Chapter 11 - THE FATHER WHO WAS STILL ALIVE
The investigation into Lucia's disappearance continued.
And it uncovered one final secret.
Daniel Bell had not been killed.
He had been imprisoned for years after being falsely implicated in financial crimes connected to Romano family businesses.
After his release, he changed his name and disappeared from public life.
He believed Lucia had died.
Sophia stared at the documents.
“My father is alive?”
The investigator nodded.
“He lives in Maine.”
Sophia couldn't speak.
Daniel Bell was fifty-five.
He lived in a small house near the coast.
He repaired pianos.
When Sophia and Grace arrived, he opened the door slowly.
He looked at them.
His face changed.
“Lucia?”
Sophia began crying.
“No.”
She stepped forward.
“I'm Sophia.”
Grace stood beside her.
“And I'm Grace.”
Daniel stared.
Then covered his face.
For twenty-eight years, he'd believed his family was gone.
Now his daughters stood on his doorstep.
Alive.
Together.
He began sobbing.
Sophia embraced him.
May you like
Grace followed.
And for the first time, the family Lucia had tried to protect was no longer scattered across the country.
