Chapter 6 - The Girl They Used as a Threat|
Matteo reached his mother's bedroom before I could finish climbing the stairs.
Evelyn was sitting upright in bed, clutching her late husband's coat.
Rosa stood beside her with a glass of water.
"Mom," Matteo said gently, "tell me what Luca said."
Evelyn looked frightened.
"Please don't be angry with him."
Matteo pulled a chair beside the bed.
"I need to know what happened."
She looked toward the window.
"Yesterday afternoon, he came here crying."
I had never heard Evelyn describe any of her sons crying.
She continued slowly.
"He said he'd made a terrible mistake."
"What mistake?"
"He wouldn't tell me."
Her hands trembled.
"He said some people were going to hurt Nadia if he didn't give them what they wanted."
Matteo leaned forward.
"Who were those people?"
Evelyn shook her head.
"He said their names didn't matter."
"What did they want?"
"Our home."
The word hung between them.
Evelyn began crying.
"He said he knew it was unfair."
"He said he'd spend the rest of his life making it right."
Matteo closed his eyes.
"And you signed because you thought it would protect Nadia?"
She nodded.
"She's just a child to me."
My throat tightened.
Nadia was nineteen, old enough to attend college and make her own decisions.
But to Evelyn, she was still the granddaughter who used to fall asleep on her lap during Christmas movies.
"Why didn't you call me?" Matteo whispered.
Evelyn touched his cheek.
"Because Luca said you'd try to solve everything yourself."
She paused.
"And he said these people weren't afraid of you."
Something changed in Matteo's expression.
For the first time, I realized the kind of power he possessed might not protect him from every enemy.
It certainly hadn't protected his mother from betrayal.
He kissed Evelyn's forehead.
"I'm going to make sure Nadia is safe."
Then he stood.
"But I'm not going to hurt anyone."
Evelyn caught his sleeve.
"Promise me."
He looked down at her.
"I promise."
Downstairs, Matteo called Nadia.
The first call went unanswered.
So did the second.
By the third attempt, his face had turned pale.
Finally, she answered.
"Uncle Matteo?"
"Nadia, where are you?"
"In my apartment."
"Are you alone?"
"Yes."
He exhaled.
"Are you safe?"
There was a silence.
Then she whispered, "Did Dad tell you?"
Matteo looked at me.
"What did he tell you, sweetheart?"
Nadia began crying.
"That I wasn't supposed to leave campus."
"Why?"
"Somebody sent him pictures of me walking to class."
Matteo gripped the edge of the desk.
"What pictures?"
"Pictures from yesterday."
She swallowed.
"They knew what time my classes ended."
A terrible silence followed.
Then Matteo spoke carefully.
"Nadia, call campus police and tell them exactly what happened."
"Will Dad be angry?"
"No."
He hesitated.
"And I'm coming to get you."
After making arrangements with university security and the police, Matteo turned to me.
"Would you stay with Mom?"
"Of course."
But before he left, I asked a question.
"Do you think Scarlett knew about the threats?"
He didn't answer immediately.
"I think Scarlett knows more than she's admitted."
He reached for his coat.
"And I intend to find out how much."
An hour later, I was sitting beside Evelyn's bed when she suddenly began searching through her purse.
"What are you looking for?" I asked.
"A little white card."
"Was it important?"
She nodded.
"Scarlett gave it to me last week."
I helped her empty the purse onto her blanket.
We found tissues, peppermints, an old photograph, and her reading glasses.
Then a small white card slipped from a side pocket.
On the front was the name of a residential care facility.
Westbridge Haven.
Beneath it was a Chicago telephone number.
I turned the card over.
Someone had written a date and time.
Saturday.
11:45 p.m.
That was fifteen minutes before the deadline in the sale contract.
Evelyn stared at the writing.
"Scarlett told me a driver would take me there."
I frowned.
"Why did you have a bus ticket to Milwaukee?"
"She said it was a backup arrangement."
I looked at the card again.
Something felt wrong.
I took out my phone and searched for the facility.
No legitimate residential care center appeared at the address.
Instead, the location belonged to an abandoned commercial building.
I called the number.
It went straight to a disconnected-line message.
A chill traveled down my spine.
"Mrs. Russo, did you ever visit this place?"
She shook her head.
"Scarlett said they didn't allow visitors until the residents settled in."
I stared at the card.
An elderly woman with arthritis was supposed to leave her home near midnight.
She had been given a destination that apparently didn't exist.
And she had been told her family wouldn't be allowed to see her immediately.
Before I could decide what to do, my phone buzzed.
It was a message from Rosa.
A black passenger van had arrived at the front gate.
The driver claimed he had been hired to collect Evelyn Russo.
But the most disturbing part wasn't the vehicle.
It was the document the driver had handed security.
May you like
A physician's authorization stating that Evelyn Russo was incapable of refusing transportation.
And at the bottom of the page was a signature belonging to a doctor who had retired five years earlier.
