Chapter 6 - THE MARRIAGE NOBODY WAS SUPPOSED TO FIND
“Married?”
I stared at my father through the open car window.
“Sophia was married before Vincent?”
He nodded.
“To Adrian Reynolds.”
I felt anger rise through my exhaustion.
“Then why didn't anyone tell me?”
“Because we didn't know until after Lucas was born.”
Madison leaned forward.
“Are you saying Sophia was legally married to someone else when she started her relationship with Vincent?”
My father hesitated.
“I don't know when the marriage ended.”
“Then how did Carlo find out?”
My father looked at the pocket watch.
“He was investigating Adrian.”
I turned the watch over.
The gold case opened with a soft click.
Inside was a faded photograph of a younger Carlo standing beside a woman I didn't recognize.
A handwritten inscription read:
For the promises we couldn't keep.
It seemed oddly sentimental for a man who had treated his family like property.
But Madison was focused on the folded list.
“These aren't ordinary family payments.”
She pointed to the largest entry.
“Eight hundred thousand dollars transferred five months before Lucas was born.”
Another payment followed shortly afterward.
Then another.
All marked with Adrian's initials.
“What was Carlo paying him for?” I asked.
My father rubbed his hands together.
“I don't know.”
I didn't believe he was telling me everything.
But I no longer had the patience to force another confession.
Madison placed the box in her bag.
“We're leaving.”
Back at Vincent's office, Daniel Russo confirmed the payments.
Adrian Reynolds had been receiving money through a consulting company that had no legitimate relationship with the Moretti businesses.
Vincent studied the records.
“Where is he now?”
Daniel hesitated.
“Milwaukee, last I heard.”
“Alive?”
“Yes.”
Vincent looked toward me.
“Then we ask him.”
I crossed my arms.
“Not with your usual methods.”
He nodded.
“I'll contact him through counsel.”
The Vincent I once knew would have considered that weakness.
This Vincent looked almost relieved to be given a rule he could follow.
We arranged a meeting at a neutral office the following afternoon.
Adrian arrived alone.
He was tall, broad-shouldered, with graying hair and tired blue eyes.
He wore a plain brown jacket and carried no briefcase.
When he saw Vincent, he stopped.
“I wondered when you'd find me.”
Vincent remained seated.
“Then you know why we're here.”
Adrian looked at me.
“You must be Claire.”
I didn't offer my hand.
“Tell us about Sophia.”
He sighed.
“We were married young. Too young. We thought love would fix everything.”
“What happened?” Madison asked.
“Money happened. Ambition happened. Sophia wanted a different life.”
He looked at Vincent.
“And she thought you could give it to her.”
Vincent's jaw tightened.
“Were you married when Lucas was conceived?”
Adrian hesitated.
“Our divorce wasn't final until that spring.”
Vincent leaned forward.
“And were you still together?”
“No.”
“Did you know she was pregnant?”
“Yes.”
My pulse quickened.
“Did she tell you the child was yours?”
Adrian shook his head.
“She said Vincent was the father.”
“Did you believe her?” Vincent asked.
Adrian looked down.
“I had reasons to wonder.”
The room fell silent.
Vincent's voice remained controlled.
“What reasons?”
“Sophia and I separated, but we had one night together afterward. She came to my apartment upset about something.”
“When?”
Adrian named a date.
Vincent looked at Daniel.
Daniel checked an old calendar.
I saw Vincent's expression change.
Sophia had told him she was visiting her sick aunt that weekend.
I remembered the lie because she'd borrowed one of my coats before leaving.
A pale blue wool coat I'd never seen again.
“Did Carlo know?” I asked.
Adrian nodded.
“He found out.”
“And paid you to stay quiet?”
Adrian's face reddened.
“He paid me to leave Chicago.”
“Why accept the money?” Vincent demanded.
“Because your father threatened my business and my brother's family. I wasn't brave enough to stand against him.”
Vincent looked away.
I understood the expression.
He was beginning to realize how many people had feared Carlo Moretti.
And how often he'd mistaken that fear for loyalty.
Adrian continued.
“Carlo told me Lucas belonged with the Morettis, regardless of biology. He said the family needed a male successor.”
I frowned.
“But Emily was the rightful trust beneficiary.”
Adrian nodded.
“That's why he wanted her brought back.”
Vincent stood.
“Did Sophia know my father was planning to take Emily?”
“Yes.”
My hands went cold.
“Did she help him?”
Adrian shook his head.
“No. She was terrified of what he'd do once he had the girl.”
That surprised me.
“Terrified?”
Adrian looked directly at me.
“Carlo didn't just want Emily's inheritance. He wanted control over her life.”
I thought of the forged instability claims.
The photographs.
The attempted guardianship.
“What did Sophia do?” I asked.
“She tried to convince Carlo that the baby had died.”
Vincent stared at him.
“So she lied to both of us.”
Adrian nodded.
“She thought that would end it.”
“But it didn't,” I said.
“No.”
Adrian's expression darkened.
“Carlo discovered Claire had left Chicago with Emily. After that, he began making plans to find them.”
I looked at Vincent.
“And Sophia?”
“She was trapped,” Adrian answered. “If Carlo exposed our marriage, Vincent might have questioned Lucas's place in the family. If he discovered Emily was alive, he'd pursue her.”
Vincent sat heavily.
For seven years, he'd trusted Sophia.
Now the truth was more complicated than either of us wanted.
She had betrayed me.
But she might also have prevented something worse.
“What happened after Carlo died?” Madison asked.
Adrian's expression tightened.
“Someone continued his work.”
“Who?”
“I never found out.”
He reached into his jacket and removed a photograph.
It showed Carlo standing beside a younger man.
The man wore a charcoal suit and smiled directly at the camera.
I recognized him.
Vincent's security chief.
Marcus Vale.
My stomach dropped.
“Marcus has worked for your family for twenty years,” I told Vincent.
He stared at the picture.
“He was my father's personal driver before he became head of security.”
Adrian nodded.
“He also managed Carlo's private assignments.”
Vincent stood abruptly.
“Where is Marcus now?”
Daniel checked his phone.
“At the hotel.”
My blood turned cold.
The hotel where Emily was staying.
Vincent reached for his phone.
But I was already moving.
I didn't need an explanation.
I needed my daughter.
We rushed downstairs and into the waiting car.
Madison contacted the hotel and asked staff to verify Emily's location without alarming her.
For several terrible minutes, we waited.
Then Madison's screen lit up with a message from the hotel manager.
Emily was safe.
She was sitting with a female security officer in the private family lounge.
I exhaled shakily.
But the next message changed everything.
Marcus Vale had entered the hotel carrying a sealed envelope addressed to Emily.
The staff had refused to deliver it.
When Vincent called and ordered the envelope preserved, Marcus reportedly left without protest.
Madison turned toward us.
“The manager photographed the front.”
She showed me her screen.
The envelope bore Carlo Moretti's old personal seal.
And beneath Emily's name was a sentence written in thick black ink.
SHE TURNS EIGHT NEXT YEAR. THE TRUST TRANSFERS THEN.
Vincent stared at it.
Then Daniel whispered, “That's impossible.”
I looked at him.
“Why?”
He swallowed.
“Because under the original trust, Emily doesn't inherit at eighteen.”
May you like
He looked directly at me.
“She inherits control at eight.”
