Chapter 5 - The Caregiver Who Refused to Lie|
The black SUV was gone when I reached the mansion, but I couldn't forget the feeling of being watched.
I spent the rest of the evening wondering whether Nora Sullivan had placed herself in danger by speaking to me.
At breakfast, Luca found me in the small dining room.
He was holding two cups of coffee.
"You look like you haven't slept."
"I haven't."
He placed one cup in front of me.
"Neither have I."
For a moment, we sat in silence.
Then I told him about Nora's call.
I expected anger when I admitted that I had contacted his mother's former caregiver without permission.
Instead, Luca listened without interrupting.
When I mentioned Harbor House, his entire expression changed.
"My mother would never sell that property."
"Are you certain?"
"She helped establish the community programs there after my father died."
He looked down at his coffee.
"She considers it the most important thing she's ever done."
I told him about the recording.
Then I described the black SUV.
Luca's face hardened.
"You're not going to that meeting alone."
"Nora might disappear if she sees security officers."
"Then I'll stay outside."
I considered arguing.
But the truth was that I was frightened.
"All right."
The diner was on Chicago's Northwest Side, squeezed between a laundromat and a pharmacy.
Nothing about it suggested that a multimillion-dollar conspiracy was about to be discussed over scrambled eggs.
Luca parked across the street and remained in his car.
I entered alone.
Nora Sullivan sat in the last booth.
She was around sixty, with short gray hair and the tired eyes of someone who had spent years caring for other people.
When she saw me, she immediately looked toward the door.
"Did you come alone?"
"There's someone outside who can help us."
Her expression tightened.
"Who?"
"Luca."
She nearly stood up.
"Hannah, you don't understand."
"Vanessa has spent months convincing him that his mother is losing her mind."
"Why should he believe me?"
"Because he saw what happened on the staircase."
I sat opposite her.
"And because he's finally asking questions."
Nora studied me.
Then she reached into her handbag.
She removed a small digital recorder and a brown envelope.
"I kept these because I knew somebody would eventually need them."
She pressed play.
Vanessa's voice filled the space between us.
"Teresa, this is becoming exhausting."
An older voice answered.
"I told you I won't sign away Harbor House."
"You're making a financial decision you don't understand."
"I understand perfectly."
There was a pause.
Then Vanessa spoke again.
"If Luca believes you're no longer capable of handling your affairs, the trustees will have to reconsider your position."
Teresa's voice trembled.
"Are you threatening me?"
"I'm explaining what happens when elderly people refuse to accept their limitations."
The recording ended.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
I had heard cruel words before, but there was something particularly disturbing about hearing Vanessa use Teresa's age as a weapon.
"Is that the only recording?" I asked.
Nora shook her head.
"There are two more."
"One includes a man named Gideon Vale."
"He's Vanessa's attorney."
I remembered Rosa mentioning an attorney who had been asking questions about me.
Nora opened the envelope.
Inside were photographs of documents, copies of appointment cancellations, and notes she had written during her final weeks at the mansion.
"Vanessa kept bringing papers for Teresa to sign."
"Sometimes she said they were insurance forms."
"Other times she claimed they concerned the wedding."
Nora pointed to one photograph.
"This was labeled a trustee resignation."
I studied the page.
Teresa's name appeared at the bottom, but the signature looked strangely stiff.
"Did Teresa sign this?"
"No."
"I watched her refuse."
Nora's hands began trembling.
"The next day, Vanessa showed me a signed version."
"She said Teresa had changed her mind."
I looked through the remaining pages.
One document mentioned a company called Lakefront Meridian Development.
Another referred to an exclusive purchase option for the Harbor House property.
The amounts were enormous.
Forty-eight million dollars.
I stared at the number.
"Why would anyone pay that much?"
"Because the waterfront district is being redeveloped."
Nora leaned forward.
"Harbor House sits on land developers have wanted for years."
"And Vanessa's family has been trying to get it."
Suddenly, a shadow crossed our table.
A man stood beside the booth.
Marco Bellini.
Nora went completely still.
"Hannah," Marco said, "you need to come with me."
I didn't move.
"Why?"
"Because this conversation is dangerous."
Nora clutched the recorder.
"I knew she'd send someone."
Marco looked at her.
"I'm not here to hurt you."
"Then leave us alone," I said.
He glanced toward the diner window.
Across the street, Luca had already stepped out of his car.
Marco saw him.
For the first time, his expression showed genuine fear.
"Vanessa told me to follow you," he admitted quietly.
"She wanted to know who you were meeting."
Luca entered the diner seconds later.
"Then you've found out," he said.
Marco turned.
"Boss, I can explain."
"Start with why you're following my employee."
Marco looked at the recorder on the table.
Then he looked at Nora.
"You don't know how far this has gone."
Luca stepped closer.
"Then tell me."
Marco swallowed.
"Vanessa has copies of documents with your signature and your mother's."
"She's planning to use them this week."
"For what?"
Marco looked directly at Luca.
"To convince the trust's bank that your mother has resigned."
"Once that happens, the property transfer moves forward."
Luca's jaw tightened.
"Who prepared the papers?"
Marco hesitated.
Then he said the name we had already heard.
"Gideon Vale."
Luca took the brown envelope from Nora and examined the documents.
He looked at his mother's forged signature.
Then he looked at Marco.
"You're going to tell me everything."
Marco shook his head.
"Not here."
"Why not?"
His voice dropped almost to a whisper.
"Because Vanessa isn't the person approving the payments."
I felt my stomach tighten.
"Then who is?"
Marco looked toward the window.
May you like
"Someone with access to your company accounts."
And for the first time, I understood that Vanessa's cruelty might be only one part of a conspiracy reaching far beyond the mansion.
