The implication was devastatingly simple.
Once Dominic accepted the revised terms, Constantine’s organization intended to create alternate shipping instructions under the authority of the agreement.
Russo resources could be redirected while Constantine retained plausible deniability.
The unreadable journal was not protection from outsiders.
It was protection from the man being asked to sign it.
Constantine’s composure finally cracked.
“This meeting is over.”
Dominic looked toward Silas.
The enforcer moved between Constantine and the door.
Nobody touched him.
Nobody needed to.
Dominic folded his hands.
“No.
The meeting ends when I understand what you brought into my restaurant.”
Constantine’s eyes flicked toward Amelia.
“This woman is putting herself in danger she cannot comprehend.”
Dominic’s gaze followed his.
Amelia expected the warning to frighten her.
Instead it clarified something.
Constantine was no longer trying to convince Dominic.
He was trying to silence her.
She turned another page.
Near the back of the journal, the code changed again.
The writing became more compressed, the numbers less frequent.
These were not contractual clauses.
They resembled operational notes.
One line repeated a symbol Amelia had seen earlier beside the replacement protocol.
She traced it carefully.
“What?” Dominic asked.
“There is a contingency section.”
Constantine stood so violently that his chair struck the floor behind him.
Silas stepped forward.
Dominic did not move.
“Read it.”
Constantine’s voice rose.
“Dominic, think carefully.
Whatever arrangement we had can still be repaired.”
Dominic looked almost curious.
“Five minutes ago, your terms were non-negotiable.”
Constantine said nothing.
Amelia translated.
“If the revised percentage is rejected, suspend eastern passage.
If the ledger is challenged, deny secondary meaning.
If the cipher is compromised—”
She stopped.
Dominic’s eyes narrowed.
“If the cipher is compromised, what?”
Amelia looked at Constantine.
His face gave her the answer before the text did.
She finished.
“Terminate the negotiation and recover the ledger.”
Gabriel glanced at the leather book beneath Amelia’s hand.
Dominic said, “Recover it from whom?”
Amelia studied the final shorthand marker.
“The holder.”
No one spoke.
