Chapter 9 - THE SECRET CARLO TOOK TO HIS GRAVE
My father had not been innocent.
That was the truth I had spent my entire life avoiding.
Carlo Duca had built his fortune through shipping.
But some of his early businesses had been tied to organized crime.
I knew that.
I had inherited parts of the network.
I had spent years trying to separate legitimate operations from the criminal ones.
But I had never asked what my father had done before I was old enough to understand.
Now I had to.
Daniel Reeves uncovered old transactions.
Payments to intermediaries.
Questionable property acquisitions.
And records of intimidation.
Some dated back twenty years.
I stared at them.
My father had built wealth on other people's losses.
The discovery made me sick.
I went to Isabella.
She sat beside the window.
Dr. Hart's team had begun adjusting her care.
She was more alert now.
But speaking remained difficult.
I knelt beside her.
"Mom."
She looked at me.
"Was Dad trying to change?"
Her eyes filled.
One tap.
Yes.
I swallowed.
"Was he going to confess?"
Another tap.
Yes.
I stared.
"Did Vivien know?"
Three taps.
Danger.
My chest tightened.
I took her hand.
"Mom, did Dad tell you he was afraid?"
She squeezed my fingers.
Then whispered:
"Victor."
I nodded.
"Victor Salerno."
She closed her eyes.
"Carlo... refused."
I leaned closer.
"Refused what?"
Her lips trembled.
"More... money."
I understood.
My father had decided to stop the illegal transfers.
Victor and Vivien had depended on them.
When Carlo threatened to expose the scheme, he became a liability.
I looked at Isabella.
"Did you see what happened?"
Tears slid down her cheeks.
She nodded.
"Blue."
"The bottle?"
One tap.
Yes.
My stomach tightened.
I called Agent Shaw's counterpart in the state investigation, Detective Aaron Blake.
I told him everything.
The bottle.
The letter.
The financial records.
And Isabella's developing account.
He listened carefully.
Then said:
"We need to reopen the death investigation."
I closed my eyes.
"Do it."
For years, I'd feared losing my father's reputation.
Now I understood.
May you like
The truth mattered more than the reputation.
Even if it destroyed the image of the man I'd loved.
