Chapter 4 - A Threat at the Front Door
The security team arrived in two cars, without sirens or flashing lights. Marco came upstairs himself and waited while Hannah packed a diaper bag, formula, spare clothes, and the small blanket Noah used when he slept.
Denise refused to leave at first.
“I have lived in this apartment for twenty years,” she said. “I'm not running because some stranger sent a message.”
“Mom, please,” Hannah whispered.
Marco spoke gently. “Mrs. Turner, this is temporary. We can arrange for someone to stay here and monitor the building. But tonight, your grandson's safety comes first.”
Denise looked at the baby, then nodded.
They were taken to a guest residence owned by one of Luca's legitimate property companies. It was a quiet townhouse with a private entrance and a small garden. Hannah was given a room on the ground floor so her mother would not need to climb stairs.
Luca arrived after midnight.
He did not enter immediately. He knocked and waited until Hannah opened the door.
“I heard about the message,” he said.
“Who sent it?”
“We don't know yet.”
“Is this because I spoke up?”
“It's because someone wants you to believe speaking up was a mistake.”
Hannah folded her arms around herself. “I have a baby. I can't afford to be brave every day.”
“You shouldn't have to be.”
He glanced toward the living room, where Denise sat with Noah. “I arranged a doctor to check your mother tomorrow. No charge. If she needs treatment, the company health fund can cover it.”
Hannah's expression hardened. “I don't want charity.”
“It's not payment for silence. It's an employee benefit. Dana will give you the details in writing.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“Because someone threatened a member of my staff and her child in my name.”
She searched his face. “And if I quit?”
“Then the protection remains until the threat is assessed. You don't owe me your job.”
That answer unsettled her more than a command would have.
Luca left after confirming that the security team would remain outside.
The next morning, Marco brought news. The threatening messages had come from a prepaid phone purchased near the mansion. The camera outage in the kitchen corridor had been requested using the same temporary administrator account.
The account had been created by a contractor who had worked for Vanessa's event-planning company.
“Is she involved?” Hannah asked when Marco told her.
“We don't know yet,” he replied. “We are not going to accuse anyone without evidence.”
At the mansion, Luca confronted Vanessa.
She sat in the sunroom, scrolling through her phone. A cup of coffee rested beside her.
“Did you know someone threatened Hannah?”
Vanessa did not look up. “Who?”
“Hannah Turner.”
“Oh. The maid.”
“She has a name.”
Vanessa set down her phone. “I can't be responsible for every message a disgruntled employee receives.”
“Did you ask a contractor to disable the kitchen cameras?”
“I asked for privacy during private events.”
“Why did you use an account that wasn't yours?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Are you interrogating me?”
“I'm asking questions.”
“Because of her?”
“Because someone is threatening a baby.”
Vanessa stood. “You are letting a servant turn you against me.”
Luca's expression did not change. “You keep calling her a servant as though that makes what happened acceptable.”
Vanessa stepped closer. “I have spent years trying to become part of this family. I have organized your events, handled your guests, protected your reputation.”
“Then why are the payroll records wrong?”
For the first time, she had no immediate answer.
Luca placed a copy of the schedule notebook on the table.
“Explain the initials.”
Vanessa glanced down.
Her face became still.
“I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Then you'll have no problem answering Dana's questions.”
He left her in the sunroom.
May you like
Across town, Hannah rocked Noah in the guest residence. She did not know what Luca had found. She only knew that someone had threatened her child, and that her old life of keeping quiet had suddenly become impossible.
She looked down at Noah and whispered, “I'm going to make sure you grow up knowing you never have to earn the right to be safe.”
