Chapter 6 - THE TRUTH THAT DESTROYED TWO FAMILIES
The old church stood on a quiet street, its stained-glass windows cracked and its doors chained shut.
Damien arrived shortly before eleven.
He carried the ledger inside his coat.
He had ignored Richard's demand that he come alone.
Three of his most trusted men waited nearby, while Martin remained with Elena in a secure location.
The church was dark.
A single light illuminated the altar.
Lily sat in the front pew.
Her red velvet dress was dirty, and one white ribbon hung loosely from her hair.
When she saw Damien, she stood.
"Mr. Grumpy!"
Damien's heart nearly broke.
He took one step forward.
A man appeared behind her.
Richard.
"Stop there."
Damien froze.
His uncle held a gun.
"Put the ledger on the floor."
Damien slowly removed it.
"You've taken a three-year-old hostage."
Richard sighed.
"Don't pretend you understand the decisions I've had to make."
"You murdered my father."
Richard's expression hardened.
"Your father was weak."
"He was your brother."
"He was going to destroy everything."
Richard stepped closer.
"Do you know how much money your father was losing? How many people he was protecting? He wanted to turn this family into a respectable business empire. He thought loyalty was more important than power."
"So you killed him."
Richard looked toward the ceiling.
"Your father made his choice."
Damien's jaw tightened.
"What happened to Martin's wife?"
Richard laughed bitterly.
"She was unfortunate."
Lily began crying.
Damien looked at her.
"Richard, let her go."
"Give me the ledger."
Damien placed it on the floor.
Richard gestured toward one of his men.
The man approached and picked it up.
Then a voice came from the church entrance.
"Put the gun down, Richard."
Anthony Moretti stepped into the light.
Richard turned.
"What are you doing here?"
Anthony smiled.
"Collecting what I'm owed."
Damien immediately understood.
Richard had never intended to let him leave.
The arrangement was simple.
Damien would bring the ledger.
Richard would take it.
Moretti would eliminate both men and claim the evidence had been destroyed.
But Moretti had arrived to eliminate Richard as well.
"You're making a mistake," Richard said.
Anthony raised his weapon.
"Not this time."
The next seconds erupted into chaos.
Damien lunged toward Lily.
A gunshot shattered the silence.
Glass fell from the windows.
Damien reached the child and pulled her behind the pew.
One of his guards entered from the side entrance.
Another tackled a gunman near the altar.
Richard disappeared into the darkness.
"Mr. Grumpy!" Lily sobbed.
Damien wrapped his arms around her.
"I'm here, sweetheart."
He checked her quickly.
No visible injuries.
Then he heard footsteps behind him.
Richard stood at the end of the aisle.
His gun was aimed directly at Damien.
"You should have stayed out of this."
Damien pushed Lily behind him.
"Put it down."
Richard laughed.
"You think you're better than me? You built your empire on the same blood I did."
Damien didn't answer.
"Your father taught you everything. But he never told you the truth about your mother."
Damien's eyes narrowed.
"What truth?"
Richard's smile became cruel.
"She was in the car that night."
"I know."
"No, Damien. You don't."
Richard took another step.
"She survived the crash. She was taken to the hospital. She lived for three hours."
Damien went completely still.
"What?"
"Your father died immediately. Your mother was still alive when I arrived."
"Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Richard's expression twisted.
"Because she had seen me shoot your father."
The room seemed to disappear.
Damien stared at his uncle.
"You killed her?"
Richard shrugged.
"I finished what your father started."
A gunshot rang out.
Richard's weapon fell from his hand.
Martin stood behind him, holding a pistol.
"That's for Elena's mother," Martin said.
Richard collapsed against a pew.
Damien turned toward Martin.
"Where did you come from?"
"Your guard called me."
Martin approached slowly.
"Elena's mother wasn't supposed to die. She was going to testify. Richard made sure she never could."
Damien looked down at his uncle.
"Why did you return the watch?"
Martin swallowed.
"Because I found your father's final recording. I needed you to understand what happened before Richard destroyed the evidence."
Damien looked at Lily.
She was crying silently.
He picked her up.
"Let's go home."
Outside, emergency vehicles approached.
Anthony Moretti had escaped through a rear exit, but two of his men had been captured.
Richard was taken into custody.
For the first time in fifteen years, Damien had the truth.
But it was not the truth he had wanted.
When they reached the mansion, Elena ran toward them.
"Lily!"
Damien lowered the child into her arms.
Elena held her daughter so tightly that Lily squealed.
"Mommy!"
Elena kissed her forehead repeatedly.
Then she looked at Damien.
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Thank you."
He shook his head.
"She brought something back to this house that I thought I'd lost forever."
Elena looked confused.
"What?"
Damien glanced at Lily.
"My family."
That night, he sat alone in his father's study.
The leather chair felt different now.
He opened the old notebook again and found a folded photograph hidden between the final pages.
It showed his father, his mother, and a young woman standing outside the mansion.
The young woman was not a member of the family.
On the back, his father had written:
The person who knows what happened to the child is still alive.
Damien stared at the photograph.
There was a second child in the picture.
May you like
A little boy.
And he looked remarkably like Damien.
