Chapter 6 - THE WINGS OF THE BIRD
Dante arranged for a jeweler he trusted to examine the necklace.
The man worked in a small workshop behind a watch store. He wore magnifying lenses and handled the silver bird with extraordinary care.
“It's an unusual construction,” he said. “The wings are hollow.”
He placed the necklace beneath a lamp.
A narrow seam ran along the underside of each wing.
With a tiny tool, he opened the first.
A rolled strip of film slid out.
Then the second.
A small metal key followed.
I stared.
“My mother carried this around my neck for years.”
Dante studied the film.
“It's probably microfilm.”
The jeweler nodded.
“I can make a digital copy, but I recommend preserving the original.”
“What does the key open?” I asked.
The jeweler turned it over.
A number had been engraved on the side.
“Locker 608.”
Dante looked at Gabriel.
“Find the location.”
Within an hour, Gabriel had identified an old train station locker facility that had been converted into a private archive.
The address was in the South Loop.
We went that afternoon.
The building was nearly empty. A clerk checked the key and led us to a row of metal lockers.
Number 608 was at the end.
The key turned.
Inside was a small black case.
Dante opened it.
There was a flash drive, a sealed envelope, and a photograph.
The photograph showed Lucia sitting in a car.
She was looking directly at the camera.
On the back, she had written:
IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO ME, THE RECORDING IS THE TRUTH.
Dante's hand tightened.
He opened the envelope.
Inside was a letter addressed to him.
Dante,
If you are reading this, then I failed to deliver the evidence myself. I know you will want revenge. Please don't let that be the first thing you choose.
The people involved are not all monsters. Some were frightened. Some were paid. Some believed they were protecting the family.
But Victor knew.
Richard Hale knew.
And Father knew more than he admitted.
Margaret helped me because she believed the truth could still matter. If she survives, protect Nora. She deserves a life that isn't built around our mistakes.
I love you, brother.
Lucia.
Dante read the letter twice.
I watched his face.
“Your father knew?”
He nodded slowly.
“Apparently.”
“Did he know what happened to her?”
“I don't know.”
He folded the letter.
“Whatever he knew, I will find out.”
A sound came from the hallway.
Gabriel turned.
“Boss.”
A man stood near the entrance.
Cameron.
He wore the same navy suit as the night at Saint. His smile was gone.
“Nora,” he said.
I moved behind Dante.
Cameron looked at him.
“Valenti. You've made this very complicated.”
Dante's voice was quiet.
“You made it complicated when you started following her.”
Cameron glanced at the black case.
“Give me the drive.”
“No.”
“You don't understand what you're holding.”
“I understand enough.”
Cameron took a step forward.
Gabriel blocked him.
Cameron looked at me.
“Sweetheart, come here. We can still fix this.”
I felt the old reflex.
The urge to explain.
To soften his anger.
To make the room peaceful.
Then I remembered the messages. The locked cabinet. The two years of being told I was confused.
“No,” I said.
His face hardened.
“You don't know what you're doing.”
“I know exactly what I'm doing.”
Dante moved slightly in front of me.
“Leave.”
Cameron smiled again, but this time it was ugly.
“Your little girlfriend doesn't know what her mother did.”
I stared at him.
“What did she do?”
Cameron looked pleased.
“She made a deal with my father. She gave him information about Lucia in exchange for a new identity.”
Dante's eyes narrowed.
“That's a lie.”
“Is it?”
Cameron leaned closer.
“Ask Margaret why she disappeared. Ask her who was in the car with Lucia that night.”
Then he turned and walked out.
I looked at Dante.
He was staring at the doorway.
“What if he's telling the truth?”
May you like
Dante looked at the letter.
“Then we find out.”
