Chapter 4 - THE WOMAN WHO KNEW DANIEL WAS ALIVE
Dante took the photograph from his mother's hand.
It showed Daniel standing in front of a stone building, wearing a dark coat.
Beside him stood Alessandro Moretti.
His father looked older, thinner, but unmistakably alive.
Dante turned the photograph over.
The date was seven years earlier.
“That is impossible.”
Victoria said nothing.
“My father died seven years ago.”
“Yes.”
“Then explain this.”
She sat down slowly.
“Alessandro didn't die when the family was told he did.”
Dante felt the room shift around him.
“What?”
“Your father survived his heart attack. He was taken to a private medical facility outside the city. The doctors said he might recover, but he never wanted the family to know.”
“Why?”
“Because he believed Salvatore was trying to take control of the organization.”
Dante stared at her.
“And you helped him disappear?”
“I helped him survive.”
“Where is he?”
“I don't know.”
“Mother!”
Victoria flinched.
“I haven't seen him in years!”
Dante turned away, struggling to control his breathing.
His father had been dead for seven years.
Or so he had believed.
Every birthday, every holiday, every anniversary of his death, Dante had visited the family mausoleum.
He had stood before an empty coffin.
And someone had allowed him to grieve.
“Why didn't he contact me?”
Victoria's eyes filled.
“He said you were too young to understand how dangerous the situation had become.”
“I was twenty-eight!”
“You were his son.”
Dante laughed bitterly.
“That doesn't answer anything.”
Sophia, listening from the doorway, spoke quietly.
“Daniel said your father wanted to expose the people responsible.”
Victoria looked at her.
“You know nothing about this family.”
“I know my husband died because someone was afraid of what he discovered.”
Victoria lowered her eyes.
For the first time, she did not argue.
Dante turned toward Marco.
“Get the office open.”
They entered the sealed study together.
Dust covered the furniture. The curtains were closed. A portrait of Alessandro hung above the fireplace.
Dante approached the desk.
The brass key fitted the last drawer.
Inside lay a leather folder, a photograph, and an envelope marked with his name.
DANTE.
He opened the envelope.
My son, if this letter has reached you, then the people I feared have finally moved against the family. I made mistakes. I trusted the wrong people. I allowed fear to become the foundation of our home.
But there is one thing you must know. Your uncle was not acting alone.
Dante continued reading.
The person who helped him was someone who shared our blood and slept beneath our roof.
The letter ended abruptly.
There was no signature.
Marco examined the folder.
Inside were financial records, photographs of shipping containers, and a list of bank transfers.
One name appeared repeatedly.
Richard Hale.
Dante recognized him immediately.
Richard was the family's longtime attorney and the man who had handled Alessandro's estate.
He had also arranged Daniel's employment.
“Find him,” Dante ordered.
Marco checked his phone.
“That's going to be difficult.”
“Why?”
“Mr. Hale died yesterday.”
Dante looked up.
“What?”
“His housekeeper found him in his home office. Police are calling it an apparent suicide.”
Dante stared at the folder.
Someone was eliminating witnesses.
A sound came from the hallway.
Sophia had dropped a glass.
Dante hurried toward her.
“What's wrong?”
She pointed toward the photograph on the desk.
Her face had lost all color.
“That's not the only picture of Daniel.”
“What do you mean?”
She walked closer.
In another photograph, Daniel stood outside a hospital entrance.
A woman was beside him.
Sophia recognized the woman's face.
It was Victoria.
But the photograph was not seven years old.
The date on the camera file was only four months earlier.
Dante looked at his mother.
“You said you hadn't seen Daniel in years.”
Victoria's lips trembled.
“I can explain.”
“Then explain.”
She stared at Sophia.
May you like
And finally whispered:
“Because Daniel was the one who told me where to bury the phone.”
