Chapter 5 - The Man Who Came Back from the Grave
Dominic moved before he thought.
He pulled Elena and Rose away from the front window just as the sedan's rear door opened.
“Get inside,” he ordered.
Elena clutched Rose against her chest.
“Who is that man?”
“My father.”
Her face drained of color.
“I thought he was dead.”
“So did I.”
Two security officers moved toward the street. Anthony didn't run. He stepped from the sedan with the unhurried confidence of a man who had never believed the rules applied to him.
He wore a dark overcoat and carried a silver-headed cane.
His hair had turned white, but his eyes were exactly as Dominic remembered them: cold, calculating, and always searching for the weakest person in the room.
“Dominic,” Anthony called. “You look terrible.”
Dominic stepped onto the lawn.
“You've got thirty seconds to explain why you were following my daughter.”
Anthony smiled faintly.
“Your daughter? That's an interesting choice of words. The child has been raised by another woman. She has a name, a home, and a life. You shouldn't disturb her because you've suddenly developed a conscience.”
“You arranged the adoption.”
“I arranged her survival.”
Dominic's hands curled into fists.
“What happened at 2:17?”
For the first time, Anthony's smile faded.
“You found the watch.”
“And the photograph.”
“Then you've found enough to make a great deal of trouble for yourself.”
“You kept Isabella alive.”
Anthony glanced at the house.
“Isabella was never supposed to survive the accident.”
The words landed like a gunshot.
Dominic lunged forward, but Marcus caught his arm.
“Not here,” Marcus muttered. “There are cameras everywhere.”
Dominic forced himself to stand still.
“Tell me where she is.”
Anthony tapped his cane against the pavement.
“You've spent four years believing grief made you a better man. You stopped making impulsive decisions. You became cautious. Vanessa was good for you.”
“You used her.”
“I gave her a purpose.”
“By helping her steal my child?”
Anthony's expression hardened.
“Your child was a liability. Isabella had discovered information that could have destroyed this family. She was going to take you away from the business, and you were weak enough to let her.”
Dominic stared at him.
“My wife wanted me to leave the criminal empire you built.”
“She wanted to take everything from you.”
“She wanted our child to grow up somewhere safe.”
Anthony's eyes narrowed.
“Safety is an expensive illusion, son. I was the only person who understood that.”
“Where is Isabella?”
Anthony looked toward the sedan.
“Somewhere you cannot reach her.”
Dominic stepped closer.
“If you've hurt her—”
“You'll do what? Kill me?” Anthony laughed softly. “You've spent your life trying to prove you're not me. Don't throw that away because a woman who disappeared years ago has suddenly become your obsession.”
He opened the car door.
Then he paused.
“One more thing. Leave the Sterling family alone. Vanessa has already paid a considerable price for her loyalty.”
Dominic's face twisted with disgust.
“Loyalty? You mean blackmail.”
Anthony climbed into the sedan.
The car pulled away before the security officers could block it.
Dominic stood on the lawn, shaking with rage.
Inside the house, Rose had stopped crying.
She peered around Elena's shoulder.
“Is that the bad man?”
Dominic turned toward her.
“No, sweetheart.”
He swallowed.
“He's the man who made some very bad choices.”
Rose considered that.
“Can people stop being bad?”
Dominic felt something break inside him.
“Yes,” he said quietly. “Sometimes they can.”
For the next hour, Elena told them everything she knew.
Vanessa had approached her through a charitable foundation after the baby was born. The adoption had been presented as an emergency arrangement to protect a child whose parents had died in a violent accident.
The financial support had continued for years.
Then, a month ago, the payments stopped.
Vanessa called Elena and demanded that she prepare Rose for a transfer to another family.
Elena refused.
Three days later, a man broke into her home while she and Rose were away. Nothing valuable had been stolen, but the family photographs had been scattered across the floor.
Someone had searched for evidence of Rose's identity.
“Why didn't you contact the police?” Dominic asked.
“Because the man who broke in left a note with your father's name on it. I was afraid that if I spoke, Rose would disappear.”
Dominic looked at Marcus.
“Put a team around this house. Discreetly. No one approaches Elena or Rose without her permission.”
Marcus nodded.
Elena hesitated.
“What happens now?”
“Now, I find Isabella.”
“And Rose?”
“She stays with you until a court determines otherwise. I'll pay for whatever protection you need, but I won't force her to leave the only home she's known.”
Elena studied him for a long moment.
Then she nodded.
Before Dominic left, Rose approached him with her stuffed rabbit.
“Do you know my real mommy?”
He crouched.
“I do.”
“Does she like rabbits?”
A smile almost reached his face.
“She likes all kinds of animals. But she always said rabbits were especially good at finding their way home.”
Rose held the toy closer.
“Then maybe she can find me.”
Dominic looked away before the child could see his tears.
Back at the mansion, Vanessa was waiting in the study.
She had removed her jewelry and changed into a plain black dress.
On the desk lay a folder, a glass of water, and a photograph of Isabella.
“I know you found Rose,” she said.
Dominic shut the door.
“Start talking.”
Vanessa's hands trembled.
“Anthony told me Isabella had betrayed the family. He said she had given information to federal investigators and planned to testify against him.”
“Did you believe him?”
“At first.”
“And later?”
She looked at the photograph.
“Later, I heard Isabella on the phone. She was begging someone to let her see her baby.”
Dominic's voice dropped.
“You knew she was alive.”
Vanessa closed her eyes.
“Yes.”
For four years, she had stood beside him at memorial ceremonies, watched him lay flowers on an empty grave, and accepted the engagement ring he had bought because he believed he had nothing left to lose.
“You let me mourn her.”
“I thought I could fix it.”
“By marrying me?”
“By keeping you alive!”
Her voice cracked.
“Anthony said Isabella had hidden evidence that could put everyone in prison. He said if I helped him control the situation, he would eventually release her. He promised me that once you married me, everything would end.”
Dominic stared at her.
“And you believed him?”
“I was twenty-nine, Dominic. I was terrified of your father.”
“So was I.”
The admission silenced her.
Dominic placed the repair receipt on the desk.
“Why did you take the watch to Harrison & Sons?”
Vanessa wiped her face.
“Because Isabella contacted me three weeks ago. She said the watch contained something Anthony needed destroyed. She told me to return it to her.”
“Where did you meet her?”
“An abandoned chapel outside the city.”
“Was she alone?”
“No. Two men were waiting in a car. I never saw their faces.”
“What happened?”
Vanessa looked toward the window.
“I gave her the watch. She opened the back, removed something, and told me to keep it safe. Then she said she would contact you.”
Dominic leaned forward.
“What did she remove?”
Vanessa reached into the folder and placed a tiny brass key on the desk.
“She said this opens a deposit box at a bank in Chicago. She told me that if she didn't reach you by October 24, I had to make sure the watch found its way home.”
Dominic stared at the key.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because the day after I met her, Anthony told me Isabella had been moved. He said if I contacted you, Rose would be killed.”
Dominic's anger did not disappear, but it shifted into something more complicated.
“You helped him take my daughter. You lied to me. And you allowed my wife to remain a prisoner.”
“I know.”
“Why should I believe you now?”
Vanessa looked him in the eyes.
“Because Anthony has never intended to let Isabella live long enough to tell you what happened at 2:17.”
Dominic picked up the key.
“Then we're going to find out.”
Vanessa reached for his sleeve.
“Dominic, there's one thing you need to understand. The deposit box doesn't contain evidence against your father.”
He stopped.
“What does it contain?”
Vanessa's voice fell to a whisper.
“A death certificate.”
May you like
She swallowed hard.
“Isabella's original death certificate. The one signed at 2:17 a.m. by a doctor who was never supposed to exist.”
