Chapter 9 - THE LAST LIE
The address led to a small house beside an old church.
Dante and I arrived just after sunrise. Marco stayed in the car with Sophia, who had insisted on coming but was too frightened to enter a place she didn't recognize.
A woman opened the door.
She was in her thirties, with tired eyes and dark hair tucked beneath a scarf.
“Mr. Russo?”
“Yes.”
“I'm Rachel's contact. Isabella is safe, but she doesn't know you're here.”
Dante nodded.
“Can I speak to her?”
The woman stepped aside.
A moment later, Isabella appeared at the end of the hallway.
Dante stopped.
She looked thinner than the woman in the photographs. Her hair was shorter, and a pale scar crossed one eyebrow. But it was her.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Isabella said, “Where is Sophia?”
“In the car.”
Her eyes filled. “Is she all right?”
“She is. She's been asking for you.”
Isabella pressed a hand to her mouth.
“Can I see her?”
Dante nodded.
They walked outside together.
Sophia was sitting in the back seat beside Marco. When she saw her mother, she froze.
Isabella crouched beside the open door.
“Hello, my love.”
Sophia stared.
Then she climbed out and ran into her mother's arms.
Isabella held her so tightly that both of them began crying.
“I'm sorry,” she whispered. “I'm so sorry.”
Sophia buried her face against her neck.
“Mommy.”
Isabella closed her eyes.
Dante stood a few feet away. He did not interrupt.
After a long moment, Isabella looked up at him.
“Did you know?”
“Not until Nora found your letter.”
“Salvatore told me you had chosen him. He said you knew what he was doing.”
Dante's face tightened.
“I didn't.”
“He showed me messages that looked like they came from you.”
“They were forged.”
“I know that now.”
Silence stretched between them.
Then Isabella looked at me.
“You must be Nora.”
“Yes.”
“Thank you for taking care of my daughter.”
I shook my head. “She found me.”
Isabella smiled through her tears.
“That's exactly like her.”
Dante turned toward the house.
“We need to get you somewhere secure.”
“I don't want to go back to the townhouse.”
“We won't.”
“And I don't want Sophia anywhere near the organization.”
Dante nodded. “Neither do I.”
Isabella looked at him carefully.
“You say that now.”
“I should have said it before.”
She held Sophia's hand.
“Salvatore told me he would make you believe I had abandoned her. He said he'd use her to keep you obedient.”
Dante's expression darkened.
“He won't get near either of you again.”
A phone rang.
Marco answered and stepped away. When he returned, his face was tense.
“Boss. Salvatore has contacted the board. He's claiming Isabella stole company records and is holding Sophia against your wishes.”
Dante looked at Isabella.
“That's his last move.”
“Don't do anything reckless,” she said.
“I won't.”
He called his attorney and instructed him to send the records to the independent board members and the district attorney. The financial documents, security logs, and Rachel's testimony would make it difficult for Salvatore to control the story.
As we prepared to leave, a black car appeared at the far end of the street.
Marco moved immediately.
“Get inside.”
Dante guided Isabella and Sophia toward the house. I followed.
The car stopped. A man stepped out. Not Salvatore, but one of his lieutenants.
He held up both hands.
“I'm not here to fight.”
Dante stood in the doorway.
“Then why are you here?”
The man looked at Isabella.
“Salvatore wants the records. He says he'll trade them for the girl.”
Isabella went pale.
Dante's voice dropped.
“There is no trade.”
The man shifted.
“He knows where she goes to school. He knows her routines.”
Dante stepped forward.
“And now I know who gave him that information.”
Marco approached from behind.
“It's over.”
The lieutenant lowered his hands.
Dante looked at him.
“Tell Salvatore the records are already out of his reach. The board and the authorities have them. Tell him if he comes near my daughter again, he will answer for it in court and everywhere else.”
The man nodded quickly and returned to his car.
When the vehicle disappeared, Isabella began shaking.
Dante reached for her, then stopped.
“May I?”
She nodded.
He held her carefully.
For the first time in three days, the family stood together.
But the danger was not over.
Salvatore had lost control of the evidence.
May you like
Now he had nothing left to bargain with.
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