Chapter 11 - The Bride's Final Bargain|
Vanessa wanted to meet me alone.
That was the first thing she said when she called again.
I refused.
I wasn't going to walk into a private meeting with a woman who had stolen from her husband, humiliated an elderly man, and helped her father conceal evidence.
But I wanted to hear what she knew.
Olivia arranged a meeting in a public hotel lounge, and Detective Torres was informed of the time and location.
Luca wasn't pleased.
“I don't trust her,” he said.
“Neither do I.”
“Then why go?”
I looked at him.
“Because your father trusted the wrong people for twenty-eight years.”
“I don't want another family living with that kind of silence.”
He studied me for a moment.
Then he nodded.
“Take Olivia.”
“I already planned to.”
Something like a smile appeared on his face.
“You've gotten better at telling me no.”
I almost smiled back.
“Someone had to.”
That afternoon, Vanessa sat across from me in a quiet corner of the hotel lounge.
She looked completely different from the bride I'd watched scream at Frank.
Her hair was pulled into a loose ponytail.
She wore no jewelry.
And dark circles surrounded her eyes.
Olivia sat beside me.
Vanessa glanced at her.
“I thought this was supposed to be private.”
“It's private enough for you to tell the truth,” Olivia answered.
Vanessa looked toward me.
“I suppose Luca hates me.”
I said nothing.
She gave a bitter laugh.
“He should.”
For a moment, she seemed unable to continue.
Then she reached into her handbag and removed a small flash drive.
“My father kept copies of the property transactions on a company server.”
“He wanted me to manage some of the newer holdings.”
“I thought they were legitimate investments.”
Olivia leaned forward.
“When did you learn otherwise?”
“Two years ago.”
Vanessa stared at the table.
“I found references to payments connected to fires and forced property sales.”
“I confronted him.”
“He told me the people involved had agreed to everything.”
“Did you believe him?” I asked.
“Not completely.”
“Then why did you keep working for him?”
Vanessa's expression hardened.
“Because I liked the life his money gave me.”
The admission surprised me.
She didn't try to make herself sound innocent.
She looked directly at me.
“I liked the houses.”
“I liked being important.”
“I liked walking into rooms where everyone knew my name.”
She swallowed.
“And I convinced myself that whatever happened before I was old enough to understand wasn't my responsibility.”
I thought about Frank crying over Elena's wedding ring.
“Then you married Luca.”
Vanessa nodded.
“My father wanted access to the restaurant.”
“He believed Elena had hidden evidence in the building.”
“When Luca gave me money for the wedding, I used it as part of the financing for the purchase.”
“You told Frank the wedding would be canceled.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.”
“You let him sell his wife's wedding ring.”
“Yes.”
I leaned forward.
“And when he tried to enjoy one piece of cake at his son's wedding, you humiliated him in front of everyone.”
Vanessa looked away.
“I know.”
“No,” I whispered.
“I don't think you do.”
“That ring represented fifty-two years of marriage.”
“That cake represented a father wanting to celebrate his son's happiness.”
“You took both moments away from him because you thought money made you more important.”
Vanessa began crying.
For once, I didn't comfort her.
She had cried at the wedding too.
But tears didn't erase the things she'd done.
Olivia asked her to explain the flash drive.
Vanessa said it contained company correspondence, invoices, and messages from Anthony directing the demolition.
Some of the records indicated that the emergency inspection paperwork had been arranged before any legitimate inspection occurred.
More importantly, there were emails showing Anthony believed documents connected to Elena Moretti remained inside the restaurant.
Olivia contacted Detective Torres and arranged for the drive to be transferred for forensic examination.
Then Vanessa whispered something else.
“My father knows the judge stopped the demolition.”
I felt my stomach tighten.
“So?”
“So he said if the city wouldn't let him tear it down, there were other ways to make an old building disappear.”
Olivia sat upright.
“Did he threaten to set it on fire?”
Vanessa nodded.
“He told one of his men to clear his schedule for tonight.”
“He mentioned the restaurant's rear entrance.”
My heart began pounding.
I reached for my phone.
Olivia immediately called Detective Torres.
Vanessa stared at me.
“Claire, I know you hate me.”
I looked at her.
“I don't hate you.”
Her expression softened.
Then I finished.
“But I will never pretend what you did was harmless.”
She lowered her eyes.
“I understand.”
Olivia made it clear that cooperation would not automatically protect Vanessa from criminal charges.
Vanessa nodded.
“I know.”
She looked toward the flash drive.
“My father told me he'd blame everything on me if the investigation reached him.”
“He thought I would stay quiet to protect myself.”
“Why aren't you?” I asked.
“Because I finally realized he would sacrifice me just as easily as anyone else.”
I didn't feel sympathy for the choices she'd made.
But I understood that she was finally afraid of the man she'd spent her life defending.
When we left the hotel, I called Luca.
He answered immediately.
“Claire?”
“Vanessa says Anthony is planning to burn the restaurant.”
His voice changed.
“Where's Dad?”
“At the mansion, isn't he?”
A terrible silence followed.
“Claire, I just got home.”
My heart stopped.
“What do you mean?”
“Dad isn't here.”
I gripped my phone.
“Where did he go?”
“One of the staff said he received a message from me asking him to meet me at the restaurant.”
Luca sounded terrified.
“I never sent that message.”
I began shaking.
Frank had been discharged from the hospital that morning with strict instructions to rest.
He was still weak.
And someone had convinced him that his son needed him.
“Luca,” I whispered.
“Call the police.”
“I already have.”
He paused.
Then said the words I had been dreading.
“My father went to Taylor Street alone.”
A second call appeared on my phone.
Unknown number.
I answered.
Anthony Bellini's voice filled my ear.
“Good evening, Claire.”
I couldn't speak.
He continued.
“I believe you have something that belongs to me.”
Behind him, I heard an elderly man coughing.
Then Frank's frightened voice.
“Claire, don't come here!”
Anthony laughed.
May you like
“Bring the records, sweetheart.”
“Or the last thing Luca Moretti sees of his father will be smoke.”
