Chapter 12 - THE FRIDAY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING|
By eleven o'clock Friday morning, the story had spread across Chicago.
My photograph was circulating online.
Strangers were accusing me of exploiting an elderly woman.
Some claimed I was secretly involved with Luca.
Others said I had invented the poisoning allegations to destroy his marriage.
I wanted to turn off my phone.
I wanted to crawl beneath my blankets and disappear.
But I kept thinking about Rosa.
She had spent weeks being told that nobody would believe her.
Now someone was trying to make that happen to me.
I wouldn't allow it.
"Claire."
Luca stood in the doorway.
"You don't need to attend the board meeting."
I looked up.
"I know."
"Then stay somewhere safe."
I shook my head.
"I want to be available if the investigators need another statement."
He studied me.
"You're exhausted."
"So are you."
He almost smiled.
"That's different."
"Why?"
He hesitated.
"Because I created part of this mess."
I stood.
"Vanessa and Dominic made their choices."
"And I made mine."
His expression darkened.
"I trusted the wrong people."
I looked at him carefully.
"Then make better choices now."
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he nodded.
"That's what I'm trying to do."
We traveled separately to the downtown offices of Moretti Hospitality.
I remained with Evelyn's legal team in a secure conference room while Luca met with the directors.
Police investigators were also pursuing the financial and criminal evidence.
The company board had already been warned that the authorization documents were disputed.
But Dominic continued insisting that the property sale was valid.
Evelyn returned from a call with the court.
"We have an emergency temporary restraining order."
Luca stood.
"Meaning?"
"The disputed transfer cannot proceed while the court examines the authorization and ownership issues."
Relief washed over me.
"Then Dominic can't sell the properties?"
"Not under these contested documents."
Evelyn's expression remained serious.
"But we still need to deal with the underlying fraud."
Almost immediately, the conference-room door opened.
A senior company director entered.
His face was pale.
"Dominic is demanding to see you."
Luca remained seated.
"Why?"
"He says you're destroying the company."
Evelyn looked at the director.
"Has the board received the court order?"
"Yes."
"Then there is nothing further to debate about this sale today."
The director hesitated.
"Dominic says he has evidence of Luca's criminal activities."
I looked toward Luca.
He didn't appear surprised.
That frightened me.
"What evidence?"
The director shook his head.
"He hasn't shown us."
Luca slowly stood.
"I'll speak with him in front of counsel."
Evelyn nodded.
"No private meetings."
The confrontation took place in the boardroom.
I watched from the adjoining conference area, where I could hear much of the conversation through an open doorway.
Dominic stood at the head of the long table.
His expensive navy suit was immaculate.
His black briefcase rested beside him.
When Luca entered, Dominic smiled.
"There you are."
Luca said nothing.
Dominic spread his hands.
"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten who kept this company alive."
Luca looked at him.
"Where did you take my mother?"
Dominic's smile vanished.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"She identified you."
"She's an elderly woman with memory problems."
Luca's expression remained calm.
"She also remembered where you took her."
Dominic's jaw tightened.
"You're allowing that maid to turn you against your family."
"Claire isn't the one who stole from us."
Dominic laughed.
"You think you can run this empire without me?"
Luca stepped closer.
"I don't know what the company will look like after investigators finish examining it."
He paused.
"But I know I won't let you hide behind my name anymore."
Dominic's face turned red.
"You owe everything to me."
Luca shook his head.
"No."
"My mother gave me eight thousand dollars and worked beside me in a diner with a broken heater."
His voice grew stronger.
"She gave me my beginning."
He looked at Dominic with unmistakable disgust.
"You tried to take away her ending."
The room fell silent.
Dominic grabbed his briefcase.
"This meeting is over."
But when he turned toward the door, Detective Torres and two officers were waiting nearby.
Torres addressed him calmly.
"Mr. Rinaldi, we need to speak with you regarding the investigation."
Dominic stopped.
His attorney immediately stepped forward.
The detective explained the legal process and instructed the officers to follow the authorization they had obtained.
I watched as Dominic was escorted away.
For fourteen years, he had behaved as though he controlled every door in the Moretti empire.
Now he couldn't decide which one he would leave through.
I should have felt victorious.
Instead, I felt exhausted.
Because Vanessa was still missing.
Her attorney had stopped answering questions about her whereabouts.
And investigators had discovered that a vehicle assigned to her had left the mansion shortly before dawn.
My phone buzzed.
A message appeared from Vanessa.
Congratulations, Claire.
You managed to destroy my husband's business.
I stared at the screen.
Another message followed.
But before you decide Luca is your hero, ask him how he acquired the buildings on Halsted Street.
Then she sent a photograph.
It showed Luca standing outside a restaurant many years earlier.
Two large men stood beside him.
Across the street, an older man was being escorted away from a storefront.
Beneath the photograph, Vanessa had written:
YOUR PRECIOUS LUCA HAS DESTROYED FAMILIES, TOO.
I slowly looked toward him.
He was standing beside the conference-room window.
May you like
For the first time since the nightmare began, I wasn't afraid of what Vanessa might do next.
I was afraid of what Luca might tell me.
