I tap my pen against the table once. "Anything else?"
Enzo shakes his head. "No, that’s everything."
Good. I turn to Caruso. "Waterfront?"
Caruso straightens slightly in his chair, which sets me on edge.
He's been with the Famiglia for almost fifteen years. Started as a laborer, worked his way up to foreman, then site manager. Reliable. Methodical. The sort of man who notices problems before they become expensive. Which is why I know the supplier delay is bothering him.
"We've had another delay."
"How long now?"
"Another week."
I lean back in my chair. "A week becomes two. Two becomes a month."
His jaw tightens, because we're both aware I'm right.
"The supplier's claiming equipment issues."
"I don't care what he's claiming."
The Waterfront site sits at the center of too many moving parts for delays to be tolerated. Materials get delayed, schedules get delayed, and everything behind them gets delayed too.
"What's your solution?"
"I've got a second supplier lined up."
That gets my attention. "Already?"
He shrugs. "I started looking the day they missed their first deadline."
That's exactly why he has the position.
"You vetted them?"
He nods. "Twice."
"And?"
"No issues."
I glance at Marco.
He flips through his notes. "Caruso's right. We've gone through their accounts, contracts, and shipping schedules. Nothing suggests they're connected to the leak."
I look back at Caruso. "Then what's the problem?"
"The second supplier costs more."
Of course they do. Everything costs more when you're fixing somebody else's mistake.
"How much?" He gives me the figure and I do the math in my head, the delay would cost more. "Approve it."
Caruso nods. "I'll have it done before lunch."
"It needs to be."
