Chapter 12 - THE WIFE WHO CHOSE TO FIGHT
The investigation moved quickly.
Authorities located several members of Santoro's organization.
Financial accounts were frozen.
Witnesses came forward.
And Isabella was placed under temporary protection.
Then came the call.
Elena was alive.
She had been living under an assumed identity in Portugal.
She had escaped Santoro's organization years earlier but remained hidden because she feared he would kill her.
Antonio sat motionless.
For a moment, he couldn't speak.
Then he whispered:
“She's alive.”
I smiled through tears.
“Yes.”
He covered his face.
His shoulders shook.
I knelt beside him.
Held him.
And for the first time, I saw Antonio Russo cry.
Not from weakness.
From relief.
The next morning, he flew to Lisbon with federal investigators and legal counsel.
I stayed behind with Isabella.
Three days later, Antonio called.
His voice broke.
“Sophia.”
I froze.
“Antonio?”
He swallowed.
“I found her.”
My eyes filled.
Then I heard a woman's voice.
Soft.
Shaking.
“Hello, Sophia.”
I began crying.
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Because the woman in the photograph was no longer a ghost.
She was coming home.
