn’t supposed to have that kind of relationship with Olivia.
Since I’m not a man to cower I decide to come clean.
“I’m taking her with us. With me.”
Of course the only person who doesn’t looked surprised to hear that is Dominic.
Massimo raises his brows again and Tristan tilts his head to the side. I get the feeling if we were talking about one of them they’d make some wise crack about it. But they’re brothers so they can do that, and I don’t joke.
“Is that wise Pakhan?”
“I know it’s not, but I’d prefer if she were with me. She’s in as much danger with us as she would be with her mother, and we are who we are, better than any of our enforcers put together.”
Massimo looks like he agrees, but I’m not looking for his permission.
“Alright, but we have to be careful. The advantage we have is stealth but it will only benefit us until it doesn’t and we’ve all seen what hell looks like. I would hate for her to get caught in that. Please understand we can’t guarantee anybody’s safety.”
I nod. “I understand.”
“Good, then we leave tomorrow at first light.”
* * *
Dominic and I get our usual coffee after the meeting and sit outside on the bench across from the building.
We’re silent for a few moments until he clears his throat and stares at me with all the questions in his eyes.
“I don’t know what to expect from Brazil but if I can get into the surveillance system we’ll have eyes on the place,” he says with a sigh. “Without that we’re flying blind but we’ll go in whether we can see or not.”
“Yes, and I’ll burn the place to the fucking ground if I must to get the information I need.”