Chapter 3
Dante sent Sophia into the breakfast room with crayons.
Then he faced Elena.
“Why did she say ‘dead daddy’?”
Elena gripped the counter.
“Before I worked here, I cleaned offices downtown. One belonged to Marco.”
Dante went still.
“You knew my brother?”
“He came in late. We talked. After he died, men came asking about a folder.”
“What folder?”
“One I found in a locked cabinet.”
She crossed to the pantry and pulled a plastic envelope from behind a flour tin.
Inside was a faded photocopy showing shell companies and account numbers.
Across the top, in Marco’s handwriting:
IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO ME, FOLLOW THE BELLO ACCOUNT.
Dante read it twice.
“Bello Holdings?”
Elena nodded.
Vanessa’s father sat on Bello’s board.
“When did Marco write this?”
“Three weeks before he died.”
Dante’s phone rang.
Rocco.
“We found a file Vanessa asked accounting to prepare last month.”
“What kind?”
“A transfer of Marco’s dormant shares. It becomes effective after your wedding.”
Dante’s jaw tightened.
“Transferred to whom?”
“Into a trust controlled by you and Vanessa.”
“That’s not unusual.”
“There’s a clause. If you’re temporarily incapacitated, she controls it alone.”
Dante’s voice dropped.
“How much are Marco’s shares worth?”
“About thirty-eight million.”
Elena covered her mouth.
Rocco continued.
“The document is already stamped with the Moretti seal.”
Dante looked through the glass door at Sophia’s purple drawing.
A child had noticed what every adult in the house missed.
He said, “Find every document Vanessa touched.”
Then he turned back to Elena.
“Marco left more than that photocopy, didn’t he?”
Elena hesitated.
That hesitation answered him.
“What else?”
She looked toward Sophia.
“A toy.”
“The cat?”
Elena nodded.
“Marco owned it before Sophia did.”
May you like
Dante stared at the worn stuffed animal.
And suddenly the missing ear did not look accidental.
