“At Their Mother’s Funeral, Their Father Saw One Word On A Suitcase Tag—And Realized Her Death Was No Accident”

Luca did not run.

That was the only reason Giovanni did not have the guards restrain him immediately.

"Explain the watch."

Luca removed it and placed it on the table.

"Elena gave it to me."

Giovanni stared at him.

"That watch was mine."

"Exactly."

Luca revealed that Elena had borrowed Giovanni's old watch and asked Luca to wear it on the island so anyone monitoring hotel cameras would think Giovanni had followed her.

It was a decoy.

"Why would she need a decoy?"

"Because she believed the killer only moved when you were absent."

Giovanni felt a chill.

Luca then admitted the cruelest part.

He had known Elena was investigating Marco and had helped her secretly because she feared Giovanni would respond with force and destroy the evidence.

Giovanni grabbed Luca by the collar.

"You let my wife walk into danger without me."

"She begged me not to tell you."

Emilio stepped between them.

For the first time, Giovanni saw his son's fear of him clearly.

That realization hurt.

Before anyone could speak again, Rafael received a secure call from Cayo Lucero.

He listened for ten seconds and turned pale.

"Marco has been taken."

"By who?"

Rafael looked at Giovanni.

"The same group Elena was trying to expose."

Then he added, "They left a message."

Luca admitted Elena had wanted Giovanni to believe he was being excluded because she knew anger would keep him away from the island longer than fear would.

The manipulation infuriated Giovanni, but he recognized Elena's logic immediately.

She knew him well enough to predict his worst instincts.

That made her absence feel suddenly present in every decision they made.