Chapter 3 - THE WOMAN IN THE VIDEO
Celeste Valente looked directly into the camera.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
The room remained completely still.
Adrian stood beside the desk, his face drained of color.
Karen sat with both hands clasped tightly together.
Detective Santos remained near the door.
And I stood frozen beside the nursery window, holding the photograph of my mother.
Celeste smiled faintly.
“If you’re watching this, then Rosa’s daughters have finally found their way back to us.”
My throat tightened.
Lucia wasn't there.
She was still at the hospital preparing for surgery.
I wished she were.
I wished my mother were.
I wished someone could tell me how a dead woman could know exactly where my life would eventually lead.
Celeste continued.
“Isabella, if you are watching this first, please understand something. You have probably spent years believing that your mother left you with nothing except responsibility.”
My fingers tightened around the photograph.
“That is not true.”
My eyes filled with tears.
“Rosa left you something much more valuable.”
Celeste leaned closer to the camera.
“She left you people who loved her.”
I looked toward Adrian.
He had turned away.
His shoulders were rigid.
Celeste continued.
“I know you may not trust this family. You have every reason not to. My husband has made choices that frightened me. He has built a world around himself where loyalty is often confused with obedience.”
Adrian closed his eyes.
“But there is something good inside him.”
His eyes opened.
“It is buried very deeply.”
Karen gave a quiet, broken laugh.
Celeste smiled.
“Karen knows what I mean.”
Karen covered her mouth.
The video continued.
“Adrian believes protecting people means controlling everything around them. That is his greatest weakness.”
I looked at him.
He didn't argue.
“He will try to solve your problems with money. He will try to solve them with power. Sometimes he will even try to solve them by making decisions for you.”
A strange sadness appeared in Celeste's eyes.
“Please don't let him.”
Adrian whispered, “Celeste.”
It was the first time I had heard grief in his voice.
Not anger.
Not regret.
Grief.
Celeste continued.
“Isabella, your mother was one of the bravest women I ever knew. She refused help because she believed accepting it would make her weak.”
A small smile crossed her face.
“She was wrong.”
I laughed through my tears.
“That sounds like Mama.”
“She made me promise that if anything happened to her, I would watch over you and Lucia.”
My heart stopped.
Celeste looked down at something outside the frame.
Then she lifted a small envelope.
“Unfortunately, promises are complicated.”
She placed the envelope beside her.
“Some people don't want promises kept.”
The room changed.
Adrian stepped closer to the screen.
“What does that mean?”
Santos held up a hand.
“Let it play.”
Celeste looked directly into the camera again.
“There are people inside the foundation who believe the money belongs to them.”
Adrian's face hardened.
“Evelyn,” he whispered.
Celeste nodded slightly, as though she could hear him.
“The foundation has become too large. Too profitable. Too powerful. Evelyn believes she is entitled to control it.”
She paused.
“She has been moving money through shell charities for three years.”
Santos immediately reached for her phone.
But Celeste wasn't finished.
“She knows I discovered it.”
Adrian's expression changed.
“That's impossible.”
Celeste continued.
“If something happens to me, Evelyn will try to make it look like an accident.”
The video suddenly became darker.
Celeste leaned forward.
“There is one thing she doesn't know.”
She smiled.
“I kept copies.”
The screen went black.
Nobody spoke.
Then the video restarted automatically.
Celeste appeared again.
This time, she was holding another envelope.
“Adrian, if you are watching this, do not confront Evelyn alone.”
Adrian stared at the screen.
“Find Rosa's daughters first.”
The video ended.
Silence.
I looked at Adrian.
“Your wife knew she was in danger.”
“Yes.”
“And you didn't know?”
“No.”
“Why?”
His jaw tightened.
“Because I was arrogant enough to believe nobody inside my organization would betray me.”
Santos walked toward the laptop.
“That's not all.”
She inserted the flash drive into her computer.
“There are encrypted financial files.”
Adrian looked at her.
“How long have you had those?”
“Long enough to know we have a serious problem.”
A notification appeared.
ACCESS ATTEMPT DETECTED.
Santos froze.
“What?”
The screen flickered.
Another notification appeared.
REMOTE CONNECTION ESTABLISHED.
Dante immediately reached for his phone.
Adrian moved toward me.
“Stay behind me.”
I stepped away.
“No.”
He stopped.
I stared at him.
“Celeste specifically warned me not to let you control everything around me.”
For the first time, something almost resembling amusement crossed his face.
“She knew me well.”
“She did.”
Santos shut down the laptop.
“Someone is accessing the files remotely.”
“From where?” Adrian asked.
“I don't know yet.”
Dante entered the room.
“Boss.”
Adrian turned.
“Speak.”
“The hospital called.”
My stomach tightened.
“Lucia?”
Dante shook his head.
“She's fine.”
I exhaled.
“Then what?”
He looked at Adrian.
“Someone tried to access Lucia's medical records.”
The air disappeared from the room.
“Who?”
“Hospital security blocked the attempt.”
Santos's expression hardened.
“That's not a coincidence.”
“No,” Adrian said.
His voice had changed.
The warmth disappeared.
The dangerous man Chicago whispered about had returned.
But this time, his anger was not directed at me.
It was directed at whoever had touched my sister.
I looked at him.
“Don't do anything stupid.”
His eyes met mine.
“I won't.”
“You're a man who runs an organization through fear.”
“I know.”
“If you hurt someone because of Lucia—”
“I won't.”
His answer came immediately.
That surprised me.
He stepped closer but stopped several feet away.
“I made one mistake by acting before knowing the truth.”
His voice was quiet.
“I will not make the same mistake again.”
Santos nodded.
“Good.”
She looked at the flash drive.
“Because whoever did this is trying to create panic.”
I looked at Celeste's frozen face on the screen.
“Why?”
Santos answered.
“To make everyone look in the wrong direction.”
I swallowed.
“Then what are we missing?”
She stared at the final frame of the video.
“The question isn't why they wanted Emma.”
She looked at Adrian.
“The question is why they needed Isabella blamed.”
Nobody answered.
Because suddenly the answer seemed obvious.
I had been convenient.
A stranger.
Poor.
Disposable.
Someone nobody in Adrian's world would defend.
Someone whose reputation could be destroyed in a single night.
Someone who could be arrested while the real culprit disappeared.
But why me?
Then I remembered Dr. Hart.
His photograph.
His hospital credentials.
His connection to Lucia.
And the foundation.
My blood ran cold.
“They didn't choose me randomly.”
Santos looked at me.
“What do you mean?”
I pointed toward the screen.
“Celeste's foundation had my mother's records.”
Santos nodded.
“And Lucia's surgery.”
I continued.
“Someone knew the foundation was helping us.”
Adrian's face hardened.
“And someone knew Isabella would be connected to Emma if the child was found with her.”
Dante slowly nodded.
“Which means whoever planned this knew both families.”
Santos looked at all of us.
“We aren't investigating a random kidnapping anymore.”
May you like
She closed the laptop.
“We're investigating someone who has been watching this family for years.”
