Chapter 11 - THE FAMILY EMPIRE BUILT ON SECRETS|
By the time we reached Evelyn's downtown office, Dominic was telling the company directors that Luca had suffered a medical emergency.
He claimed that Rosa was mentally incapable of managing her affairs.
He claimed that Vanessa had been cruelly accused by a dishonest employee.
And he claimed that the business would collapse unless the board approved the sale immediately.
Every accusation was a lie.
But the most frightening part was how confidently he delivered them.
Evelyn listened to a report from the company's independent counsel.
Then she looked at Luca.
"Dominic is trying to create a sense of urgency."
Luca nodded grimly.
"That's how he operates."
"He wants people to believe the transfer must happen before anyone investigates."
"What can we do?"
"Challenge the authorization and obtain emergency protection from the court."
Luca sat down.
"Then do it."
Evelyn gathered the documents.
"The original trust records Rosa preserved will help."
I stood beside the window, watching traffic move along the river.
My body ached with exhaustion.
But every time I considered resting, I pictured Rosa inside that abandoned kitchen.
Frightened.
Weak.
Being told she was too old to deserve a voice.
I couldn't forget her words.
Don't hurt anyone because of me.
She hadn't asked Luca for revenge.
She'd asked him to become the man she'd tried to raise.
My phone rang.
It was Detective Torres.
"Claire, we found something important."
"What?"
"The bank has provided preliminary information about the account opened in your name."
I held my breath.
"The records indicate that your personal information was used, but the account's contact details were not yours."
"Can you prove who opened it?"
"We're still working on that."
She paused.
"But the account received money from a company connected to Dominic's financial network."
Relief rushed through me.
"So they were trying to frame me."
"That is consistent with what we're investigating."
I closed my eyes.
For the first time since the accusations began, I felt as if the truth might actually protect me.
Then Torres continued.
"We've also contacted Alma Ruiz's granddaughter."
"Teresa?"
"Yes."
"Is she willing to help?"
"Very willing."
An hour later, Teresa Ruiz arrived.
She was a woman in her early thirties with tired eyes and a folder thick with documents.
When she saw Luca, she hesitated.
"You're the man who owns those restaurants?"
Luca nodded.
"Yes."
Her expression hardened.
"My grandmother used to eat at one of them."
I watched Luca carefully.
"What happened?"
Teresa sat down.
"Grandma Alma owned a building where several working families rented apartments."
Her voice trembled.
"She refused to sell it to a development company."
"Why?"
"She said the tenants deserved to stay in their homes."
Teresa opened her folder.
"After she refused, someone introduced her to a doctor who supposedly specialized in elderly patients."
"Dr. Harrison?"
Teresa nodded.
"Within months, people were telling me my grandmother was confused."
Luca looked sick.
"Then came the paperwork."
She placed copies on the table.
"Guardianship recommendations."
"Medical assessments."
"Documents saying she couldn't manage her property."
I recognized the language.
It sounded almost identical to the paperwork prepared for Rosa.
Teresa wiped her eyes.
"By the time we got another doctor involved, Grandma's building had already been sold."
"Where is she now?"
"Living with me."
Teresa smiled sadly.
"She's doing much better."
I reached across the table.
"I'm glad."
"But she doesn't trust anyone wearing a white coat anymore."
The room fell silent.
Then Teresa turned to Luca.
"Your name appeared in some of the property records."
He stiffened.
"My name?"
"Your company's name."
She pushed a document toward him.
The buyer was a holding company connected to Moretti Hospitality.
Luca stared at it.
"I've never seen this transaction."
Evelyn examined the page.
"It appears to have passed through a subsidiary Dominic managed."
Teresa's eyes filled with tears.
"Then how do I know you weren't part of it?"
Luca looked at her.
"You don't."
His answer surprised everyone.
He leaned forward.
"You have every reason to question me."
Teresa said nothing.
"For years, I let people manage businesses in my name because I trusted them."
Luca swallowed.
"I also believed fear was a useful way to protect what belonged to me."
I studied his face.
"I thought being powerful meant never having to explain my decisions."
He looked toward the window.
"And I was wrong."
Teresa remained guarded.
"That doesn't give my grandmother her building back."
"No."
Luca nodded.
"It doesn't."
He turned to Evelyn.
"I want an independent review of every property acquired through Dominic's companies."
Evelyn watched him carefully.
"That could expose serious problems in the rest of your business."
"I understand."
"You may lose properties."
"I understand."
"There could be legal consequences."
He looked directly at her.
"Then I'll face them."
I had heard Luca make promises before.
But this one was different.
He wasn't promising to destroy an enemy.
He was promising to examine himself.
Teresa slowly closed her folder.
"Grandma always said powerful men only apologize when they have no other choice."
Luca nodded.
"Maybe she was right."
He looked at her.
"But you deserve the truth whether it makes me look good or not."
Before Teresa could answer, my phone began vibrating.
A social media notification appeared.
Someone had posted a video from the Moretti mansion.
The caption read:
EXCLUSIVE: CHICAGO BUSINESSMAN'S ELDERLY MOTHER MANIPULATED BY HOUSEMAID DURING FAMILY DISPUTE.
My stomach dropped.
I opened the video.
It showed me standing beside Rosa's wheelchair at the dinner table.
But the footage had been cut and rearranged.
Vanessa's accusations were missing.
Rosa's revelation about the food was missing.
Even the moment Luca discovered the stale bread had been removed.
Instead, the video made it appear that I was pressuring Rosa to accuse her daughter-in-law.
Thousands of people were already watching.
Comments appeared faster than I could read them.
Some called me a liar.
Others accused me of trying to steal the Moretti fortune.
I felt tears burning my eyes.
Luca approached.
"Claire, don't look at that."
But I couldn't stop.
Then I saw the account that had published the recording.
May you like
It belonged to a public relations firm.
And according to its website, one of its major clients was Lakefront Meridian Partners.
