The serpent's coil

"Whispers

e familiar loops and angles, a final, cryptic message from beyond the grave. She traced the words with a trembling finger, the implications slowly unfurling in her

tly by the desk, his gaze unwavering. "

ibing the interconnectedness of... things. The 'serpent' refers to the organization, the network. The 'coil' is

ella pressed, her voice

world operates in shades of grey. Some

s, even those closest to him. Don't trust the shadows. Could that include Luca? The thought was jarring, unsettling. Luca had been a constant in her lif

said, more to herself than to Luca

place to stand without being pulled into the depths immediate

a bitter laugh escaping her lips. "This isn't protect

e firm. "One he entrusted to you. He believed you

history and literature, not the intricate dance of power and violence. Stre

she asked, the question l

muscle, but with information. He had eyes and ears everywhere. The key to finding the 'head' lies in understanding the

she probed, watching his ref

erranean. "Some. But even I wasn't privy to everything. Your father was

's my fir

hing your father left. The files, the ledgers, even the seemingly insignificant not

over financial statements, balance sheets, and cryptic correspondence. The "legitimate" businesses were indeed impressive: real estate ventures, import-export companies, a chain of hig

n the Cayman Islands. The amounts were always significant, the descriptions vague. When she cross-referenced them, she found that Cerberus Holdi

en in a false bottom of a desk drawer. It wasn't among the official documents. This was something personal. Inside, scrawled in her father's

a – Cerberus Li

r brutal efficiency and their deep ties to international illicit trades. Her father had always warned her to s

her phone vibrated. It was an unkn

asked, heavily accented, the word

caught in her thro

red. "Some nests are best left undisturbed. Your fath

d respond, the

htening. And someone, somewhere, knew she was starting to unravel its secrets. She