Chapter 6 - The School That Never Existed|
"That's a lie!"
Sophia's little voice rang through Luca's office.
June Patel fell silent on the telephone.
Luca immediately held his daughter closer.
"Of course it is, sweetheart."
"But why would they say I live somewhere else?"
I watched him struggle for an answer.
How could any father explain to a nine-year-old that someone was trying to erase her existence with forged paperwork?
He kissed the top of her head.
"Because some adults have forgotten how important the truth is."
Sophia looked toward me.
"Claire always says the truth comes out eventually."
Luca nodded.
"She's right."
Then he turned back toward the phone.
"June, I want every account connected to Daniel Kessler reviewed."
"I've already contacted our outside counsel."
"Good."
"And Luca?"
"Yes?"
"Please don't discuss any financial documents with Daniel until we preserve the records."
Luca glanced at Nora.
"Understood."
After the call ended, Nora explained that the supposed psychiatric facility named in the declaration was also suspicious.
Its website had been registered only weeks earlier.
The telephone number led to an answering service.
And the medical director listed on the documents did not appear in the state's professional licensing database.
"This isn't a residential school," Nora said.
"It's a paper institution."
I shivered.
"Then what were they going to do with Sophia?"
Nora closed the folder.
"That's what we need to establish."
Luca looked toward Marco.
"Find out who owns that building."
Marco nodded and left.
A few minutes later, Mrs. Alvarez appeared to take the girls into the breakfast room.
Sophia refused to release Luca's hand.
"Daddy, are you going away again?"
He looked at her.
"No."
"Not even for business?"
"Not today."
She studied his face carefully.
"Promise?"
He took off his expensive wristwatch and placed it on the desk.
"Until we get this sorted out, my most important appointment is you."
Sophia gave a tiny smile.
But I noticed how long she studied his expression before believing him.
Children who have been disappointed too often learn to search for the moment a promise breaks.
Later that morning, Nora asked me to accompany her to Sophia's elementary school.
The principal, Mrs. Evelyn Harper, had agreed to meet us after hearing about the forged affidavit.
Luca wanted to come, but Nora suggested he remain with Sophia while investigators gathered information.
Before leaving, I found him in the kitchen.
He was standing in front of the refrigerator, staring helplessly at a carton of strawberries.
"Do you know how to make a birthday cake?" he asked.
I smiled.
"I do."
He sighed.
"I don't."
"Then perhaps you should learn."
He looked surprised.
"You're suggesting I bake?"
"I'm suggesting your daughter would love to see you try."
For the first time that morning, Luca laughed.
It was a small sound.
But it was real.
At the school, Mrs. Harper greeted us with obvious concern.
"I was shocked when Nora called."
She led us into her office.
"Sophia has always been a gentle, thoughtful student."
Nora placed the affidavit on the table.
"Have you ever documented violent behavior or emotional instability?"
Mrs. Harper shook her head.
"Never."
Then she opened Sophia's school file.
I noticed several recent entries marked with red labels.
URGENT PARENTAL CONCERN.
RECOMMENDED RESIDENTIAL PLACEMENT.
FATHER UNAVAILABLE FOR CONSULTATION.
My stomach tightened.
Mrs. Harper frowned.
"These weren't written by our counseling staff."
Nora leaned forward.
"Who entered them?"
The principal checked the administrative history.
Then her face changed.
"They were uploaded through the parent portal."
"Whose account?"
Mrs. Harper looked up.
"Vanessa Moretti's."
I closed my eyes.
There it was.
Another piece of the truth.
But the principal hadn't finished.
"Someone also submitted a request to remove Luca Moretti as Sophia's primary emergency contact."
Nora's expression hardened.
"Was the request approved?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because Sophia's classroom teacher questioned it."
Mrs. Harper reached into a folder.
"Ms. Collins wrote a note explaining that Sophia had specifically asked for her father to be called during emergencies."
I felt tears gathering.
Even when Sophia believed Luca had forgotten her, she had still wanted him to come if something happened.
Mrs. Harper then showed us the attendance record from the day I supposedly signed the affidavit.
There was my real signature.
Beside it was a timestamp confirming I had attended Sophia's parent-teacher conference.
Security footage showed me entering the school and remaining inside during the period when the sworn statement claimed I had appeared elsewhere.
Nora smiled for the first time.
"This gives us evidence that Claire couldn't have appeared before the person named in the affidavit at the time stated."
I exhaled shakily.
"Thank God."
But before we left, Mrs. Harper brought us one final item.
It was a drawing Sophia had made during art class.
The picture showed a large mansion.
Standing inside were two adults and a little girl wearing a pink dress.
Outside the house, another little girl stood beneath a black umbrella.
The teacher had written Sophia's explanation beneath the drawing.
The girl outside is me because there isn't room for me anymore.
I pressed my hand over my mouth.
Nora stared at the picture for several seconds.
Then she carefully placed it inside her folder.
"Mr. Moretti needs to see this."
When we returned to the mansion, Luca was standing in the kitchen beside a mixing bowl.
Flour covered the front of his black shirt.
A cracked egg lay on the counter.
Sophia sat on a stool, giggling.
"Daddy put the eggshells in the cake!"
Luca looked embarrassed.
"I've been informed that wasn't part of the recipe."
I laughed despite everything.
For a brief moment, the kitchen felt like a home.
Then Nora showed him the drawing.
His smile disappeared.
He studied the lonely little girl beneath the umbrella.
And tears rolled silently down his cheeks.
Sophia climbed off the stool.
"Daddy?"
He knelt.
"Come here, princess."
She walked into his arms.
He held her tightly.
"I'm so sorry I made you feel there wasn't room for you."
Sophia whispered, "There is now."
Before he could answer, Marco entered the kitchen.
"Boss, we found the owner of the building listed as Sophia's boarding school."
Luca looked up.
"Who?"
Marco placed a photograph on the counter.
It showed an abandoned industrial property outside Chicago.
"The property belongs to a holding company registered in Adrian Bellini's name."
Luca's expression hardened.
Marco continued.
"And there's something else."
"What?"
"The company recently purchased two one-way airline tickets."
My blood ran cold.
"Tickets for whom?"
Marco hesitated.
"One was issued under a false identity."
May you like
He looked toward Sophia.
"But the date of birth on the passenger record matches your daughter's exactly."
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