Chapter 9 - The Last Will of Vittorio Moretti
The Moretti estate was filled with people when we arrived.
Margaret stood in the main hall, dressed in black, surrounded by lawyers and family members.
She looked at me with a cold smile.
"Claire. I was beginning to wonder whether you would come."
"I wouldn't miss this."
Alexander stood beside me.
For the first time, he didn't try to walk ahead of me.
Margaret noticed.
"Alexander, come here."
He remained where he was.
Her expression hardened.
"What has she done to you?"
"Enough, Mother."
The family lawyer stepped forward.
"We are here to review the original trust documents and Mr. Vittorio's final instructions."
Margaret folded her arms.
"This is unnecessary. The foundation belongs to the Moretti family."
The lawyer opened his briefcase.
"According to the documents, the foundation's controlling authority was transferred under specific conditions."
He read the relevant clause.
If evidence of financial misconduct was established, an independent trustee would assume control.
That trustee was me.
Margaret laughed.
"Ridiculous."
The lawyer placed the forensic audit on the table.
"These transactions have been independently verified."
Her expression changed.
Then he presented the recording.
The room fell silent as Margaret's voice played through the speakers.
When it ended, Alexander looked at his mother.
"Tell me it's not true."
Margaret remained still.
Then she turned toward him.
"I did what I had to do."
"You delayed the ambulance?"
"I was trying to save this family."
"You let Grandfather die."
"I did not kill him!"
Her voice cracked.
"I was trying to make him understand that he was destroying everything."
I stepped forward.
"And you destroyed everything anyway."
Margaret looked at me with hatred.
"You think you're better than us?"
"No. I think I know the difference between protecting a family and protecting a lie."
The lawyer continued reading the documents.
Then he reached the final page.
"There is one additional instruction."
He opened a sealed envelope.
"Mr. Vittorio requested that this letter be read only in the presence of Claire Bennett Moretti."
I took it.
The handwriting was shaky.
My dear Claire,
If the truth has finally reached you, then I have failed to protect the family from itself.
There is one person whose involvement I could never fully establish.
Someone who visited me privately before my final collapse.
Someone who knew about the altered trust documents before anyone else.
I asked my lawyer to investigate.
The results are enclosed.
I unfolded the second sheet.
There was a name.
Not Margaret.
Not Alexander.
Someone I knew.
Someone I had trusted.
My father.
Richard Bennett.
I stared at the paper.
"No."
Alexander stepped toward me.
"Claire?"
I read the document again.
It suggested that my father's investment company had received money from one of the same shell companies involved in the foundation scandal.
Margaret suddenly smiled.
"Now you understand."
I looked at her.
"Did you know?"
"Your father was involved long before you married Alexander."
I shook my head.
"You're lying."
"Ask him."
My phone rang.
Father.
I answered.
"Dad?"
His voice sounded exhausted.
"Claire, don't believe everything in that letter."
My heart sank.
"Did you receive money from the foundation?"
A long silence followed.
May you like
Then he said:
"There's something I've never told you."
