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Atlas straightened behind him.
“Show us,” Raze said.
Artemus opened another file.
A ledger appeared on the screen.
Payments had been recorded beside names belonging to port officials, police officers, customs inspectors and private clinics. Several entries were connected to politicians and legitimate businesses.
Then Artemus scrolled lower.
The list reached into the church.
Parishes.
Charities.
Children’s shelters.
A bishop.
My body went still.
Adriana turned toward me.
The room seemed to narrow around the screen.
Artemus broke the silence.
“This is not only a cartel operation. The Coccicos built the network, but they didn’t build it alone.”
He opened a flow chart.
Lines spread across the monitor, connecting ports to shelters, clinics to shell companies and church charities to private accounts.
“This reaches into law enforcement, government and the church. Someone has been moving victims through organizations for years.”
Adriana stared at the screen. “My father knew this.”
“Yes,” Artemus confirmed.
She turned back to the screen.
Raze pushed away from the wall.
“Who handled the transport?”
“Several companies,” Artemus said. “Most of them are legitimate.”
He opened another file, and a list replaced the records on the central screen.
Freight operators. Private security contractors. Warehouses. Construction companies. Charitable foundations. One private hospital. The organizations had not been chosen because they were invisible. They had been chosen because people saw them and looked no closer. No one questioned an ambulance moving through a checkpoint or an aid truck arriving at a shelter after dark. Uniforms inspired obedience. Charities invited trust. A hospital vehicle could carry almost anything through a city without being searched.
“These companies know what they’re transporting?” Raze asked.
“Some of them do. Others appear to have individual employees embedded inside them. A dispatcher changes a route, a security officer disables a camera, or a warehouse manager leaves a loading bay unlocked. The company continues operating legitimately while one person provides the Coccico cartel with access.”
“They built the network inside businesses they didn’t need to own,” Atlas confirmed.