Trapped in an Iron Cage by His Outlaw Brother, an Ex-Con Tracker and His Wife Risk $2.5 Million in Underworld Gold and Their Lives through Explosive Hidden Traps and Paternity Betrayals
Eli stammered, his bravado crumbling. “A lie! A trick! Silas is just trying to save his skin!”
Castillo held up a hand, silencing him. “The laboratory seal is authentic. Our own men have verified the signatures on the deeds, the false accounts, and the movement of the funds. The evidence is conclusive, Eli.”
He placed the documents carefully back on the table. His voice was no longer soft; it was hard, uncompromising. “You have slandered the Don’s name, claimed his blood as your own, and embezzled from the council. These are grave offenses under our law.”
The other captains shifted, their eyes now on Eli, not me. Loyalty in this world was fluid, and a proven liar and thief who endangered the entire operation was not to be tolerated.
“Boyd,” Castillo commanded, his voice sharp. “Disarm him.”
Eli’s eyes flashed with defiance, but he saw the hardened faces of the men surrounding him. He saw the cold resolve in Boyd’s gaze. He knew this fight was lost.
Boyd stepped forward, his hand still on his own pistol. He slowly reached out and unclipped Eli’s sidearm, then took the hunting knife from his belt. Eli stood there, stripped of his authority, stripped of his weapons, looking utterly exposed.
“You betray me, Boyd?” Eli spat, his voice trembling with a mixture of disbelief and fury.
Boyd met his gaze, his face grim. “You betrayed my family, Eli. You murdered them to cover your lies. There’s no coming back from that.”
A collective murmur went through the room. The full scope of Eli’s treachery, not just against the council but against his own loyal enforcer, settled heavily in the air.
Castillo looked at me, a flicker of something almost like respect in his eyes. “Silas Rudd, you have brought forth a truth that demanded to be seen. What is your judgment? Under our law, the accused is stripped of all authority and faces the council’s justice.”
The weight of his words was immense. I could have demanded Eli’s life, but that wasn’t my way. My objective was Maeve’s safety, and the permanent dismantling of Eli’s syndicate, not a blood feud.
“He tried to murder me and frame me,” I stated, my voice clear despite the remnants of the gag still around my jaw. “He threatened Maeve. He embezzled millions. I invoke the underworld’s law, Don Alvarez’s law. Let the council deal with him as they see fit.”
I wasn’t asking for vengeance for myself. I was asking for the system to purge itself. This move, asking for justice rather than taking it, resonated with Castillo. It showed I respected their hierarchy, their rules.
Castillo nodded slowly. “So be it. Eli Rudd, you are condemned. Your rank is stripped. Your empire is forfeit. You will answer for your crimes to Don Alvarez directly.”
Two of Alvarez’s lieutenants stepped forward, flanking Eli. His face, once proud and arrogant, was now a mask of pure, unadulterated terror.
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