Page 48 of Veil of Smoke

She leans down, frowning. “That’s a military-grade architecture ID.”

I glance at her. “You know that offhand?”

“Flower shops don’t pay the rent. I did restoration work for a guy who moved antique tech. I know the old coding.”

I study her face.

She doesn’t look proud or scared.

Just present. Grounded in the moment like she belongs in it.

“Corradino’s not just moving weapons,” she says. “He’s trying to steal experimental builds. No wonder they want this shipment shut down.”

“He’s trying to hijack an entire infrastructure,” I add. “One that shouldn’t exist.”

“And you were part of it.”

“I thought I was getting us out.”

That word hits harder than I mean it to.

Us.

Massimo and me.

She doesn’t speak. Just waits.

“He wanted out,” I say finally. “Always did. He kept believing there was a way to break clean. I told him that was a fairy tale. That no one walks out of Caldera without a toe tag or a blade in their back.”

She sits down, folding her hands in her lap. Doesn’t interrupt.

“We had this one job. Just one. The tech came through a third-party broker we trusted. Corradino signed off. I double-checked the route, the time, the site. I put Massimo in that room.”

My voice drops.

I nod at the floor in front of her.

“That’s where he went down. Face first. Didn’t make a sound. Just dropped.”

The bulb above us buzzes. The heater clicks.

She doesn’t look away.

“I was supposed to have his back. Instead, I hesitated. Took me five seconds too long to draw. They were waiting. Four of them. Clean. Fast. Took the tech and left us like garbage.”

Viviana leans forward. “But you lived.”

“Barely.”

I unclench my fists.

“I was holding him. I didn’t even scream. Just sat there. Couldn’t stop listening to the blood hitting the floor.”

She swallows.

I look down. My voice is rasping now. “I keep replaying it. If I’d checked the call logs earlier. If I’d trusted my gut. If I hadn’t needed one more payout—he’d still be breathing.”

I lift my head, and she’s right there, watching.

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