Chapter 6 - THE BETRAYAL BEHIND THE ACCIDENT
Dominic Carter had survived bullets, betrayals, and bloodshed.
But nothing prepared him for discovering that the men who had nearly killed him were the same men who visited his hospital bed and promised to protect him.
The truth arrived on a Wednesday morning.
And it came from the last person Dominic expected.
Mrs. Gable.
The housekeeper entered his study carrying a small leather notebook.
Her hands trembled.
"Mr. Carter, there's something I should have given you months ago."
Dominic looked up.
"What is it?"
She placed the notebook on his desk.
"It belonged to your father."
Dominic went still.
"My father?"
Mrs. Gable nodded.
"He gave it to your mother before he died. She asked me to keep it safe."
Dominic opened the cover.
Inside were handwritten names, dates, and financial records.
His father's handwriting.
He recognized it immediately.
"Why are you giving me this now?"
Mrs. Gable swallowed.
"Because I think the men who killed your father are connected to what happened to you."
Dominic stared at her.
"Explain."
She pointed toward a name.
ANTHONY DELUCA.
Dominic frowned.
"Anthony was a teenager when my father died."
"His father wasn't."
Dominic turned the page.
Another name appeared.
FRANK DELUCA.
Beside it was a notation.
Missing shipment. False accounts. Possible betrayal.
Dominic's pulse quickened.
Mrs. Gable continued.
"Your father suspected Frank was stealing from the waterfront operation. He planned to remove him."
"And then my father was murdered."
She nodded.
"Three days before the meeting."
Dominic leaned back.
The room seemed to tilt.
For nearly twenty years, he had believed his father's death was the result of a rival organization.
What if it had been an inside job?
What if the DeLuca family had been feeding on his empire for two generations?
Dominic called Rebecca.
Then his attorney.
Then a forensic accountant who had once helped federal investigators trace stolen corporate funds.
He gave them everything.
The hospital records.
The medication discrepancies.
The unauthorized medical decisions.
The financial accounts Anthony had controlled.
And his father's notebook.
He also made a decision that surprised everyone.
He contacted law enforcement through his attorney.
Dominic had spent most of his adult life avoiding police attention.
Now he needed evidence strong enough to survive a courtroom.
Not revenge carried out in a dark warehouse.
Truth.
Faith found him later that afternoon.
He was sitting alone in the conservatory.
The notebook rested on his lap.
"Dominic?"
He didn't answer.
She approached.
"What's wrong?"
He looked up.
"My father trusted the wrong man."
Faith sat beside him.
"And?"
"So did I."
She waited.
He handed her the notebook.
Faith read the names.
Her eyes widened.
"Anthony?"
Dominic nodded.
"And Carmine."
"Are you sure?"
"Not yet."
He looked toward the garden.
"But I'm going to find out."
Faith touched his hand.
"Promise me something."
"What?"
"Don't let revenge destroy the person you're becoming."
Dominic looked at her.
"What person?"
She smiled sadly.
"The man who apologized to Mrs. Gable."
He laughed bitterly.
"That man isn't strong enough to deal with Anthony."
"Maybe he's stronger than you think."
Dominic stared at her.
Then he slowly turned his hand beneath hers.
Their fingers intertwined.
Neither moved away.
That evening, Carmine discovered the investigation.
One of Anthony's accountants called him in a panic.
"Someone's reviewing the waterfront accounts."
"Who?"
"We don't know."
"Find out."
"There's more."
Carmine tightened his grip on the phone.
"What?"
"Dominic's attorney requested the original hospital authorization documents."
Carmine went cold.
He knew exactly what those documents would reveal.
The signature granting him medical authority had been obtained while Dominic was heavily sedated.
The authority had later been used to reject recommended rehabilitation.
And Whitmore had helped conceal the arrangement.
Carmine closed his eyes.
The walls were collapsing.
He called Anthony.
"We need to leave Chicago."
Anthony laughed.
"You're panicking."
"Dominic is investigating."
"Then kill him."
Carmine went silent.
Anthony's voice hardened.
"You heard me."
"He's my friend."
"He's your problem."
Carmine looked at the photograph on his desk.
Dominic at thirty-two, standing beside him after opening their first legitimate restaurant.
They had been brothers once.
Or close enough.
Then money changed everything.
And Carmine had convinced himself that betraying Dominic was simply another business decision.
Now he realized Anthony had never intended to share power.
He had intended to take it all.
At nine that night, Faith received a phone call.
The caller ID displayed her younger brother's name.
ELI WILLIS.
Faith answered immediately.
"Eli?"
A man's voice replied.
"Your brother can't come to the phone."
Faith froze.
"Who is this?"
"Someone who needs you to listen carefully."
Her heart began pounding.
"Where's Eli?"
"Safe. For now."
Faith gripped the kitchen counter.
"What do you want?"
"Tomorrow morning, Dominic Carter will receive an envelope. You're going to make certain he opens it alone."
"Why?"
"Because if you don't, your brother won't see another sunrise."
The call ended.
Faith stood motionless.
Then a photograph arrived.
Eli sat in a dark room, his wrists bound to a chair.
His face was bruised.
Underneath the photograph was a message.
DON'T TELL DOMINIC.
Faith dropped the phone.
Mrs. Gable rushed into the kitchen.
"Child, what's happened?"
Faith couldn't answer.
Her brother was twenty-one.
A college student.
The only family she had left.
And someone had taken him because of her.
Upstairs, Dominic was reviewing financial statements when Faith entered.
He looked up.
"Hey."
She tried to smile.
Failed.
His expression changed immediately.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
Dominic frowned.
"Faith."
She looked at him.
The man she'd begun to love.
The man who was finally fighting for his future.
And the man whose enemies now held her brother hostage.
Tears filled her eyes.
Dominic reached for her hand.
"Talk to me."
Faith opened her mouth.
Then her phone vibrated again.
A new message appeared.
WE CAN SEE YOU.
Faith looked toward the bedroom window.
Across the dark garden, a tiny red light blinked once.
Then disappeared.
May you like
And she realized the danger wasn't waiting outside the mansion anymore.
It was already inside.
