Chapter 6 - The Signature Luca Could Not Deny|
For the first time that afternoon, Luca Moretti looked genuinely helpless.
Vanessa stood before him in her magnificent wedding gown, holding a document bearing his signature.
Olivia stared at the paper.
Then she looked at her brother.
Her hands rose slowly.
What did you sign?
I translated.
Luca took the envelope from Vanessa.
Inside was a copy of an affidavit he had signed eight months earlier.
The document claimed Olivia preferred that Richard Hayes handle complex family financial discussions on her behalf.
It also suggested she became distressed during important business meetings.
My heart sank.
I remembered that period.
Vanessa had repeatedly insisted Olivia was exhausted, emotional, and overwhelmed by the family's responsibilities.
Whenever Olivia asked to attend a meeting, Vanessa said Luca wanted her to rest.
And whenever Luca requested updates about his sister, Richard assured him everything was being handled professionally.
Now I understood how carefully they had manipulated both of them.
"Why did you sign this?" I whispered.
Luca looked at Olivia.
"Richard told me you wanted him to handle the paperwork temporarily."
Olivia's expression collapsed.
She signed one sentence.
I begged you to let me attend those meetings.
Luca didn't defend himself.
"I know that now."
Her hands moved again.
You believed him because he could speak to you without an interpreter.
The accusation struck him harder than anything Vanessa had said.
Luca lowered his head.
"Yes."
I watched Olivia turn away.
For years, she had been forced to depend on people who controlled what her brother heard.
And now that silence had become evidence against her.
Vanessa smiled triumphantly.
"See, darling?"
"You signed it yourself."
Natalie stepped forward.
"A preference for assistance is not proof of incapacity."
She examined the affidavit closely.
"And nothing in this document proves Olivia consented to what Richard later did."
Vanessa shrugged.
"That's for the court to decide."
"Yes," Natalie replied.
"And we intend to be there when it does."
Vanessa's smile faltered.
Natalie explained that the petition had been submitted for an emergency hearing on Monday morning.
The filing didn't automatically place Olivia under anyone's control.
But it created a dangerous legal challenge.
If Richard persuaded the court to restrict her financial authority, he might gain enough time to complete the transfers he had arranged.
Luca turned toward Vanessa.
"Did you know they were using that affidavit to take control of her property?"
She stared back at him.
"I was trying to protect your family's interests."
"By taking my sister's inheritance?"
"By protecting it from people who don't know how to manage it!"
Olivia's hands moved fiercely.
I have a business degree.
I manage my own studio.
I have never asked Vanessa to make my decisions.
I translated without softening a single word.
Vanessa rolled her eyes.
"Claire, stop making her sound like some brilliant businesswoman."
Luca stepped between them.
"Olivia doesn't need Claire to make her intelligent."
"She was intelligent long before either of us learned to listen."
For once, Vanessa had no answer.
A security officer approached with Detective Elena Ruiz.
The detective was a calm woman in her forties with sharp eyes and a manner that made people think twice before lying.
She had arrived to investigate the suspicious documents, threats, and attempted destruction of surveillance footage.
After speaking privately with Natalie, she requested separate interviews with everyone involved.
Vanessa immediately demanded her attorney.
"You're entitled to counsel," Detective Ruiz replied.
"But that doesn't make these allegations disappear."
Vanessa walked away without another word.
I watched her disappear into the hallway where the wedding photographs had been arranged.
Every picture showed her smiling beside Luca.
I wondered how many of those smiles had ever been real.
That evening, Marcus brought me a cup of tea in the kitchen.
His hands were shaking.
"Claire, there's something I need to tell you."
I looked up.
He lowered his voice.
"Three days ago, Vanessa asked me to issue a temporary access card for her assistant, Marissa Vale."
"Why?"
"She said Marissa needed to supervise wedding preparations."
"Did the card open Luca's office?"
Marcus hesitated.
"It shouldn't have."
I stared at him.
"What does that mean?"
"It means someone changed the access permissions after I issued it."
He looked miserable.
"Richard had administrative access to the security system."
I remembered the missing uniform.
The false surveillance recording.
The anonymous photographs.
Someone had created an entire trail of evidence designed to point toward me.
"Why didn't you tell Luca earlier?"
Marcus swallowed.
"Because Richard threatened to expose a personal debt I had hidden from the family."
I felt a terrible disappointment.
Marcus had always seemed loyal.
But fear had made him useful to the wrong people.
"Tell Detective Ruiz," I said.
"Everything."
He nodded.
For the first time, he looked relieved.
Later that night, Olivia found me in the kitchen.
She sat beside me and signed slowly.
You can leave if you're afraid.
I shook my head.
"I'm not leaving you alone in this."
She touched my hand.
You have already done enough.
"No."
I looked directly into her eyes.
"Someone tried to turn your language into a reason to take away your rights."
"I won't pretend I didn't see it."
Olivia embraced me.
We stayed like that until Luca appeared in the doorway.
He watched us quietly.
Then he signed to his sister.
I will fix this.
Olivia stepped away.
Her response was gentle but firm.
You cannot fix everything for me.
You can stand beside me.
Luca nodded.
"I can do that."
Before I could translate, Natalie's phone rang.
She answered.
Then her expression changed.
Richard's firm had scheduled an additional transfer for Monday morning.
The money wasn't coming directly from Olivia's personal trust.
It was coming from a family holding company that owned several properties connected to her foundation.
The amount was nearly two million dollars.
And because the account belonged to a separate corporation, a court order protecting the trust might not stop it.
Natalie looked at Luca.
"They're attacking the same assets through two different legal structures."
Luca's face darkened.
"How do we stop them?"
"We need evidence identifying who authorized the corporate transfers."
May you like
Then she looked toward the financial statement.
"And we need to find out whether your cousin Dominic was involved."
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