Chapter 9 - The Night the Mansion Went Dark|
I told Luca everything.
I told him about Vanessa's envelope, the money she offered, and the threat involving my previous employment.
He listened without interrupting.
When I finished, he examined the photograph again.
"Did you take the envelope?"
"No."
"Did you touch it?"
"She pushed it toward me, and I stepped away."
He enlarged the image.
It had been taken from an angle that made the envelope appear to be passing into my hands.
I could see why someone might believe it.
"Do you trust me?" I asked.
Luca looked up.
"I want to."
The answer hurt more than I expected.
"But?"
"But I've spent years trusting people who lied to me."
I stared at him.
"That doesn't mean everyone is lying."
"I know."
"Then you need to decide whether you're going to punish me for what Vanessa did."
He looked away.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then he placed his phone on the table.
"You're right."
"I'm sorry."
I hadn't expected the apology.
He continued.
"I've already asked Simon to preserve the courtyard footage."
"If she staged that photograph, we'll establish what actually happened."
I nodded.
Then I said something I had been holding back.
"Luca, your mother doesn't need a man who frightens everyone into obeying him."
"She needs a son who listens when someone tells him something is wrong."
He looked at me for a long time.
"I know."
That evening, Teresa insisted on eating dinner in the family dining room.
It was the first time she had asked to leave her bedroom since the engagement party.
Rosa brought her favorite chicken soup and a small slice of lemon cake.
Luca sat beside her.
For nearly an hour, they talked about ordinary things.
Teresa told stories about Luca's childhood, including an incident involving a stolen birthday cake and a very guilty golden retriever.
I laughed harder than I had in days.
Even Luca smiled.
For a brief moment, the mansion felt like a home.
Then, at 9:17 p.m., every light went out.
The room plunged into darkness.
Teresa gasped.
A second later, an emergency alarm sounded somewhere below us.
Luca stood.
"Stay here."
I reached for Teresa's hand.
"You're safe."
But I wasn't sure that was true.
Through the window, I saw lights still shining in neighboring buildings.
The outage appeared to affect only the estate.
Footsteps thundered through the hallway.
Then Rosa entered carrying a flashlight.
"The main electrical panel has been shut down."
Luca's voice sharpened.
"Who authorized it?"
"Nobody."
I looked toward the dark corridor.
Something felt terribly wrong.
"Where's Vanessa?"
Rosa hesitated.
"She left the property an hour ago."
I remembered the documents hidden in Antonio Moretti's library safe.
"Has anyone checked the library?"
Luca turned toward me.
Then we both heard a metallic crash from downstairs.
He moved toward the sound.
I stayed beside Teresa while Rosa called the security team.
Several minutes passed.
Then Teresa squeezed my hand.
"Hannah, my jewelry box."
"What about it?"
"The ring wasn't the only thing missing."
I leaned closer.
"What else?"
"A small brass key."
"To what?"
"My husband's document cabinet."
I felt my stomach sink.
"Where is the cabinet?"
"In the library."
I looked toward the hallway.
Luca had gone downstairs.
The alarm continued ringing.
Something moved beyond the open doorway.
I saw the beam of a flashlight sweep across the wall.
Then a man's voice whispered.
"Check the north bedroom."
I froze.
There were at least two people in the residential wing.
"Rosa," I whispered, "lock the door."
She moved immediately.
I helped Teresa into her wheelchair and guided her toward the attached sitting room.
The wheelchair caught on the thick carpet.
For one horrifying moment, the wheels refused to turn.
I remembered that staircase.
I remembered how helpless Teresa had felt when the elevator was disabled.
Not again.
I pulled the carpet aside, released the chair, and pushed her through the doorway.
Rosa locked the sitting-room door behind us.
Footsteps approached.
Someone tried the bedroom handle.
Then came a sharp, irritated voice.
"She's not here."
I recognized it.
Peter Whitcomb.
Luca's chief financial officer.
I covered my mouth.
Another man answered.
"Find the cabinet key."
The voices moved away.
I called Luca.
He answered immediately.
"Hannah?"
"Peter is upstairs."
"Peter Whitcomb?"
"Yes."
"He's looking for Teresa's cabinet key."
There was a pause.
Then Luca said, "Stay where you are."
A minute later, the lights returned.
The alarm stopped.
I heard hurried footsteps in the hallway.
Then Luca's voice rang out.
"Peter!"
A door slammed.
I opened the sitting-room door just enough to see Luca and two security officers running toward the east staircase.
At the far end of the hall, Peter disappeared around a corner.
When Luca returned twenty minutes later, his face was grim.
Peter had escaped through a service exit.
But he hadn't escaped empty-handed.
The old document cabinet in Antonio's library had been forced open.
A collection of correspondence, original financial records, and family trust papers was missing.
Luca stared at the damaged cabinet.
"He knew exactly what he wanted."
I looked at the broken lock.
"Then Vanessa knew those documents were here."
"Yes."
He examined the remaining shelves.
"Someone planned the blackout to give him time to steal them."
I remembered the alarm, the footsteps, and Teresa's frightened expression.
"Do you think they'll come back?"
Luca looked at me.
"Not if I can prevent it."
Then his phone rang.
Simon was calling from the security office.
He sounded almost breathless.
"Boss, the courtyard cameras captured Peter leaving."
"Did you get his vehicle?"
"Yes."
"And something else."
"What?"
"Before the blackout, he met Vanessa outside the west gate."
I moved closer.
Simon continued.
"She handed him a key and a folder."
Luca's expression hardened.
"Can you identify the folder?"
"There's writing on the cover."
"What does it say?"
Simon took a breath.
TERESA MORETTI — EMERGENCY CAPACITY PETITION.
I looked at Luca.
Vanessa wasn't merely trying to steal the family trust's money.
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She was preparing to use the legal system to take away Teresa's right to make decisions for herself.
And the documents she needed were now in the hands of a man who had disappeared into the Chicago night.
