Chapter 10 - THE VIDEO THAT BROKE THE EMPIRE
The video was twenty-seven minutes long.
Liam had recorded cages.
Training equipment.
Injured animals.
Financial documents.
And conversations involving Patrick Voss.
Then the camera turned toward Anthony Rourke.
He was standing beside a truck.
Talking about shipments.
Payments.
And using trained animals to intimidate witnesses.
Declan watched the recording in silence.
When it ended, he remained seated.
Mave stood beside him.
She had never seen him look so broken.
“My brother knew,” he whispered.
Mave nodded.
“He tried to stop them.”
Declan closed his eyes.
For years, he'd blamed rival criminals.
Now the evidence pointed toward the man who had comforted him at Liam's funeral.
Detective Bennett cautioned that the video would require authentication and corroboration.
But it gave investigators a powerful lead.
They traced vehicles.
Financial transactions.
Former employees.
And a shipment scheduled to leave the harbor within forty-eight hours.
The shipment was registered as industrial machinery.
Investigators suspected it concealed evidence connected to the illegal operation.
They obtained warrants.
Coordinated with federal authorities.
And prepared to intercept it.
Anthony learned about the investigation through a corrupt employee.
He knew the net was tightening.
So he made one final decision.
He would take something Declan couldn't replace.
That night, Mave received a call from the care facility.
Her mother was missing.
Mave dropped her phone.
Declan caught her before she fell.
“What happened?”
She looked at him.
Her face had gone white.
“They took Mom.”
A message arrived moments later.
COME TO THE WAREHOUSE ALONE.
Beneath it was a photograph.
Margaret sat in a chair.
Her wrists were bound.
A man stood behind her.
Anthony Rourke.
Mave began trembling.
Declan reached for his phone.
“I'm calling Bennett.”
Mave shook her head.
“He said alone.”
Declan looked at her.
“That's what he wants.”
She stared at the photograph.
Then whispered:
“I can't lose her.”
Declan took her hand.
May you like
“You won't face him alone.”
For the first time, Mave did not argue.
