Chapter 11 - The Truth About Catherine's Last Morning
Elena sat in the library with a blanket around her shoulders.
A detective waited beside the doorway.
Luca had called the authorities as soon as she arrived.
Whatever Elena knew, he wanted it documented.
Not whispered.
Not hidden.
Not buried beneath another family secret.
I brought her a cup of tea.
She took it with trembling hands.
“Thank you.”
I nodded.
Then sat beside Teresa.
Luca remained near the fireplace.
“Start from the beginning,” he said.
Elena stared into her tea.
“I worked for Bellini Logistics. I thought my uncle was running a legitimate transportation business.”
She swallowed.
“Then I discovered payments that didn't match the shipping invoices.”
“What kind of payments?” Luca asked.
“Money transferred through fake medical-supply companies. Missing inventory. Customs documents that had been altered.”
She looked toward him.
“Your father's company was being used to transport shipments without your knowledge.”
Luca's face darkened.
“Daniel.”
Elena nodded.
“Daniel handled the Moretti accounts. Richard handled the other side.”
“Where does Victoria fit in?”
Elena's expression changed.
“My cousin always wanted more.”
She looked toward Teresa.
“She hated being treated like Richard's daughter instead of his successor. She thought if she helped him take control of Moretti Holdings, he'd finally give her power.”
I thought of Vanessa's expensive dresses.
Her diamonds.
Her endless need to control everyone around her.
Elena continued.
“When I discovered the fraud, I threatened to report it. Richard had me followed.”
“Did he hurt you?” Luca asked.
She touched the scar on her forehead.
“I was forced off the road.”
Teresa covered her mouth.
Elena nodded sadly.
“I survived. Catherine found me through a former employee.”
“Why didn't she come directly to me?” Luca whispered.
Elena looked at him.
“Because Richard threatened Noah.”
The room went silent.
“He said if Catherine told you, your little boy could have an accident.”
Luca closed his eyes.
Elena's voice shook.
“She was terrified. But she refused to stop investigating.”
“What happened the day before she died?”
Elena stared at the floor.
“Victoria came to the rehabilitation center pretending to be a nurse. She told Catherine that Richard knew everything.”
Luca took a breath.
“And then?”
“Catherine went home to tell you the truth.”
He shook his head.
“She didn't.”
Elena looked at him.
“She tried.”
Luca went still.
“What?”
“She told me she was going to talk to you that night.”
His face crumpled.
I remembered what he'd told me in the study.
Their final argument.
His accusations.
The terrible things he'd said.
Elena continued quietly.
“But Victoria had already sent you those photographs.”
Luca looked up sharply.
“What photographs?”
“The ones showing Catherine meeting with a man outside a hotel.”
He stared.
I felt cold.
“Daniel Mercer?” I whispered.
Elena nodded.
“He'd told Catherine he wanted to help her expose Richard. She believed him long enough to meet him.”
Luca sat down heavily.
“I thought she was having an affair.”
Elena's eyes filled.
“She knew.”
He looked at her.
“She knew what?”
“That someone was trying to turn you against her.”
Silence stretched.
Then Luca whispered, “Why didn't she tell me?”
Elena's answer nearly broke him.
“Because she was afraid you'd confront Richard. And she knew what kind of violence that could bring.”
Luca looked away.
“She thought protecting you meant carrying everything herself,” Elena continued. “She was wrong about that. But she loved you.”
For several minutes, nobody spoke.
Then Detective Ramirez stepped forward.
“Elena, we need to discuss the accident.”
She nodded.
“Daniel called Victoria after Catherine left the house that morning. I overheard him because he'd accidentally called my old office extension.”
My pulse raced.
“He said Catherine was heading to the lawyer's office with copies of the records.”
“And Victoria?” Ramirez asked.
Elena began crying.
“She said the mechanic had already done what Richard ordered.”
Luca stood abruptly.
I flinched.
For one terrible second, I thought he might destroy the room.
But he walked to the window.
His shoulders trembled.
“Richard killed my wife.”
Elena nodded.
“And Victoria helped.”
Detective Ramirez spoke carefully.
“We'll need to corroborate the statement. But the preliminary mechanical report supports the possibility of deliberate tampering.”
Luca pressed both hands against the windowsill.
Then he turned.
His eyes were wet.
But his voice was steady.
“I want every person responsible prosecuted.”
Ramirez nodded.
“We're working on it.”
After Elena finished her statement, I brought her upstairs to rest.
As we passed Catherine's portrait, she stopped.
Her eyes filled.
“She saved my life.”
I looked at the photograph.
“Then maybe it's time someone saved the truth about hers.”
Elena touched my arm.
“Hannah?”
“Yes?”
“There's something else.”
I turned.
“Something Catherine never told Luca.”
My stomach tightened.
Elena looked toward the staircase.
“She left a second letter.”
“For Luca?”
May you like
Elena shook her head.
“For Noah.”
