Chapter 8 - THE PAPER TRAIL|
The next morning, I watched Luca Moretti make a decision that frightened him more than any confrontation with his enemies.
He agreed to turn over the financial records to federal investigators.
For years, the Moretti organization had survived by keeping its secrets.
Some of Luca's businesses were legitimate.
Others operated in the shadows.
And he knew that once investigators began examining the accounts, they might discover things he had spent years hiding.
But Benjamin was still upstairs, afraid to sleep without a light.
And Rosa Moretti was still dead.
Luca finally understood that protecting the family name could no longer matter more than protecting his family.
Maya Chen arrived at nine o'clock with a forensic accountant named Dr. Naomi Reed.
Naomi was a small woman with silver glasses and a voice that made even Luca listen carefully.
She spread copies of Rosa's records across the dining room table.
"Your mother was investigating a network of shell companies."
Luca studied the documents.
"How much money?"
"At least three million dollars in questionable transactions."
Olivia sat beside him.
"From North Harbor?"
"Primarily."
Naomi pointed at a series of invoices.
"These payments were supposedly for counseling services, residential care, and transportation."
Maya frowned.
"Were those services provided?"
"In several cases, the organizations listed don't appear to have existed as functioning providers."
I thought of the black SUV outside the mansion.
"Like Hawthorne Residential Services?"
Naomi nodded.
"That company is part of the network."
She turned another page.
"The registered agent changed twice, but the accounts eventually lead to a holding company controlled by Silas Voss."
Luca leaned forward.
"And Vanessa?"
Naomi placed a bank statement in front of him.
"Victoria Bell Consulting received regular payments from the same network."
Olivia's face tightened.
"How much?"
"More than four hundred thousand dollars over several years."
Luca stared at the numbers.
"She told me she inherited money from her grandmother."
Naomi said nothing.
She didn't have to.
Every excuse Vanessa had ever given was beginning to collapse.
Maya examined the forged placement letter.
"The document examiner found something else."
Luca looked up.
"What?"
"Your signature wasn't written by hand."
He frowned.
"We already know that."
"It's more specific than that."
She placed two documents side by side.
"The signature on Benjamin's placement authorization matches one from a corporate agreement, including microscopic printing artifacts."
I stared at the pages.
"She copied it?"
"Exactly."
Maya nodded.
"Someone digitally transferred the image onto the new document."
Luca's expression darkened.
"And the company would have accepted it?"
"The transport team apparently intended to act on it."
Olivia shuddered.
"Without confirming directly with the parent?"
"That is one reason this is being treated as a possible attempted abduction."
I remembered Benjamin holding the paper with shaking fingers.
He had saved himself by finding a document no child should ever have needed to understand.
Maya continued.
"We've also found other records suggesting the same network used falsified authorizations to obtain payments."
"Other children?" I asked.
Naomi nodded.
"At least seventeen case files require investigation."
The room fell silent.
Luca stared at the documents.
"Seventeen."
Olivia whispered, "Mom was right."
He looked toward his mother's photograph.
"She was trying to stop this."
Maya closed the folder.
"Federal investigators want to interview everyone with relevant information."
Luca nodded.
"I'll cooperate."
Maya hesitated.
"Luca, you understand the potential implications for your own businesses."
He looked at her.
"Yes."
"Some of these accounts passed through companies you controlled."
"I know."
"You could face serious questions."
Luca glanced toward the ceiling.
Above us, Benjamin was waiting for his father to finish work so they could build a model airplane together.
"Then I'll answer them."
His voice was quiet.
"I've spent enough years letting other people pay for my silence."
Later that afternoon, I found him in the library.
He was holding a photograph of Rosa and Benjamin.
"Mr. Moretti?"
He looked up.
"Claire."
"Benjamin is asking for you."
"I'll be there in a minute."
I hesitated.
"May I say something?"
"Of course."
"He's afraid you'll get into trouble because he told you what he saw."
Luca closed his eyes.
"Did he say that?"
"Yes."
"He thinks all of this is his fault?"
I nodded.
Luca placed the photograph down.
"Then I need to tell him the truth."
He found Benjamin sitting at the kitchen table with airplane pieces spread around him.
"Buddy, we need to talk."
Benjamin looked frightened.
"Am I in trouble?"
"No."
Luca sat beside him.
"Some adults did things that were wrong."
Benjamin nodded slowly.
"Vanessa?"
"Yes."
Luca paused.
"And I've made mistakes too."
The boy looked confused.
"What kind?"
"Sometimes I thought being powerful meant I didn't have to listen to anyone."
Benjamin studied him.
"Like Grandma?"
Luca swallowed.
"Exactly like Grandma."
He took his son's hand.
"But none of this happened because you told the truth."
Benjamin looked down.
"Will the police take you away?"
Luca did not lie.
"I don't know everything that will happen."
The boy's eyes filled.
"But whatever happens, you'll know where I am."
Benjamin reached for him.
"And you'll still be my daddy?"
Luca pulled him close.
"Always."
That evening, Maya called with another discovery.
The foundation's records included a payment to an automotive repair company.
It had been made three days before Rosa Moretti's fatal accident.
The payment description was listed as routine maintenance.
But the account receiving the money belonged to a business controlled by Silas Voss.
Maya's voice became serious.
"Luca, there's a mechanic who worked on your mother's car."
"Where is he?"
"We've located him in Rockford."
"Has he agreed to speak?"
"Yes."
Luca gripped the telephone.
"What did he say?"
Maya hesitated.
"He says someone paid him to falsify the service record."
Luca stopped breathing for a moment.
May you like
Then Maya delivered the sentence that changed the investigation completely.
"He's willing to testify that the brakes were deliberately tampered with."
