Chapter 6 - The Brother Who Came Back From the Dead
“I BURIED MY BROTHER SIX YEARS AGO. SO WHY WAS HE STANDING OUTSIDE MY WIFE'S HOSPITAL ROOM TWO YEARS LATER?”
Dominic stared at the photograph.
Michael Moretti had been twenty-nine when his car plunged off a bridge outside Albany.
Police recovered the burned vehicle.
Antonio identified the remains.
Dominic remembered the funeral.
The closed casket.
His mother's screams.
And the guilt he'd carried ever since.
He and Michael had argued the night before the accident.
Michael had accused their father of laundering money through charitable foundations.
Dominic had defended Antonio.
Three days later, Michael was dead.
Or so he'd believed.
Caleb examined the photograph.
“Could it be someone who looks like him?”
Dominic shook his head.
“Look at his left hand.”
Michael had lost the tip of his little finger in a childhood accident.
The man in the photograph had the same injury.
Dominic felt sick.
“It's him.”
They searched Miriam Cole's house but found no one.
Detective Bennett, contacted through local authorities, advised them to leave the scene undisturbed.
Dominic complied.
He was beginning to understand that every impulsive move could endanger Grace.
Back at their hotel, Daniel joined them by video call.
“I found something about Michael's death certificate.”
Dominic leaned forward.
“What?”
“The original medical examiner retired shortly afterward. The body was identified using dental records supplied by your father's private dentist.”
“Not independent records?”
“No.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
Antonio had controlled the identification.
“Find the dentist.”
“Already trying.”
Daniel continued.
“There's more. Michael had a private bank account your father didn't know about.”
Dominic frowned.
“How do you know?”
“Because Michael's name appeared in a federal civil forfeiture case involving one of Antonio's shell companies.”
“When?”
“Three years ago.”
Dominic stared.
Michael had been alive at least three years after his supposed death.
“Where is he now?”
“I don't know.”
Dominic looked at the photograph.
“What did you get yourself into, little brother?”
The next morning, he returned home.
Sophie was eating breakfast with Hannah.
The moment she saw him, she ran across the kitchen.
“Daddy!”
He lifted her.
“Hey, sweetheart.”
“Did you find the baby?”
Dominic froze.
Hannah looked up sharply.
“What baby?”
Sophie pointed at his coat pocket.
“The little girl in the picture.”
Dominic realized he'd left Grace's photograph visible when he hugged her.
He sat down.
“Sophie, there's something I need to tell you.”
She climbed onto his lap.
“What?”
He took a breath.
“You have a little sister.”
Sophie stared.
“A real sister?”
He nodded.
“Her name is Grace.”
“Where is she?”
“I'm trying to find her.”
Sophie thought for a moment.
“Does she know about me?”
“I don't know.”
“Does she have toys?”
“Yes.”
“Does she have a daddy?”
Dominic swallowed.
“She has me.”
Sophie looked confused.
“But you're my daddy.”
He smiled through tears.
“I can be both.”
Sophie considered this carefully.
Then she wrapped her arms around his neck.
“That's okay. I can share.”
Dominic held her tightly.
He had spent years believing power meant controlling everything around him.
Yet his six-year-old daughter understood love better than he did.
That afternoon, Margaret asked to speak with him privately.
She looked exhausted.
“I need to tell you something about Michael.”
Dominic turned.
“Is he alive?”
Margaret's face crumpled.
“You know?”
“Answer me.”
She nodded.
Dominic stepped away.
“You knew that too?”
“Your father told me Michael had to disappear.”
“Why?”
“Because Michael discovered where Antonio was moving money.”
Dominic stared.
“What money?”
“Money stolen from the family businesses. From legitimate companies. From charities.”
Dominic frowned.
“Michael told me about that.”
“He found something worse.”
“What?”
Margaret hesitated.
“Your father wasn't just stealing money. He was using the family foundations to conceal payments to people who helped him cover up crimes.”
Dominic's jaw tightened.
“Who?”
“Doctors. Lawyers. Officials.”
He thought of Rebecca Shaw.
Richard Voss.
The falsified medical records.
“Michael found the records?”
Margaret nodded.
“And Elena helped him.”
Dominic felt the room shift.
“Elena knew Michael was alive?”
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
“Since before Grace was born.”
Dominic stared at his mother.
His wife had been secretly working with his supposedly dead brother.
The realization hurt.
But it also explained Elena's fear.
She hadn't been planning to leave Dominic for another man.
She'd been trying to expose Antonio.
“Why didn't she tell me?”
Margaret began crying.
“Because she thought you would choose your father.”
Dominic remembered defending Antonio during every argument.
He remembered dismissing Michael's accusations.
And he remembered Elena saying, One day, Dominic, you'll have to decide what kind of man you want to be.
He'd thought she was criticizing his work.
Now he understood.
“Where's Michael?”
Margaret shook her head.
“I haven't heard from him in years.”
Dominic studied her.
“Mom.”
“I swear.”
He wanted to believe her.
But belief had cost him too much already.
That evening, Daniel called.
“We found Miriam Cole.”
Dominic stood.
“Where?”
“At a hospital in Buffalo.”
“Is she hurt?”
“She's alive. Someone assaulted her, but she's stable.”
“Can she talk?”
“Yes.”
Dominic drove there immediately.
Miriam was sixty-eight, with silver hair and a bruised cheek.
She looked terrified when he entered.
“Mr. Moretti.”
“I'm not here to hurt you.”
She glanced at Caleb.
“I've heard that before.”
Dominic sat beside her bed.
“I'm looking for my daughter.”
Miriam's expression softened.
“Grace.”
He nodded.
“Please.”
Miriam closed her eyes.
“I helped Elena deliver her.”
“Why wasn't I told?”
“Because your wife begged us not to contact anyone in your family.”
“Why?”
“Because she'd discovered something about your father.”
Dominic leaned forward.
“What?”
Miriam looked toward the door.
“Before I tell you, you need to understand something.”
“What?”
“Elena didn't go to St. Catherine's because she was hiding a pregnancy.”
Dominic frowned.
“Then why?”
“She was already in danger. She came there because Rebecca had arranged a safe delivery under another name.”
Dominic swallowed.
“Was Grace premature?”
“Yes. Elena was thirty-five weeks pregnant.”
He stared.
He'd been traveling constantly that year.
Elena had worn loose clothing.
They'd been arguing.
He'd barely looked at her.
The guilt was unbearable.
Miriam continued.
“After Grace was born, Elena wanted to contact you. But Michael convinced her to wait until they could secure the evidence.”
Dominic froze.
“Michael was there?”
“Yes.”
“Where is he now?”
Miriam's eyes filled.
“I don't know.”
“Where's Grace?”
She shook her head.
“Rebecca moved her several times. She stopped contacting me months ago.”
Dominic leaned back.
Then Miriam reached beneath her pillow.
“I have something for you.”
She handed him a small digital recorder.
“Elena gave this to me after the delivery.”
Dominic stared.
“What's on it?”
“Her explanation.”
His hands shook as he pressed play.
Elena's voice filled the room.
Dominic, if you're hearing this, I'm sorry.
He closed his eyes.
I know you think I betrayed you. But everything I did was to protect our daughters.
A pause.
Then Elena whispered:
Your father knows about the children. He knows about the evidence. And he knows who really killed Michael's wife.
Dominic opened his eyes.
Michael had never been married.
At least, not that Dominic knew.
The recording continued.
If anything happens to me, find the woman Michael married in secret.
Her name is—
The audio suddenly stopped.
Dominic looked at Miriam.
“Where's the rest?”
Miriam's face went pale.
“I don't know.”
He turned the recorder over.
The battery compartment was loose.
Inside, someone had placed a tiny folded note.
Dominic opened it.
May you like
Four words were written in Elena's handwriting.
VANESSA WAS HIS WIFE.
