Page 53 of Code Name: Grit

“What kind of information?” Lumi asked, her grip tightening on mine.

“About you,” Tank said grimly. “Someone might have connected the dots.”

All the peaceful contentment of the morning evaporated in an instant. I felt Lumi stiffen beside me, though her expression remained controlled.

“Admiral wants to see you both in the command center. Now.”

As we followed Tank inside, I kept Lumi close, wishing we could’ve returned to the other lake and spent one more night there together, shutting out the rest of the world and whatever we’d now have to face. One look in Lumi’s eyes, and I knew she felt the same.

14

LUMI

“The Patriarcas are actively searching for information about you,” Admiral said, his expression grim as he pulled up the intercepted communications on the command center’s main display. “And it appears the Belcastros have been alerted to their interest.”

My blood ran cold despite Grit’s warm presence beside me. The evening light filtering through the windows cast long shadows across the room as the team gathered around the digital table. Dragon loaded the intercepted messages and photos in chronological order on the screen.

“What exactly are they looking for?” I asked, keeping my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me.

Dragon pulled up a grainy long-range photo taken at the shipping terminal. My face was partially visible in profile, but recognizable enough. “The Patriarcas are circulating this image within their networks. They’re asking about ‘the woman at the Red Hook terminal, who may or may not be a security consultant.’”

Dante paced behind us, agitation evident in his every movement. “How the hell did this happen?”

“The dock worker,” I whispered, meeting Grit’s eyes. “He must have alerted someone.”

Grit nodded, his jaw tight.

Admiral highlighted a series of intercepted messages on the display. “The Patriarcas are offering substantial amounts of money for information about your identity and location.”

“What else?” I asked, noting the tension in Admiral’s shoulders.

He exchanged glances with Tank before sighing. “We intercepted communications from Giovanni to Rafael Patriarca suggesting you bear a resemblance to someone in the Belcastro family. They’re speculating you could be used as leverage.”

“In the Belcastro family?”I gasped.

“How did they make that connection?” Grit asked, moving imperceptibly closer to me.

Dragon shook her head. “Unknown. But that isn’t all.” She pulled up another intercepted message with a timestamp from just four hours ago. “This encrypted text was sent to Marco Venutti from an unidentified source. It contains the same photo and a warning that the Patriarcas are looking for you.”

“Alice is implementing enhanced security protocols at our current locations,” Admiral continued. “Effective immediately, we’re initiating lockdown procedures for your safety. If the Patriarcas have managed to get your photo, we have to assume they’re actively hunting you.”

Lockdown? Security protocols? “No.” The word escaped before I could stop it.

All eyes turned to me.

“I mean—you can’t be serious.”

“Lumi,” Admiral began, his voice gentle but firm. “Until we determine exactly what they know and how they discovered it, this is the safest option.”

“I didn’t join K19 to go back into hiding,” I said, my voice rising despite my efforts to remain calm. “I’ve spent twenty-six years running. I can’t do it again.”

Dante stepped forward. “This isn’t up for debate.”

I whirled to face him. “This ismylife, Alessandro.”

Using his birth name caused his eyes to narrow, his jaw tightening at my deliberate formality.

“If they discover who you are?—”

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