Chapter 3 - THE HOSPITAL PROMISE THAT WAS REALLY A THREAT|
By the time we reached Northwestern Memorial Hospital, my mother's breathing had become dangerously shallow.
The medical team rushed her through the emergency entrance while I followed, still wearing my soaking-wet maid's uniform.
A nurse guided me into a waiting area and gently told me the doctors needed room to work.
I sat beneath the fluorescent lights, staring at the rainwater dripping from my shoes.
Seven weeks of unpaid wages had brought us here.
Seven weeks of begging a woman who wore diamonds worth more than my annual salary.
And now my mother's life depended on doctors I couldn't afford to pay.
I covered my face with my hands.
For the first time that evening, I completely broke down.
"Claire."
I lifted my head.
Luca stood in front of me, still wearing his rain-soaked black suit.
His dark hair was damp, and his expression looked older than it had an hour earlier.
"How is she?"
"I don't know."
My voice cracked.
"They took her away."
He sat beside me instead of across from me.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then he spoke quietly.
"I checked the employment records while Gabriel drove me here."
I stared at him.
"The records show your wages were approved every Friday."
"I never received them."
"I believe you."
Those three words made me cry harder.
For nearly two months, everyone responsible for my pay had treated me like a liar.
Hearing someone finally believe me felt almost unbearable.
Luca leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
"I also checked the account receiving your payments."
I held my breath.
"It's registered under your mother's name, but the mailing address belongs to a company called Lakefront Administrative Services."
"I've never heard of it."
"Neither has Daniel, although it received several other transfers from my accounts."
I remembered my mother mentioning a woman at the hospital.
"Vanessa told Mom she had arranged financial assistance for her treatment."
Luca nodded slowly.
"That's what I intend to investigate."
He looked at me.
"Claire, I need you to tell me everything that's happened since Vanessa took control of the household accounts."
So I told him.
I explained how Vanessa had replaced the payroll manager shortly after their wedding.
How the direct-deposit confirmations had stopped appearing in my employee portal.
How she'd ordered me to work extra hours without recording them.
How she'd threatened to fire me whenever I asked about my missing money.
I told him about the Friday she made me wait outside her dressing room for two hours, only to hand me a twenty-dollar bill and tell me to be grateful.
I told him how I'd pawned my grandmother's necklace to purchase my mother's heart medication.
I even told him about the nights I'd eaten leftover bread in the pantry because every dollar I earned was supposed to help keep my mother alive.
Luca didn't interrupt.
But I watched his hands slowly curl into fists.
"Why didn't you come directly to me?" he finally asked.
I lowered my eyes.
"Because your wife said you were the one ordering it."
He closed his eyes briefly.
"She told me you'd fire me if I bothered you."
"Claire, I would never authorize withholding your wages."
"How was I supposed to know?"
My question came out sharper than I'd intended.
I expected him to become angry.
Instead, he nodded.
"You weren't."
His voice was heavy.
"I let someone else control my home, and I failed to notice what was happening to the people inside it."
A doctor approached before I could respond.
Her name was Dr. Priya Patel, and her serious expression made me stand immediately.
"Your mother is stable for now," she said.
I almost collapsed with relief.
"But the exposure and stress have worsened her existing cardiac condition."
She explained that my mother needed careful monitoring and further evaluation for a possible procedure.
Then she glanced at Luca.
"There's another issue we need to discuss."
My stomach tightened.
"What issue?"
"The hospital's administrative team flagged an unusual financial authorization attached to Mrs. Bennett's previous admission."
Luca stood.
"What kind of authorization?"
Dr. Patel hesitated.
"A third-party payment arrangement and a signed declaration that does not appear consistent with the medical assistance application."
I felt the room tilt.
"Can we see it?"
"The records department will need to verify who is authorized to receive the documents," she answered.
"My mother's privacy comes first."
Luca nodded immediately.
"Then we follow the proper procedure."
When my mother was awake enough to speak, Dr. Patel returned to ask whether she wanted me present for the discussion.
My mother agreed.
She looked exhausted, but she recognized us both.
I took her hand.
"Mom, please tell us what happened when Vanessa visited you."
My mother stared at the ceiling.
"She came on Tuesday morning wearing a cream-colored coat."
"She brought flowers and told me Luca wanted to help."
Her voice shook.
"She said the hospital needed my signature for an emergency assistance program."
I squeezed her hand.
"Did she explain what you were signing?"
"No."
"She covered most of the pages with a folder and told me to sign where she pointed."
Luca leaned forward.
"Was anyone else there?"
My mother nodded.
"A man in a gray suit stood outside the door."
"Did you recognize him?"
"I'd seen him once before, at your mansion."
Luca went perfectly still.
"Describe him."
"He had silver hair, a scar near his eyebrow, and a gold watch."
Luca exchanged a dark look with Gabriel, who had just entered the room.
"Adrian Vale," he said.
I knew that name.
Adrian was Luca's chief financial officer.
He was also one of the few people trusted with access to the company's private accounts.
My mother started trembling.
"Claire, she made me sign something else."
"What?"
"A blank sheet of paper."
My heart stopped.
"Why would you do that?"
She began crying.
"Because she said you'd lose your job if I refused."
I bent forward and kissed her forehead.
"Oh, Mom."
"She told me she could make the hospital bills disappear."
Then my mother looked directly at Luca.
"But before she left, she said something strange."
Luca stepped closer.
"What did she say?"
My mother's lips trembled.
"She said when the police came looking for the missing money, Claire would already have confessed."
And suddenly I understood.
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Vanessa hadn't simply stolen my wages.
She had been building a confession she intended to put in my mouth.
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