Chapter 7 - The Uncle Who Smiled at Funerals
Z
Salvatore arrived at the mansion that evening carrying flowers for Mia.
He was sixty-two, silver-haired, elegantly dressed, and famous for remembering every employee's name. He hugged Dominic, kissed Mia on the forehead, and greeted Chloe as though she were an old friend.
“So you're the young woman who has brought some happiness back into this house.”
Chloe felt an instinctive chill.
“I spend time with Mia.”
“And I hear you're very good at it.”
His smile was warm.
His eyes were not.
Dominic offered him coffee in the study.
Rachel had advised them not to reveal what they had found. The evidence needed to be verified and secured before any confrontation.
Salvatore sat in a leather chair and admired the room.
“Isabella's things are still everywhere,” he observed. “You should let the past rest, Dominic.”
“Some parts of the past aren't finished.”
Salvatore's smile faded for an instant.
Then he turned toward Chloe.
“Your mother worked for Isabella, didn't she?”
“Yes.”
“A loyal woman. She became very troubled toward the end.”
Chloe stiffened.
“What do you mean?”
“Oh, nothing specific. She was worried about family matters. She wanted to protect people who couldn't protect themselves.”
He set his cup down.
“Sometimes, Miss Bennett, people who involve themselves in dangerous matters end up hurting their own families.”
Dominic rose.
“That will be enough.”
Salvatore lifted both hands.
“I'm merely expressing concern.”
“Then express it somewhere else.”
The older man stood, smoothing his jacket.
“Of course. Family first.”
He paused beside Dominic.
“Especially when a child is involved.”
After he left, Dominic ordered his security team to strengthen the mansion's protections.
Chloe looked at him.
“Don't do anything reckless because of me.”
“I'm not.”
“Then why do you look like you're preparing for a war?”
“Because my uncle has spent years preparing one.”
Rachel advised them to turn the evidence over to investigators specializing in financial crimes. Dominic agreed, although he knew the decision could expose parts of his own organization.
For the first time, he was prepared to accept that consequence.
That night, Mia woke from a nightmare.
Chloe was staying in the guest room after a late session, and she heard the child moving through the hallway.
Mia appeared at the door, clutching a stuffed rabbit.
Chloe sat up and signed:
Bad dream?
Mia nodded.
She pointed toward the main bedroom, then signed:
Papa gone.
Chloe understood the fear.
Dominic had been called away to a meeting. Mia worried that everyone she loved would disappear without warning.
Chloe helped her write a note.
Papa will come home. You can call him. If plans change, he will tell you.
Mia studied the words.
Then she added a sentence of her own.
Don't leave without saying goodbye.
Chloe promised she would never do that.
The next morning, Dominic found the note beside his coffee.
He read it, folded it carefully, and placed it in his wallet.
Then he called his daughter into the kitchen and signed, slowly and imperfectly:
I am here.
Mia watched him.
She corrected the position of his fingers.
He tried again.
This time, she smiled.
Across the room, Chloe felt a quiet happiness she had not expected.
She also noticed a black sedan parked beyond the gates.
It had been there when she arrived.
May you like
It was still there when she left.
And the driver was watching the house.
