Chapter 5 - WHAT THE NURSE REMEMBERED|
That afternoon, Luca took me to a small medical clinic on the North Side.
I sat beside him in the back of his car, staring at the familiar streets without really seeing them.
My name was written in a ledger connected to millions of dollars in missing charitable funds.
His mother had been frightened of poisoning.
And his new wife had tried to burn the one object that connected those mysteries.
Everything I thought I understood about the Moretti household was collapsing.
"Claire."
I turned toward Luca.
"Yes, sir?"
"Stop calling me that when we're not at the house."
I looked down.
"Sorry."
He sighed.
"That wasn't an order."
For a moment, something almost like a smile touched his mouth.
Then it disappeared.
"I should have listened when my mother told me Dominic had become too comfortable with our money."
I watched his reflection in the window.
"Why didn't you?"
"Because he raised me whenever my father was away working."
His voice grew quieter.
"He taught me how to negotiate, how to recognize a threat, and how to survive in a family where showing weakness could get people hurt."
I hesitated.
"Did he teach you how to trust anyone?"
Luca looked at me.
"No."
His answer was so simple that I didn't know what to say.
We arrived at the clinic shortly afterward.
Nurse Mina Alvarez was waiting in a small consultation room.
She was in her fifties, with tired eyes and a calm voice.
Mrs. Elena had mentioned her once or twice.
Mina had helped care for her during the final months of her life.
When Luca introduced himself, her expression tightened.
"I wondered when somebody from your family would come looking for me."
Luca sat forward.
"You knew my mother?"
"Very well."
She folded her hands.
"And I told your uncle she needed additional testing."
Luca went still.
"What testing?"
"Her symptoms were not entirely consistent with the illness her family had been told to expect."
Mina glanced at me.
"I noticed periods when she improved and then suddenly became much worse."
"Why wasn't that investigated?"
"It should have been."
She looked down.
"Some tests were requested, but the follow-up never happened."
Luca's voice hardened.
"Who canceled it?"
"I don't know who made the final decision."
She hesitated.
"Dominic told the clinic that the family was transferring her care to another specialist."
I remembered Frank telling us nearly the same story.
A different specialist.
An appointment that never happened.
Mina reached into her handbag and removed an old business card.
"I kept the name of the physician I wanted her to see."
She handed it to Luca.
"Dr. Priya Shah."
"Did my mother know?"
"Yes."
Mina's eyes filled with tears.
"She asked me whether someone could make another person sick without the doctors realizing it."
The silence that followed was unbearable.
I remembered Mrs. Elena sitting beside the kitchen window with a cup of tea untouched in front of her.
She had smiled at me when I offered to warm it.
"No, darling," she had said.
"I think I've had enough."
At the time, I thought she was simply tired.
Now I wondered whether she had already been afraid of what was inside the cup.
"Did she mention Vanessa?" Luca asked.
Mina nodded slowly.
"She said a young woman connected to Dominic insisted on preparing certain drinks for her."
"What young woman?"
"She didn't give me a name."
Mina looked ashamed.
"I should have asked more questions."
Luca rubbed his forehead.
"You're not the only one."
Mina explained that she had preserved notes from her consultations in her personal appointment diary, while the clinic maintained the official medical records.
She agreed to speak with Detective Torres and provide whatever information she could lawfully share.
As we were leaving, she stopped me.
"Claire?"
I turned.
"Mrs. Elena spoke about you."
My throat tightened.
"She did?"
"She said you were the only person in that house who asked whether she wanted something instead of deciding what she needed."
I couldn't speak.
Mina reached for my hand.
"She was grateful for you."
Outside, the late-afternoon wind cut through my coat.
Luca walked beside me in silence.
Then he said something I never expected from him.
"My mother died believing her family had failed her."
I shook my head.
"She knew you loved her."
"Love didn't protect her."
"No," I admitted.
"But maybe telling the truth still can."
He looked at me for a long moment.
Before he could answer, my phone vibrated.
An unfamiliar number had sent a photograph.
It showed the outside of my apartment building.
Underneath were seven words.
You should have let the book burn.
A second message appeared.
Next time, you won't be so lucky.
I showed Luca the screen.
His expression changed instantly.
But this time, his anger wasn't directed at the past.
May you like
Somebody had followed me home.
And whoever it was wanted me to understand that Mrs. Elena's death would not be the last tragedy connected to her recipe book.
