Chapter 14 - The Stalker's Last Stand
|
The reopening gala for the Moretti Grand Foundation took place on a crisp autumn evening at the historic Drake Hotel.
Chicago’s legitimate civic leaders, hospital directors, and university deans filled the grand ballroom, celebrating a new era of transparent philanthropy.
I wore an elegant emerald-green silk gown, my hair pinned up in a graceful chignon that revealed David’s restored silver chain around my neck.
Beside me, Luca was the picture of commanding elegance in a tailored black tuxedo, his hand resting securely on the small of my back.
Emma stood nearby, laughing with several of her nursing school professors, glowing with health and vibrant confidence.
The night was a triumphant success, symbolizing the complete redemption of our family name and the cleansing of the foundation’s legacy.
Around ten o’clock, as the orchestra played a soft waltz, I excused myself to freshen up in the private executive suite on the second floor.
The hallway was quiet, carpeted in deep crimson runners that muffled the sound of my heels.
As I reached the door of the suite, a shadow separated itself from the dimly lit alcove near the service elevator.
“You look disgusting playing the lady of the manor, Caroline.”
The harsh, grating voice made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up instantly.
I spun around to find Vanessa Bellini standing ten feet away, looking wild, gaunt, and completely unhinged.
She was out on high-dollar bail awaiting her criminal trial, but she looked like a ghost of her former glamorous self.
Her designer coat was stained, her hair was knotted and dry, and her bloodshot eyes burned with manic desperation.
In her right hand, she clutched a heavy glass bottle filled with a cloudy, yellowish liquid—concentrated industrial acid.
“Vanessa,” I said, forcing my voice to remain calm despite the ice flooding my veins.
“Don’t do this. Think about what you’re throwing away.”
“Throwing away?” Vanessa hissed, taking a staggering step forward, her knuckles white around the glass neck.
“You took my fiancé, you destroyed my family, and you stole my fortune!”
“I was supposed to be the queen of this city, and you were supposed to be cleaning my toilets until the day you died!”
“Your family destroyed itself with greed and murder, Vanessa,” I replied, stepping back slowly toward the wall alarm.
“David Hayes uncovered your theft, and you had him killed. You brought this ruin on your own head.”
Vanessa let out a blood-curdling scream and unscrewed the cap of the acid bottle with her thumb.
“If I can’t have Luca’s name, I will make sure he never wants to look at your face again!”
She lunged forward, raising the bottle to splash the burning chemical directly toward my eyes.
Before the liquid could leave the glass, a massive hand grabbed Vanessa’s wrist like an iron vice, twisting it violently backward.
Luca had appeared from the shadows like an avenging phantom.
With a sickening snap, the bottle slipped from Vanessa’s paralyzed grip, shattering harmlessly against the stone baseboard behind her.
Vanessa screamed in agony as Luca forced her down to her knees against the carpet.
Two hotel security officers and three armed Moretti guards rushed around the corner, their weapons drawn and ready.
“Get your hands off of her,” Luca commanded, his voice vibrating with lethal disgust.
He released Vanessa’s wrist and stepped between us, shielding me completely behind his broad back.
Vanessa lay weeping on the floor, clutching her sprained wrist as the toxic fumes of the spilled acid hissed harmlessly against the stone.
“Luca, please!” Vanessa sobbed, looking up at him from the carpet. “I loved you! I did everything for our families!”
“You don't know what love is, Vanessa,” Luca said coldly, looking down at her as if she were a roach.
“Take her down to the lobby and hand her directly to the federal marshals waiting outside,” Luca ordered the guards.
“Her bail is officially revoked. She will await her trial at Cook County Jail where she belongs.”
The guards hauled the thrashing, screaming woman down the hallway toward the elevators.
Luca turned around immediately, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me tightly against his chest.
“Are you all right, Caroline?” he whispered, his hands trembling slightly as he checked my face and arms for burns.
May you like
“I’m fine, Luca,” I whispered, resting my head against his beating heart.
“I’m safe. We’re finally safe.”
