Chapter 6 - THE SISTER'S VERSION
Victoria arrived at the hotel the next morning.
She wore a cream suit, pearl earrings, and the same immaculate expression she had worn at her wedding. She did not ask permission before entering the private sitting room where Elena was waiting with Mia.
“Little sister,” Victoria said. “You look well.”
Elena remained seated.
“You look exactly the same.”
Victoria smiled.
“That's kind.”
“It's not a compliment.”
Mia stood near the window, arms crossed.
Victoria glanced at her. “Can we speak alone?”
“No,” Elena said.
“Then I suppose we'll do this with an audience.”
“You've always preferred one.”
Victoria's smile tightened.
She sat opposite Elena and crossed her legs.
“I heard you brought a child.”
“His name is Leo.”
“How old is he?”
“Almost three.”
Victoria's eyes flickered.
“Dante's?”
Elena did not answer.
Victoria laughed softly.
“Well. That explains the airport scene.”
“Did you know I was pregnant when you married him?”
For the first time, Victoria's composure shifted.
“No.”
“Did you know he believed I had betrayed him?”
“I told him what I had to tell him.”
“What does that mean?”
Victoria leaned forward.
“You always thought you were the only one who had something to lose. You had Dante. You had Dad's attention. You had the freedom to walk away whenever life became difficult. I spent my entire life cleaning up after you.”
Elena stared at her.
“You married the man I loved because you were jealous?”
“Don't simplify it.”
“Then explain it.”
Victoria's voice cooled.
“Dante was vulnerable. His organization was divided. He needed a wife who understood the importance of alliances. I gave him stability.”
“You gave him a lie.”
“I gave him a choice.”
“You threatened me.”
Victoria looked at Mia, then back at Elena.
“I kept you alive.”
Elena felt a chill move through her.
“What?”
Victoria opened her handbag and removed a photograph.
It showed Elena outside her father's house, speaking with a man in a gray coat. The image was grainy, taken from a distance.
“Do you know who that is?” Victoria asked.
“No.”
“His name is Samuel Reed. He was working with federal investigators. Your father was giving him information about the Moretti shipping accounts.”
“My father was sick. He wasn't involved in Dante's business.”
“Your father knew more than you think.”
Elena looked at the photograph again.
“Why was I there?”
“Because you visited your father every week.”
“That's not evidence.”
“It was enough for Dante's men to believe you were helping him.”
“Then why didn't you tell me?”
Victoria's expression became almost tender.
“Because you would have gone straight to Dante and demanded answers. And if you had, the wrong people would have found out how much you knew.”
Mia stepped forward.
“That's a convenient story.”
Victoria turned.
“You don't know anything about this family.”
“I know a woman who uses fear to control her sister.”
Victoria ignored her.
“Elena, you need to understand. Dante's men are not gentle. If they believed you were an informant, they would have come for you. I gave Dante a way to protect you.”
“By marrying you.”
“By keeping the evidence quiet.”
Elena stood.
“You could have let me decide whether I wanted that protection.”
Victoria's eyes hardened.
“You were never good at making decisions that kept you safe.”
Elena moved toward the door.
“Leave.”
Victoria rose slowly.
“You should ask Dante what happened to your father before you start believing his version of anything.”
Elena froze.
“What did you say?”
Victoria adjusted her sleeve.
“Your father didn't die of natural causes, Elena.”
Mia stepped between them.
“Get out.”
Victoria walked toward the door, then paused.
“One more thing. Don't take Leo to the cemetery tomorrow.”
“Why?”
“Because your father left something there. And if Dante finds it before I do, all of us will have a problem.”
Then she left.
Elena stood motionless.
Her father had died after a long illness. That was what the doctors had said. That was what the death certificate said.
But Victoria had just implied there was more.
Mia touched her arm.
“We're calling your lawyer.”
Elena nodded.
May you like
And for the first time, she wondered whether the trip to move her father's remains had been the reason Victoria had wanted her back in Chicago all along.
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