Chapter 6 - The Marriage That Never Existed|
"Then who was your father?"
I barely recognized my own voice.
My mother was crying on the other end of the phone.
For several seconds, she couldn't answer.
Then she whispered a name.
"Giovanni Bellini."
Luca went completely still.
Francesca's hand flew to her mouth.
I looked between them.
"Who is Giovanni Bellini?"
Luca answered quietly.
"Alessandra Bellini's younger brother."
My stomach dropped.
Vanessa's great-uncle.
The room became painfully silent.
My mother continued speaking.
"Rosa was married to Giovanni before she met Vittorio. The marriage was arranged by their families. She tried to leave him because he was cruel."
I sat down.
"Mom..."
"She thought the marriage had been annulled. Giovanni's lawyer told her it was finished."
"But it wasn't?"
"No."
My mother took a shaky breath.
"She married Vittorio believing she was free."
I looked toward Francesca.
The old woman's eyes were filled with tears.
"Vittorio never knew," she whispered.
Helen heard her.
"Mrs. Moretti?"
Francesca leaned closer.
"I'm here, Helen."
My mother began crying harder.
"I didn't know who you were when Emma married Luca. Not at first. I knew Rosa had once loved a Moretti, but she never told me his full name."
Francesca closed her eyes.
"When did you find out?"
"Last month. Vanessa came to the flower shop carrying a photograph."
Luca's jaw tightened.
"What did she want?"
"Money."
The word struck me.
"Money?"
My mother swallowed.
"She said if I didn't help her find Rosa's original marriage papers, she'd tell Emma that the Moretti family had murdered my mother."
I stared at the phone.
"Mom, is that true?"
"No, sweetheart."
Her voice broke.
"Rosa wasn't murdered. She died of pneumonia when I was twenty-three."
I covered my mouth.
"Why didn't you tell me about any of this?"
"Because I thought the past was finished."
Luca looked toward the rosary in his hand.
Apparently, the past had other plans.
My mother continued.
"Vanessa said there was a trust connected to Rosa's first marriage. Land, businesses, old investments. She claimed the inheritance belonged to Giovanni's descendants."
Luca looked sharply toward Francesca.
"Which trust?"
The old woman swallowed.
"The Lakefront Trust."
His face hardened.
I knew that name.
The Lakefront Trust held several valuable properties on Chicago's waterfront.
Luca had inherited administrative control after his father died.
The income supported family businesses, charities, and maintenance of several historic properties.
It was worth hundreds of millions.
"Why would Vanessa want it?" I asked.
Luca gave a bitter laugh.
"Because controlling those assets would give her access to enough money to rebuild the Bellini organization."
My stomach twisted.
"Then why marry you?"
He looked away.
Francesca answered.
"Because being Leonardo's wife would have given her influence over the trust's administration."
I stared at Luca.
His silence told me everything.
Vanessa hadn't simply wanted my husband.
She had wanted his name.
His access.
His fortune.
And perhaps the little girl who would someday inherit much of it.
Luca looked toward Daniel.
"Verify the trust documents. I want every recent transfer reviewed."
Daniel nodded and left the room.
My mother spoke again.
"Emma?"
"I'm here."
"There's something else."
I closed my eyes.
Of course there was.
"The woman on the security footage wasn't me."
I looked up.
"I know."
"But I was at the mansion yesterday."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
"I came through the front gate at noon. Francesca asked me to bring Rosa's photograph."
Francesca nodded.
"That's true."
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
My mother began crying again.
"Because Vanessa called me afterward. She said if I told you anything, Isabella would be taken away."
I looked toward the doorway.
My daughter was sleeping downstairs.
A little girl surrounded by adults who had apparently decided her life could be used as leverage.
My voice became cold.
"Mom, lock the doors. Luca is sending someone to stay with you."
"Emma—"
"Please."
She agreed.
When the call ended, I looked toward my husband.
"Your mistress threatened my mother."
He said nothing.
"She entered our daughter's bedroom."
His face tightened.
"Emma—"
"She left that note on Isabella's pillow."
"We don't know that yet."
I stared at him.
The words hurt more than I expected.
After everything, he was still choosing caution when the accusation concerned Vanessa.
I stood.
"Then perhaps you'd like to ask her yourself."
Luca reached for my hand.
"Wait."
I pulled away.
"No."
He looked stunned.
I had never pulled away from him before.
Not like that.
"I am taking Isabella to my parents' house."
"That isn't safe."
"Then somewhere else."
"Emma, we can protect you here."
I laughed once.
It sounded broken.
"Protect me? The woman you're sleeping with walked into our child's bedroom and left a death threat on her pillow."
Luca looked down.
I took a shaky breath.
"I don't trust this house anymore."
Francesca slowly stood.
"Then neither do I."
Luca turned toward her.
"Nonna?"
She reached for her cane.
"If Emma leaves, Isabella and I are leaving with her."
My eyes filled.
Francesca looked directly at her grandson.
"And you, Leonardo, can remain here with your secrets."
For several seconds, Luca couldn't speak.
Then his phone rang.
Daniel.
He answered.
His expression changed.
"Repeat that."
A long pause.
Then he looked toward me.
"Emma, Vanessa wasn't trying to gain control of the Lakefront Trust after the wedding."
I went cold.
"She had already started."
He swallowed.
"Someone submitted documents this morning requesting emergency authority over Isabella's inheritance."
My hands began trembling.
"Who?"
Luca's voice became almost inaudible.
"An attorney acting for Vanessa."
May you like
He looked toward Francesca.
"And the documents claim Emma Moretti is mentally unfit to care for her daughter."
