The morning sun spilled through the tall glass of Rafael's office,The Navarro Corporation headquarters was already alive with movement, men in suits, phones ringing, papers passing like currency.
From the outside, it was a business empire. Inside, it was a war room wearing a tie.
Rafael stood near the window, jacket off, shirt sleeves rolled to his elbows. His tie hung loose around his neck, the veins in his forearm tight as he turned a file page.
He'd been reading since dawn, eyes sharp, jaw tight.
"Señor," came a voice from the door.
It was Diego, one of his internal operatives, lean, quiet, efficient. A man Rafael trusted just enough to let him live close.
"Talk," Rafael said without looking up.
Diego stepped closer, lowering his voice. "We found something off in the Mazatlán records. One of the shipments.....half of it is missing."
Rafael's eyes lifted slowly. "Missing?"
"Sí. The manifests were altered two nights ago. On paper, everything checks out, but the trucks that left didn't match the registered cargo. Someone switched the serials."
Rafael's voice dropped. "Who signed the papers?"
Diego hesitated. "One of the secondary handlers. Julio Ortega."
Rafael frowned. "Julio's been with us since Veracruz."
"Exactly," Diego said. "That's what makes it strange. He hasn't been seen since last night. Phones dead. House empty."
Silence.
Rafael leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temple. He hated ghosts in his system... missing men, missing trucks, missing explanations.
It meant someone had reached in from outside.
"Cassimo," he murmured finally. The name left his mouth like a curse.
Diego nodded grimly. "That's what I thought too. He's been too quiet. When Cassimo's quiet, he's planning."
Rafael tapped his ring against the edge of the desk once, twice, the faint sound sharp as a heartbeat.
"Send word to Caleb. I want him here in an hour. And Diego....."
"Sí, señor?"
"Start pulling every piece of communication between Mazatlán and the northern routes..... and find me Ortega"
Diego gave a short nod and left.
Rafael stayed seated, his mind already running faster than his pulse.
Cassimo had been losing ground for months. For him to make a move now quietly meant he'd found a thread worth pulling.
Rafael's gaze shifted to the glass wall, where the city sprawled beneath him, glittering and restless. He'd built this empire on precision, fear, and discipline. Now something unseen was testing it.
His reflection stared back .....the Devil of the trade, the man who'd turned blood into business.
And yet beneath that calm, a strange unease lingered.
....
The door opened again, this time without a knock. Caleb entered, his stride quick, posture crisp.
"Rafael," he said, closing the door behind him. "I just heard about Mazatlán."
Rafael didn't turn. "Then you already know why I'm angry."
Caleb placed a folder on the desk. "I've got men tracing Ortega. Last signal from a motel north of Culiacán. After that.....nothing. Either he ran, or someone made him disappear."
Rafael's tone was quiet. "Cassimo?"
Caleb hesitated. "Could be. But there's something else. I've been watching Valdez. He's been buying up smaller suppliers along the western coast..... fast. Too fast. He's overextending, but he's not stupid. He's got backing."
"From who?"
Caleb exhaled. "That's what I can't prove yet. But my gut says Cassimo's feeding him information. Maybe even funding."
Rafael finally turned, his eyes hard. "So Cassimo's building ghosts through Valdez. He distracts us with Valdez's aggression while he bleeds our supply lines from the shadows."
Caleb nodded slowly. "Exactly."
Rafael's lips curved faintly, almost admiringly. "Smart. But not smart enough."
He picked up his cigarette pack, rolled one between his fingers, but didn't light it. "You know what to do, Caleb."
Caleb straightened. "Hit them back?"
"No," Rafael said, his tone like steel wrapped in silk. "Not yet. First, we find where Cassimo's eyes are inside my walls. He knows too much. That means someone's talking."
Caleb's jaw tensed. "You think it's one of ours?"
Rafael's gaze turned cold. "I know it is. No one steals from me without help from the inside."
He leaned closer, lowering his voice. "I want you to find that traitor, Caleb. Quietly. No rumors, no noise. When you find him...." He paused, the faintest smile ghosting his face. "don't kill him yet. Bring him to me. I want to ask questions first."
Caleb nodded once. "Understood."
Rafael turned back to the window, watching the sun climb higher.
Outside, the city pulsed with life....cars moving, buildings cutting into the sky like blades.
But to him, it all looked like a chessboard.
And Cassimo had just made his move.