Chapter 7 - The Price Matteo Offered for My Silence|
Marcus Vale's name stayed in my head all night.
He wasn't a Bellini.
He wasn't Lily's scholarship administrator.
And he had no obvious reason to care whether a ten-year-old girl had danced at a charity gala.
Yet his company appeared repeatedly in the suspicious financial records.
Now he was allegedly asking for her audition recording to disappear.
I gave Naomi's information to Detective Torres.
The detective assured us that the technician's access logs and Naomi's account would be preserved and examined.
But she warned me not to confront Marcus.
People involved in financial crimes sometimes became reckless when their arrangements began unraveling.
I thought about Roman Bellini.
He'd spent years surrounded by powerful men who treated consequences as something that happened to other people.
And now his own brother was behaving exactly the same way.
The next afternoon, Matteo called me.
His voice was almost cheerful.
"Grace, I think it's time we settled this misunderstanding."
I stood beside the laundromat where I'd taken Lily's school uniforms.
"What misunderstanding?"
"The unfortunate confusion over your daughter's grant."
"There's no confusion."
He sighed.
"You're becoming unnecessarily emotional."
I nearly hung up.
Then he said something that stopped me.
"Wouldn't you rather keep your apartment?"
My fingers tightened around the phone.
"What did you say?"
"I understand you're behind on the rent."
I felt exposed.
"That's none of your business."
"Everything becomes somebody's business eventually."
He suggested we meet at a public restaurant near the foundation office.
He called it an opportunity to resolve matters privately.
I told Detective Torres about the invitation.
She advised me that I wasn't required to meet him and that I should preserve any written offer or document he provided.
I didn't want to go.
But I wanted to understand what he thought he could buy.
Naomi agreed to accompany me and wait at a nearby table.
At four o'clock, I walked into the restaurant.
Matteo was sitting in a leather booth beside the window.
He wore a dark cashmere coat and an expensive watch.
A silver envelope lay beside his coffee.
"Grace."
He stood as though greeting an old friend.
"Thank you for being reasonable."
I remained standing.
"What do you want?"
He gestured toward the seat.
I sat.
Matteo slid the envelope toward me.
Inside was a check for twenty-five thousand dollars.
For a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
Twenty-five thousand dollars.
Enough to pay our overdue rent.
Enough to replace our failing refrigerator.
Enough to buy Lily new dance shoes and stop worrying every time the phone rang.
Then I saw the document underneath.
It was titled Acknowledgment of Scholarship Payment and Final Settlement.
I began reading.
According to the document, I would confirm that I'd received Lily's original scholarship, acknowledge that the foundation's financial records were accurate, and agree not to make additional allegations.
I looked up.
"You want me to lie."
Matteo smiled.
"I want everyone to move forward."
"You want me to say I received money somebody stole."
"You're choosing very dramatic words."
I pushed the papers away.
"Why twenty-five thousand?"
"Because I'm generous."
"No."
I looked directly into his eyes.
"Because you're frightened."
His smile disappeared.
For a moment, the pleasant mask slipped.
"You should consider what happens when people decide you're making trouble."
I stood.
Matteo leaned forward.
"Grace, you have a child to think about."
My heart hammered.
"Don't talk about my daughter."
"I'm offering you security."
"You're offering me money to help you bury the truth."
He watched me carefully.
Then he said, "Roman can't protect you forever."
I looked down at the check.
For one terrible second, I imagined taking it.
I imagined paying the rent and sleeping through the night without calculating how many hours of work remained before the next bill.
But I also imagined Lily asking whether I'd told the truth.
And I knew I could never look at her the same way again.
I placed the envelope back on the table.
"My daughter earned twelve thousand dollars."
Matteo shrugged.
"Then take twenty-five."
"That's not the point."
I stepped away.
"She doesn't need your money to prove she deserved that stage."
Matteo's face hardened.
"You're making a mistake."
"No."
I looked at him one last time.
"The mistake was thinking poor people don't know the value of honesty."
I walked out with Naomi beside me.
My legs shook so badly that I had to hold the railing outside.
Naomi took my arm.
"Are you all right?"
"No."
I breathed through the fear.
"But I'm glad I didn't sign."
Later, I wrote down everything Matteo had said and gave the detective my account of the meeting.
I also told Roman what had happened.
For several seconds, he didn't speak.
Then he asked, "Did he threaten Lily?"
"He mentioned her."
Roman's voice turned hard.
"That was unacceptable."
I almost laughed.
"Your brother crossed that line at the gala."
"Yes," Roman answered.
"He did."
That night, Lily came home from dance class carrying a cream-colored envelope.
I hadn't given her one.
I knelt beside her.
"Sweetheart, where did you get that?"
"A man from the foundation brought it to the studio."
My stomach dropped.
"What man?"
"He said he worked for Mr. Bellini."
I felt my heart pounding.
"Did you go anywhere with him?"
Lily shook her head quickly.
"No, Mom."
She looked frightened.
"You told me not to leave with anyone you haven't approved."
I pulled her into my arms.
"Good girl."
"He said he had papers for you, but I told him to give them to my teacher."
She held out the envelope.
Inside was another copy of the settlement agreement.
This one had a sticky note attached.
Your daughter is counting on you to make the right decision.
I stared at the words.
Then I looked at Lily, who was watching my face.
May you like
For the first time since the gala, I was no longer simply afraid of losing my job.
I was afraid of what Matteo might do when he realized he couldn't buy my silence.
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