Chapter 8 - THE WARNING IN THE HALLWAY
Brody was questioned for several hours.
He had borrowed money from an illegal gambling operation and used Nora's personal information to secure the debt. He had also told the collectors that Nora worked for the Moretti family, hoping they would believe she could pay.
Lorenzo ordered the debt documents preserved and instructed his attorney to contact the authorities. He wanted no one using Nora's name or threatening her again.
But the investigation revealed something more troubling.
Rafe D'Angelo had been seen at the estate twice in the previous month.
Both visits had been approved by Mrs. Gable.
Lorenzo read the report in silence.
“Why would a gambling collector be meeting with my housekeeper?”
Matteo placed a second page on the desk.
“Mrs. Gable has been transferring money to an account connected to D'Angelo's business.”
“How much?”
“Nearly forty thousand dollars over eight months.”
Lorenzo's eyes narrowed.
“Find out what she was buying.”
Before Matteo could answer, a crash sounded from the east wing.
Lorenzo ran.
Nora was standing outside Giovanni's room, one hand pressed against the wall. A tray lay overturned on the carpet. The glass beside it had shattered.
“What's happened?”
Nora looked frightened.
“I heard someone inside.”
Lorenzo pushed open the door.
Giovanni lay in his wheelchair, breathing hard. Patricia was checking his pulse.
“Someone moved his medication,” she said. “The bottle on the table isn't the one I left.”
Lorenzo picked it up.
The label was correct.
The pills inside were not.
“Secure the room,” he ordered. “Nobody leaves the east wing.”
Matteo and the guards moved immediately.
Nora stared at the bottle.
“Mrs. Gable used to bring his medicine herself.”
Lorenzo turned toward her.
“Did you see her today?”
“She came by after lunch. She said she wanted to apologize.”
“Did she touch anything?”
Nora remembered the tray.
“She adjusted his blanket. Then she asked me to fetch more water.”
Patricia checked the medication.
“These pills could have made him dangerously weak. We need to contact his physician and have them tested.”
Lorenzo's jaw tightened.
“Do it.”
A guard appeared at the door.
“Sir, Mrs. Gable is not in her quarters.”
“Find her.”
Another guard called from the corridor.
“Her car is gone.”
Lorenzo looked at Matteo.
“Close the gates. Nobody leaves this property.”
Nora moved toward Giovanni.
“Is he going to be all right?”
Patricia nodded carefully.
“We caught it before he received the dose.”
Nora let out a shaky breath.
Giovanni's hand moved against the blanket.
She took it.
“It's okay, Mr. John. You're safe.”
His eyes shifted toward her.
Then, with visible effort, his fingers closed around hers.
Lorenzo watched.
The old man was trying to tell them something.
Patricia leaned closer.
“Mr. Moretti, can you show us what you're trying to say?”
Giovanni's eyes moved toward the bedside cabinet.
Lorenzo opened it.
Inside was a small leather notebook.
The first page carried a handwritten name.
GABLE.
The second page contained dates.
The third held a list of payments.
Lorenzo turned the page and found a name that made his expression go still.
May you like
Rafe D'Angelo.
Mrs. Gable had not been acting alone.
