Chapter 459 - 213: Unfinished
Brooklyn District. A red brick apartment building.
Four people were seated around the dining table in the center of the room.
Barney was anxiously running a hand through his hair, his other finger jabbing at a map of Pennsylvania spread across the tabletop.
"We can’t delay any longer."
Barney’s voice was hushed.
"Luigi has been in the attic for three days. Every minute he’s here, the risk of exposure increases. I saw the news. They’ve started a statewide search in Pennsylvania. They know Luigi is here."
Rosa sat opposite him.
She clutched a Cross tightly, her lips moving silently, as if praying to the Holy Mother Mary for some kind of miracle.
"He’s just a boy," Rosa said suddenly. "He had a fever last night. We can’t just stand by and watch him get caught."
"Of course we won’t."
Barney cut her off.
But right now, he needed a plan, not tears.
"The key right now is the route."
Barney’s finger traced a line on the map, starting from the Allegheny River and going straight north to Lake Erie.
"The highways are no good. They’ve set up checkpoints at all the interstate toll plazas. We have to go by water."
"By water?" Ben Harris challenged. "The waves on Lake Erie are rough right now, and the Coast Guard has twice the usual number of patrol boats out. You want him to swim to Canada?"
"We’ll hire smugglers," Barney said, gritting his teeth. "I know some guys at the docks who used to run cigarettes. As long as we pay enough, they can hide someone in a freighter’s ballast tank and get them out."
"How much?"
"Fifty thousand." Barney held up five fingers. "Cash. Old, non-sequential bills."
The room fell silent.
For these people, fifty thousand US Dollars was an astronomical sum.
There was no way they could come up with that kind of money.
"We could start a private fundraiser..." Chloe suggested softly. "In the communities we can absolutely trust, we could ask for ten or twenty bucks from each household and see what we can scrape together."
"Are you crazy?" Barney shot her a glare. "This is aiding and abetting a federal fugitive. How can we know who’s ’absolutely trustworthy’? If just one person lets it slip, the SWAT team will be here before we see a dime of that money. Besides..."
Barney glanced up at the ceiling.
"Luigi wouldn’t want us to do that. He said he doesn’t want to drag anyone else into this."
Amid the suffocating stalemate, an old television in the corner of the room droned on, providing a low, buzzing background noise.
It was a local news channel, running continuous, 24-hour coverage.
Suddenly, a rousing musical intro cut through the conversation.
The red news ticker at the bottom of the screen became starkly prominent: MAYOR OF PITTSBURGH LEO WALLACE TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE ON CITY’S FUTURE.
The screen cut to the press briefing room at City Hall.
The room was packed with reporters, camera flashes going off wildly.
Leo Wallace stood behind the podium, his expression grim.
"What’s he doing?" Rosa stared at the screen. "Is he going to announce that they’ve caught Luigi?"
"Shh." Barney motioned for them to be quiet.
On the television, Leo’s voice was steady and strong.
"After consulting with the Federal Government and the member cities of the Pennsylvania Industrial Revival Alliance, we have formulated a new development plan."
"Infrastructure construction for the Pittsburgh Inland Port will be fully accelerated. Dredging of the river channel will begin effective immediately. The procurement process for automated loading and unloading systems is nearing completion, and the laying of a dedicated line connecting the port with the main railway network will commence next month."
"This is about the future of Pittsburgh. It’s about ensuring the smooth operation of the great logistics artery of Western Pennsylvania."
Leo held up three fingers.
"Over the next three years, we will put forth four hundred million US Dollars to establish a special industrial revival subsidy. This money will be injected directly into our allied cities in the Revival Alliance."
"Any factory willing to undergo technological upgrades and preserve local jobs will be eligible to apply for these funds."
The camera flashes from the audience flickered sporadically.
To this group of political reporters, who were used to major events, this was just a standard, even boring, press conference on municipal planning.
Several veteran reporters had already closed their notebooks and begun to pack away their recorders. Cameramen took their fingers off the record buttons, preparing to cut the feed.
But Leo didn’t say the expected, "Thank you, everyone. This press conference is now concluded."
He just stood there in silence.
The reporters who had been preparing to leave suddenly paid attention. Their professional instincts told them that the main course had yet to be served—all of that had just been the appetizer.
On the TV, Leo leaned forward with both hands on the lectern, his eyes staring straight into the camera lens.
"We’re talking about construction, about the future, about how to make this city indestructible."
Leo’s voice grew lower, taking on an unsettling tone.
"But, just as we are giving our all to revive this city, just as we are trying to mend our broken-down streets and lives..."
"In our neighboring city, Philadelphia, a tragedy occurred."
"I’m talking about that shooting. About the young man who is on the run."
"The FBI has labeled him a killer, and the media has labeled him a madman."
Leo paused, his gaze sweeping over the cameras.
"But in my view, this was more than just a murder."
"It was a signal."
"A bloody signal that our healthcare system has completely collapsed, that ordinary people have nowhere to turn in their despair."
Barney was stunned.
He never expected Leo to say something like that.