Chapter 5 - The Father Who Had Been Hiding
Arthur Thorne arrived at the Moretti estate the following afternoon.
Dominic had located him at a small motel outside Chicago and arranged secure transportation to Colorado.
He was thinner than Clara remembered, his face lined with exhaustion. When he saw his daughter sitting in the estate's library, he stopped in the doorway.
"Clara."
She stood immediately.
"Dad?"
He crossed the room and embraced her.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Clara stepped back.
"Why didn't you tell me about Mom?"
Arthur's expression changed.
Tony stood near the fireplace, listening.
"What are you talking about?"
Clara placed the photograph on the table.
"She knew Isabella Moretti. She knew something happened before Isabella died. Why did you hide it?"
Arthur stared at the photograph.
Then he sat down heavily.
"Because I promised your mother I would keep you away from that family."
Tony stepped forward.
"What happened to Isabella?"
Arthur looked at him.
"She was investigating your family's business dealings. She had discovered that Victor Vance was moving money through companies connected to Gambino."
Tony's face hardened.
"Why would Isabella be involved?"
"Because she was helping your father. Your father had become suspicious of Victor."
Tony froze.
His father had died eight years earlier.
Arthur continued.
"Isabella came to me because your mother and I were friends. She needed someone outside the organization who could keep documents safe."
Clara stared at him.
"You knew all this and let me believe you were simply a man with gambling problems?"
Arthur closed his eyes.
"I made mistakes. Terrible ones."
"Did you gamble away fifty thousand dollars?"
"No."
The answer came so quickly that Clara barely understood it.
Arthur looked at Tony.
"The debt was manufactured. Victor arranged it. Gambino used it to keep me quiet."
Tony's expression turned lethal.
"About what?"
Arthur reached into his coat and removed a small envelope.
Inside was a photograph of a handwritten ledger.
It contained dates, account numbers, and a series of payments.
One entry stood out.
December 24 — Aspen transfer — $2.5 million.
The same date as the Christmas celebration.
Tony studied the page.
"What's this?"
"Money that was supposed to disappear through a company owned by the Vance family. Isabella discovered that the company was also paying people inside your organization."
Tony felt the room shift beneath him.
"Who?"
Arthur shook his head.
"I never saw the complete ledger. Isabella had the original."
"Where is it?"
"She gave it to someone she trusted."
"Who?"
Arthur looked at Clara.
"Your mother."
Clara felt her breath catch.
"My mother?"
Arthur nodded.
"She hid it somewhere before she died. I never found it."
Tony moved closer.
"Why didn't you come to me?"
"Because Victor threatened Clara. He told me if I ever spoke, she would disappear."
Arthur's voice broke.
"I thought if I stayed quiet, I could keep her safe."
Clara looked at him with tears in her eyes.
"You let me work for the people who were threatening us."
"I didn't know Lana would target you."
"But you knew the danger."
Arthur lowered his head.
There was no excuse.
Tony gave them a moment before speaking.
"Victor is still using Gambino to collect money?"
Arthur nodded.
"And he knows about the ledger?"
"I think so."
Tony turned to Dominic.
"Find the original document. Search every property Isabella used. And get me the full transaction history of the Vance accounts."
Dominic left.
Clara remained beside her father.
"There's something else," Arthur said quietly.
He reached into his pocket and produced a small brass key.
"Your mother gave me this shortly before she died. She said it opened a safety deposit box. I never knew which bank."
Tony examined it.
The key had a small number engraved on its side.
117.
He recognized the symbol stamped into the metal.
It belonged to a private bank in Manhattan that had once handled his father's accounts.
Before he could ask another question, Dominic returned.
His expression was grim.
"Boss, we've got a problem."
"What?"
"The hospital called. Someone tried to access Clara's medical records using a false police identification."
Tony's eyes narrowed.
"Did they get in?"
"No. But they left something at the front desk."
Dominic placed a photograph on the table.
It showed Clara standing beside her mother outside the Moretti estate.
On the back, someone had written:
SHE KNOWS WHERE THE LEDGER IS. MAKE SURE SHE NEVER LEAVES COLORADO.
Clara looked at her father.
May you like
Arthur whispered the name of the person he feared most.
"Victor."
