Chapter 9 - The Secret Hidden Inside Madison's Tablet|
Luca listened to Madison's recording three times.
Each time, his expression grew colder.
When the message ended, he turned toward Marco.
"Find Adrian."
Marco immediately reached for his phone.
But Nora stepped between them.
"Before anyone does anything, we need to involve the police."
Luca looked at her.
"That's my niece."
"She's also a child whose custodial parent hasn't authorized her removal."
Nora's voice remained steady.
"Let law enforcement handle the recovery."
For a moment, I thought Luca would argue.
Then he looked toward Sophia, who was sitting beside me with Madison's birthday crown in her lap.
He slowly nodded.
"Make the call."
Rachel Bellini arrived from Milwaukee later that evening.
She was a tired-looking woman with dark hair and frightened blue eyes.
The moment she entered the mansion, she began crying.
"I should never have let Madison come here."
Luca approached her.
"Rachel, we'll find her."
She shook her head.
"You don't understand Adrian."
Her voice trembled.
"He can be charming when he wants something, but when he loses control, he becomes frightening."
I watched Sophia move toward her.
The little girl gently offered Madison's stuffed rabbit.
"She likes to hold this when she's scared."
Rachel knelt and hugged her.
"Thank you, sweetheart."
I had rarely seen a more heartbreaking sight.
One child had nearly been taken away.
Now another child's mother was waiting to learn where her daughter had gone.
Shortly afterward, investigators located Adrian's vehicle near an office building in Evanston.
The police contacted Rachel and arranged for officers to check on Madison's welfare.
Luca wanted to drive there himself.
Nora strongly advised him not to interfere.
He paced the office like a trapped animal.
Finally, I approached him.
"Mr. Moretti?"
He looked at me.
"What if they hurt her?"
His voice sounded different.
Not commanding.
Not threatening.
Simply afraid.
I answered carefully.
"Then Madison will need the adults who love her to think clearly."
He stared at me.
Then he sat down.
"Is that what you've been doing all this time?"
I frowned.
"What?"
"Thinking clearly when I wasn't here."
I didn't know how to answer.
He looked toward the kitchen.
"Taking care of Sophia."
"She needed somebody."
He nodded slowly.
"And you stayed."
Before I could respond, Marco entered.
"The police have located Madison."
Rachel rushed forward.
"Is she okay?"
"She's frightened, but she's safe."
Rachel began sobbing with relief.
Marco continued.
"Adrian is being questioned about taking her without authorization."
Luca closed his eyes.
"And Madison?"
"She's with officers while they arrange for Rachel to collect her."
I felt Sophia's arms tighten around my waist.
"She's coming back?"
I smiled.
"Yes, sweetheart."
But the evening wasn't over.
At the Evanston office, Madison had told the officers something unusual.
She said her father had ordered her to delete a video from her tablet.
When she refused, he had taken the device away.
Fortunately, Madison had already saved a copy to a shared family account.
The account was connected to Sophia's tablet.
I looked down at the little device in Sophia's hands.
"Sweetheart, do you know where Madison saves her videos?"
Sophia nodded.
"She made a folder for our sleepovers."
She tapped the screen.
Dozens of recordings appeared.
There were videos of the girls playing in the garden.
Clips of Sophia teaching Madison to braid ribbons.
And a recording from the previous evening.
The thumbnail showed Madison wearing her sparkling silver birthday crown.
Sophia pressed it.
The screen filled with a shaky image of the ballroom.
Madison was giggling.
"Welcome to my pretend birthday!"
Then the camera tilted toward the floor.
Footsteps approached.
Madison apparently slipped behind a decorative curtain.
Vanessa's voice became clear.
"Adrian, everything is prepared."
My heart began pounding.
Adrian answered.
"Did Luca sign the guardianship documents?"
Vanessa laughed.
"Of course not."
Luca leaned closer.
The recording continued.
"Daniel copied his signature from the estate authorization forms."
Adrian sounded irritated.
"What about the court papers?"
"Daniel handled them."
"Are they legitimate?"
Vanessa paused.
"Legitimate enough to frighten Luca into thinking the transfer already happened."
I covered my mouth.
The room fell silent.
Then Adrian asked another question.
"And the maid?"
Vanessa laughed again.
"I used one of Claire's employment forms to copy her signature."
Luca's face went white.
The recording continued.
Adrian sounded increasingly nervous.
"This is dangerous."
"Only if Sophia stays here long enough to talk."
My stomach turned.
Vanessa's voice became colder.
"Once she's gone, we tell Luca she's receiving specialized care."
"And the foundation?"
"Daniel moves the money after the board vote."
Adrian sighed.
"We should have done this months ago."
Then Vanessa said the sentence that made my skin crawl.
"If Luca hadn't come home early, the girl would already be gone."
The video ended.
Nobody moved.
Then Sophia whispered, "They were going to take me because of money?"
Luca turned toward her.
His eyes filled with tears.
"No, princess."
He knelt.
"They tried because they cared more about money than people."
Sophia looked at the dark screen.
"Madison was brave."
I nodded.
"Very brave."
Nora immediately contacted the investigators handling the case.
She provided the original recording, the shared-account information, and the children's devices for proper preservation.
Luca remained silent throughout the call.
When Nora finished, she looked at him.
"This changes everything."
He nodded.
"Enough to arrest them?"
"It's powerful evidence, but investigators will still need to authenticate it and establish who did what."
Luca looked toward the window.
Outside, Chicago's lights glimmered beneath a cold November sky.
Then he said something I would never forget.
"I've spent my life believing fear was the best way to control people."
He looked at Sophia.
"But all fear did was make my daughter afraid to tell me the truth."
His voice broke.
"That's going to change."
At that moment, Nora's phone rang again.
She answered.
Then her expression became serious.
"Luca, it's June."
"What happened?"
"Daniel Kessler is missing."
Luca stood.
"Missing?"
Nora nodded.
"He emptied his office and left without telling anyone."
Then she swallowed.
"And the foundation's bank received instructions to transfer the remaining unrestricted funds first thing tomorrow morning."
The board vote was still scheduled for eight o'clock.
May you like
Daniel was disappearing.
And nearly three million dollars remained at risk.
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