Chapter 7 - THE SIGNATURE THAT COULD DESTROY HIM
“Gilbert is going to make the world believe I ordered the door closed on my own wife.”
Dominic stared at the authorization.
His name.
His corporate credentials.
His electronic approval.
Everything appeared legitimate.
Claire stood beside him.
“But you didn't sign it.”
“No.”
“Then we prove that.”
Evelyn Shaw studied the document.
“The authorization was issued through a corporate credential. That doesn't prove who physically used it.”
Dominic looked toward Daniel.
“Find out who had access.”
Daniel opened his laptop.
Only three people had been authorized to use the Moretti investment group's executive security account six years earlier.
Dominic.
His assistant at the time.
And Matteo.
Dominic closed his eyes.
“Of course.”
The following morning, Matteo returned voluntarily to give Evelyn and a police investigator a detailed statement.
He looked as though he hadn't slept.
When Dominic showed him the authorization, Matteo didn't pretend to be surprised.
“I used your credentials.”
Claire felt her stomach drop.
Dominic stood.
“You what?”
“Gilbert said the Sinclair Grand needed a partner authorization for a temporary security change.”
“Why use my account?”
“Because yours had the necessary privileges.”
“You could have asked me.”
“You were out of town. And Gilbert said it had to be completed before the gala.”
Dominic stared at him.
“So you used my identity without permission.”
“Yes.”
“And then you helped secure the door.”
Matteo nodded.
Dominic looked away.
He had spent years giving his younger brother responsibility because he wanted him to feel respected.
Now those same privileges threatened to make Dominic look responsible for Isabella's death.
Matteo's voice shook.
“I'll tell the police everything.”
“You will,” Dominic said. “And whatever it costs you, you're going to tell the truth.”
By noon, the Sinclair family's public-relations office had released a statement.
It claimed newly discovered records suggested Dominic Moretti's own business organization had authorized the hotel's safety procedures.
The statement didn't openly accuse him of murder.
It didn't have to.
Within hours, news outlets were asking whether the powerful businessman had concealed his involvement in the fire that killed his wife.
Dominic's corporate board requested an emergency meeting.
Two charity organizations suspended his participation pending review.
And Sophie's school called.
A classmate had shown her a photograph of her father beneath a headline about the hotel fire.
Sophie had cried in the restroom.
When Dominic arrived to collect her, she refused to look at him.
He knelt beside her in the school hallway.
“Sweetheart, what's wrong?”
She stared at her shoes.
“Did you hurt Mommy?”
Dominic felt as though the floor had disappeared beneath him.
“No.”
“Then why are people saying you did?”
“Because somebody used my name to hide what they did.”
Sophie looked up.
“Can they prove you're telling the truth?”
Dominic took her hands.
“We're working on it.”
She began crying.
“I don't want to lose you, too.”
He pulled her close.
“You aren't losing me because somebody tells a lie.”
For the first time in years, Dominic understood how much damage a public accusation could do before anyone examined the evidence.
Claire had lived with that damage for six years.
When they returned home, she was waiting in the kitchen.
Mia and Elena had baked oatmeal cookies.
One plate sat beside Sophie's favorite mug.
Mia ran toward her friend.
“I saved you the big one.”
Sophie managed a small smile.
“Thanks.”
The girls disappeared into the family room.
Dominic watched them go.
Claire stood beside him.
“She asked Mia whether her daddy was a bad person,” Claire said softly.
He lowered his head.
“What did Mia say?”
“She said bad people don't make sure everybody gets dinner.”
Dominic gave a small, broken laugh.
“That's a pretty generous definition.”
“She's seven.”
Claire paused.
“She also said her mommy told her not to believe everything people say about somebody.”
Dominic looked at her.
“Thank you.”
“Don't thank me. Just keep telling Sophie the truth.”
He nodded.
That evening, Evelyn returned with a breakthrough.
The insurance records included the time and account used to approve the lockdown.
Daniel had also located Dominic's original Milwaukee meeting schedule.
At 9:58 p.m., he had been participating in a recorded business conference.
But Evelyn cautioned that the meeting alone didn't prove he couldn't have approved something electronically.
Matteo's admission was essential.
So was independent evidence showing who directed the operation.
Then Marcus brought Vanessa Sinclair into the library.
She had requested the meeting through Evelyn.
She arrived without makeup, expensive jewelry, or her usual practiced smile.
Dominic remained standing.
“What do you want?”
Vanessa looked toward Claire.
“To tell you what happened.”
Claire folded her arms.
“You've had six years.”
“I know.”
Vanessa sat slowly.
“My father told me there was an electrical hazard on the twelfth floor. He said the west stairwell needed a temporary security lockdown while maintenance checked the system.”
“You signed it,” Evelyn said.
“Yes.”
“Did you know Isabella was upstairs?”
Vanessa hesitated.
“I knew she was staying on that floor.”
Dominic's expression darkened.
“And Sophie?”
“Yes.”
Claire shook her head.
“Then you knew children could be trapped.”
Vanessa began crying.
“I thought security would move everyone first.”
“What changed?” Evelyn asked.
Vanessa looked toward the old photograph of Isabella on Dominic's desk.
“At 10:15, I heard somebody shouting that the west stairwell wouldn't open.”
Claire stared at her.
“That was me.”
Vanessa nodded.
“I called security and demanded they release it.”
Evelyn looked at the access log.
“That explains the denied cancellation.”
“My father told Voss not to accept it.”
“Why didn't you call the fire department?” Claire demanded.
Vanessa's eyes dropped.
“Because I was afraid of my father. And afterward, when Isabella died, he told me the authorization had my signature. He said I'd be responsible for everything.”
Claire's voice hardened.
“So you protected yourself by threatening my daughter.”
Vanessa looked at her.
“Yes.”
Nobody spoke.
Vanessa wiped her face.
“I can't undo that. But I'm prepared to give investigators every message and instruction I still have.”
Dominic studied her.
“Why now?”
“Because I saw what happened to Sophie at school. My father is doing the same thing to her that he did six years ago.”
Claire's expression didn't soften.
“You should have thought about that before telling her she'd lose her father.”
“I know.”
Vanessa turned toward Evelyn.
“I want to make a formal statement.”
That decision changed the investigation.
For the first time, three people connected to the original security operation were willing to provide firsthand accounts.
Matteo.
Vanessa.
And Claire.
But Evelyn still needed the person who had physically supervised the lockdown.
Leonard Voss.
She had already located him through records connected to a workplace injury claim.
He had retained counsel and agreed to an interview with investigators the following morning.
When Voss entered the interview room, Claire recognized him immediately from Isabella's video.
He was older.
His hair had gone gray.
But the scar beside his left ear was unmistakable.
He sat across from Evelyn and a police detective.
A recorder was placed on the table.
Voss looked at Dominic.
“I've spent six years telling myself I was following orders.”
Dominic said nothing.
Voss lowered his head.
“Your wife knew the truth about the charity money. Gilbert wanted her stopped before she could take the records to an outside auditor.”
Evelyn leaned forward.
“Did Gilbert know Isabella was trapped near the west stairwell?”
Voss nodded.
“Yes.”
“Did you tell him?”
“Yes.”
“What did he order?”
Voss pressed his palms together.
“He told me to keep the emergency release disabled.”
Dominic gripped the edge of the table.
“When?”
Voss looked straight at him.
“After Claire had already escaped with your daughter.”
The room went silent.
Voss's voice broke.
“Isabella was still alive. I heard her calling through the door.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
“And Gilbert knew?”
Voss nodded.
May you like
Then he said the words Dominic would never forget.
“Your wife could still have been rescued. Gilbert Sinclair ordered us to leave her there.”
