Chapter 10 - THE BETRAYAL AT FARROW MANOR
The first person to betray Dominic Farrow had been his father.
The second was the man Dominic considered his closest friend.
Marcus Reed.
Head of security.
Former Army officer.
A man who had protected Dominic for fourteen years.
He supervised every entrance to Farrow Manor.
Approved security protocols.
Reviewed visitor lists.
And personally selected the cameras installed in Oliver's nursery.
For weeks, Dominic believed Marcus was protecting us.
Then investigators discovered the unauthorized camera access originated from a device assigned to his security office.
Dominic confronted Marcus in the presence of his attorney and an independent investigator.
I wasn't there.
I was upstairs with Oliver.
But I heard the aftermath when Dominic returned.
He looked as though he'd aged ten years.
"Marcus knew."
I froze.
"Knew what?"
"About Kessler. The illegal payments. Samuel's disappearance."
My stomach tightened.
"Did he help?"
Dominic sat down.
"For money."
I stared.
"He worked for you for fourteen years."
Dominic nodded.
"Apparently loyalty has a price when you're the one paying for it."
I looked at him.
"Not everyone."
He raised his eyes.
For a moment, something softened.
Then he said, "I know."
Marcus had been supplying information about Dominic's movements to Kessler and his associates.
He allowed unauthorized access to the nursery camera.
He knew where I was staying.
And he helped arrange the false retrieval order that brought Oliver and me into the storage room.
The men who struck me were part of the operation.
They were supposed to take the baby after extracting information from me.
Instead, Dominic demanded to see us before the transfer could happen.
That decision disrupted their plan.
It was the first time I understood how close we'd come to disappearing.
Again.
When Dominic told me, I felt sick.
"So the storage room—"
"Wasn't secure."
"The guards—"
"Some were compromised."
"And the man who hit me?"
"He's been identified and the information provided to investigators."
I looked toward Oliver.
He was playing with a wooden block on the rug.
Oblivious.
Happy.
Alive.
Tears filled my eyes.
"How many times does somebody have to try to take him before this ends?"
Dominic moved closer.
Then stopped.
"Bernie."
I looked up.
He held out his hand.
Not touching me.
Waiting.
I took it.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then he whispered, "I'm sorry."
I shook my head.
"You're not responsible for every terrible person in Chicago."
His expression tightened.
"No."
I looked into his eyes.
"But you are responsible for the people you chose to empower."
He nodded.
"Yes."
That night, Dominic gave an unusual order.
He suspended the private security operations controlled by Marcus.
He placed his relevant legitimate businesses under independent review.
He authorized counsel to cooperate with investigators examining Kessler's financial relationships.
And he began separating himself from the criminal networks he had once maintained.
The decisions were expensive.
They cost him influence.
Some former associates became openly hostile.
But Dominic didn't reverse them.
Later, I found him standing in the library.
He was looking at a photograph of Samuel.
Two brothers.
Young.
Smiling.
Standing beside their father in front of Farrow Manor.
Dominic touched the frame.
"I used to think protecting this family meant controlling everything around it."
I stood beside him.
"And now?"
He looked down.
"Now I think the only thing my brother ever wanted was permission to live without being afraid of us."
My throat tightened.
For a moment, he seemed almost lost.
Then he asked, "Bernie, if Samuel comes home, will you leave?"
The question surprised me.
I looked at him.
"I don't know."
He swallowed.
"Oliver will have his father."
"Yes."
"You'll be free to go back to nursing."
"Hopefully."
Dominic looked toward the window.
He didn't ask me to stay.
Didn't offer money.
Didn't make promises.
He simply said, "I hope you get the life you wanted."
For some reason, that hurt more than I expected.
May you like
Because I was beginning to realize that the life I wanted might include him.
And I didn't know whether that frightened me more than leaving.
