Chapter 4 (Lexi)

                                    

                                          

     The thing about revenge is that it's such a consuming presence it doesn't quiet down even for the duration of dinner. Because Anthony didn't have to tend to any business tonight I knew it was the perfect opportunity to do the scheme I've been thinking on lately. Nothing so overly radical it'd be noticed, but still something that'll later further the plot of what's to come. 
 And because revenge is consuming, avenging it leaves you with equally time consuming tasks.
 Because I am a Petrov, quite unfortunately, I know random things about my family's business. Little things that meant nothing to me at the time I learned them, but everything to me now that I want to destroy them. Like the teddy bear operation. Sounds silly doesn't it? But its purpose is much more sinister than that. 
 The Russian's have their own type of import/export that doesn't overlap with the Italians because it's mostly aerial, but it is based here in New York. They have a warehouse down by the wharf. It looks entirely normal if you don't know where to look for the trouble inside. But I know.
 Of course the warehouse is guarded. It's not swarming with Russian's though, because it's not supposed to bring attention beyond it being normal security for a warehouse full of shipments from overseas. Things already processed by the port authorities and are perfectly legal to be here. 
 I've taken up a new hobby recently. On nights when Anthony is busy working I go out and watch. Watch different locations of my father's operations, this warehouse included. Especially this warehouse in recent weeks. 
It started two months ago after I found out the truth about my mother. I was going crazy and I couldn't just sit around and do nothing even though Anthony asked me to. So, when he wasn't around I started watching, studying, learning the patterns of Vitaly's operations. 
 All that is to say that I know a flaw in the wharf operation, one that'll get me inside undetected. Nobody is allowed inside the warehouse that they guard, they watch from outside of it. Once I'm in I have free rein over the place. 
Of course there are cameras. I asked Dom about that a while back and he told me you can loop a camera so the feed doesn't show live footage. All you need is someone smart enough to hack the system, who Dom of course had on hand because he's Domani De Luca. 
 At the time he didn't know why I was asking, but now that he does know I'm seeking vengeance he probably wouldn't have told me the information without my promise not to contact that hacker without him involved. But I have the hackers information. I know who to go to. So, I went.
 We've built a kind of rapport and I explained the bare minimum of why I needed this anonymous person to loop a feed for me. They're professional so they don't demand answers. It's all about anonymity. You just pay them and they do the thing.     
I contacted the number I was given by the hacker themselves and let them know tonight was the night I would need that service. They said okay, then told me they'd send a text when it was safe to enter. 
We waited a block away. Any cameras in the area are about to be looped. I'm invisible to technology, I just have to watch for the naked eye. 
 I'm stealthier than most think. I've been hiding things from Vitaly since I was 17 years old. I would trick Boris all four years of knowing him when he used to be my bodyguard. I can slip into a place without fuss. 
And the best part about being a pretty blonde is that I can play dumb whenever it serves me. I get caught and I act like I'm Dumbo unaware that I just accidentally stumbled upon Bratva business. 
 Use what you've got right? 
 My thumb tapped the wheel of this car Anthony let me borrow tonight with the condition that I bring him along. My heart beat matched my thumbs motion. Then I got the text. I was good to go. Shit tits. We slipped out of the car and into the shadows. It's New York, plenty of people are walking around right now. I don't particularly stand out here. Not yet.