Chapter 10 - THE TRUTH ABOUT MATTHEW'S FINAL DRIVE|
Nobody answered Olivia immediately.
The question hung in the room like a storm cloud.
Had somebody murdered Matthew?
For eight months, his death had been treated as a tragic highway accident.
The family had mourned him.
The restaurant had continued operating.
And Adrian Bellini had gradually assumed control of the business Matthew helped build.
But now investigators had discovered evidence suggesting the collision might not have been accidental.
Olivia sat completely still.
Emma slept in Eleanor's arms.
And Luca stared at Detective Sullivan as though he was waiting for her to say the evidence had been misunderstood.
She didn't.
Instead, she sat beside Olivia.
“I need you to understand something.”
Olivia nodded weakly.
“We have reason to investigate possible interference with Matthew's vehicle.”
“That doesn't mean we've established who was responsible.”
“Or whether the interference caused the collision.”
Olivia swallowed.
“But somebody touched his car?”
“We found maintenance records and physical evidence that require further examination.”
Her eyes filled.
“Adrian?”
“We're investigating his possible involvement.”
Olivia looked toward Luca.
He was pale.
“Did you know?”
He shook his head.
“No.”
“Did you ever suspect?”
He lowered his eyes.
“I knew Matthew and Adrian were arguing.”
She stared at him.
“But I didn't know how serious it had become.”
Olivia began crying.
“Matthew told me he didn't trust Adrian.”
Luca leaned forward.
“I should have listened.”
She shook her head.
“I should have listened too.”
The words broke my heart.
Because both siblings were blaming themselves for something another person might have done.
I moved beside Olivia.
“Mrs. Olivia, Matthew trusted Adrian for years.”
She looked at me.
“That doesn't make either of you responsible for Adrian's choices.”
Olivia covered her face.
I sat beside her.
And for several minutes, we let her cry.
Later, investigators explained more of the timeline.
On the evening of the collision, Matthew had argued with Adrian about suspicious business transactions.
Security footage placed Vanessa near the restaurant.
Financial documents indicated that Adrian stood to benefit substantially from Matthew's death.
And newly recovered vehicle-service records raised questions about unauthorized work performed on Matthew's car.
Each discovery mattered.
But none alone proved murder.
Detective Sullivan was careful about that distinction.
She said the investigators would follow the evidence rather than rush toward the most dramatic conclusion.
I respected her for it.
Olivia deserved answers she could trust.
Not another carefully constructed story.
The next morning, Luca received a call from someone he hadn't spoken to in years.
His name was Victor Hale.
Victor had once managed security for several of Luca's businesses.
He'd left Chicago after an argument with Adrian.
Now he wanted to speak.
Luca agreed to meet him at his attorney's office, where Detective Sullivan could arrange a voluntary interview.
I didn't attend.
But Luca later told me what happened.
Victor arrived carrying a small leather notebook.
He looked nervous.
He admitted that Adrian had asked him to arrange an unofficial inspection of Matthew's car shortly before the accident.
At the time, Victor thought it was connected to a dispute over company insurance.
He refused because the request seemed suspicious.
Adrian became angry.
Then told him to forget the conversation.
Victor had done exactly that.
Until he heard the investigation had been reopened.
Luca asked why he'd remained silent.
Victor looked ashamed.
“Because Adrian was your friend.”
He paused.
“And because I didn't want to get involved.”
Luca stared at him.
“Matthew was my brother-in-law.”
“I know.”
“Olivia lost her husband.”
Victor lowered his head.
“I know.”
The silence that followed was painful.
Then Victor handed over the notebook.
He said he'd written down the date of Adrian's request because he thought it might become relevant to an insurance dispute.
Investigators collected the notebook and began checking his account.
When Luca returned home, he looked exhausted.
I found him standing in the garden.
He was staring at a photograph of Matthew and Olivia displayed on his phone.
“Mr. Moretti?”
He turned.
“Claire.”
“Is everything okay?”
He gave a humorless smile.
“I'm beginning to wonder whether anything in my life was what I thought it was.”
I didn't answer.
He looked toward the house.
“Adrian was my friend.”
“I trusted him with business.”
“With money.”
“With my family.”
His jaw tightened.
“And if he hurt Matthew, he used that trust against us.”
I looked at him.
“Trusting somebody doesn't mean you approve of what they do behind your back.”
He nodded slowly.
“But I should have noticed.”
“Maybe.”
He looked surprised.
I continued.
“But what matters now is whether you keep looking.”
For several seconds, he studied me.
Then he gave a faint smile.
“You sound like your mother.”
I laughed softly.
“She'd probably say the same thing.”
Luca looked toward the nursery windows.
“Olivia used to be fearless.”
“She'd argue with anyone.”
“She once walked into my office and told a room full of men twice her age that they were being ridiculous.”
I smiled.
“That sounds like her.”
“She was eighteen.”
He gave a sad laugh.
“And nobody dared interrupt her.”
His smile faded.
“Now she apologizes for needing a chair.”
I looked down.
“She's been made to feel that her needs are inconvenient.”
He nodded.
“And I let it happen.”
I didn't argue.
Because sometimes regret needed to be heard rather than immediately soothed.
Then Luca looked at me.
“Do you think she can be herself again?”
I thought about Olivia smiling when Emma made a funny little noise.
About the courage it took for her to speak during the police interview.
About the way she'd offered my mother shelter.
“Yes,” I said.
“But she may not become exactly the person she was before.”
He frowned.
“What do you mean?”
“Losing Matthew changed her.”
I looked toward the house.
“That doesn't mean she's lost forever.”
He nodded slowly.
Then his phone rang.
Detective Sullivan.
He answered.
I watched his expression change.
“What?”
He listened.
Then straightened.
“Where?”
A pause.
“Is he in custody?”
His face hardened.
“I'm coming.”
He ended the call.
“What happened?” I asked.
“Adrian's been found.”
My heart jumped.
“Where?”
“At his attorney's office.”
“Did he surrender?”
“Not exactly.”
Luca looked toward the driveway.
“He's claiming Vanessa acted without his knowledge.”
I stared at him.
“But the recording—”
“He says it's being misinterpreted.”
My stomach tightened.
“And the documents?”
“He says Matthew agreed to the transfer.”
I shook my head.
“Olivia didn't sign those papers.”
“I know.”
Luca's voice became quiet.
“But Adrian has hired attorneys who intend to challenge every piece of evidence.”
He looked toward the mansion.
“And Vanessa is doing the same.”
That afternoon, Vanessa issued a statement through her lawyer.
She denied pressuring Olivia to surrender her inheritance.
She denied arranging fraudulent transfers.
And she insisted that the family's disagreements had been exaggerated by emotional misunderstandings.
When Olivia read the statement, she began shaking.
“She called me emotional.”
I sat beside her.
“She wants people to think I'm confused.”
I took her hand.
“Then we'll keep telling the truth.”
She looked at me.
“What if nobody believes me?”
My heart tightened.
I remembered the engagement dinner.
The thirty guests.
The wet dress.
The cardigan.
And how close Olivia had come to believing that she was the problem.
I leaned closer.
“Then they can look at the documents.”
She smiled through tears.
“Matthew always said that.”
“What?”
“That the truth doesn't stop being true just because somebody powerful dislikes it.”
I squeezed her hand.
Then Emma stirred.
Olivia lifted her daughter and kissed her forehead.
For the first time, I saw determination replace the fear in her eyes.
She looked toward Luca.
“I want to make a statement.”
He nodded.
“Whenever you're ready.”
“No.”
She straightened.
“I'm ready now.”
And when Detective Sullivan arrived, Olivia told her everything.
Every threat.
Every lie.
Every document Vanessa pressured her to sign.
Every time she'd been made to feel incapable of caring for Emma.
She didn't hide her tears.
She didn't apologize for crying.
And when the detective asked whether she wanted a break, Olivia shook her head.
“I want my daughter to know I didn't give up.”
That evening, another witness came forward.
A mechanic who had worked at the garage used by Adrian's company.
His account gave investigators a new lead concerning unauthorized work on Matthew's vehicle.
But the most disturbing part came at the end.
The mechanic said someone had instructed him to erase the work order.
Detective Sullivan asked who gave that instruction.
He hesitated.
Then named the person.
Vanessa Bellini.
But before investigators could question her about it, Vanessa disappeared from the location she'd provided to her attorney.
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And a message arrived on Luca's phone.
“You have no idea what your sister is about to lose.”
