Chapter 9 - THE OLD DON REMEMBERS
The notebook changed everything.
It contained years of observations recorded by Giovanni before his stroke, followed by brief notes added in a shaky hand during the months when he could still move one finger.
There were dates when medication had gone missing. Times when staff members entered his room after midnight. Payments made to Mrs. Gable through an estate account.
Most troubling of all was a recurring name.
Rafe D'Angelo.
Lorenzo placed the notebook on the desk.
“My father knew.”
Patricia examined the handwriting.
“These entries are consistent. Some were made before his most severe stroke.”
Nora stood near the door, one hand resting on her belly.
“Why would Mrs. Gable work with someone like that?”
Matteo answered.
“D'Angelo has been trying to gain access to the Moretti accounts. He may have used her to gather information.”
Lorenzo turned toward his father.
“Is that what happened?”
Giovanni's eyes remained on him.
“Can you tell me?”
The old man's fingers moved.
One.
Two.
Then he pointed weakly toward the notebook.
Patricia watched carefully.
“He's responding intentionally.”
Lorenzo sat beside him.
“Father, did Mrs. Gable bring D'Angelo into this house?”
Giovanni blinked once.
“Yes.
Lorenzo leaned closer.
“Was she withholding your medication?”
Another blink.
“Did she know you could understand us?”
Giovanni's hand tightened.
The old man's eyes moved toward the door.
Nora followed his gaze.
A faint sound came from the hallway.
Someone was running.
Matteo stepped outside and returned moments later with a security guard.
“Sir, we found Mrs. Gable's access card in the east service stairwell. The side gate was opened remotely.”
“By whom?”
“An administrator account.”
Lorenzo looked at the notebook again.
“Someone still has access to the system.”
He ordered a full lockdown and called his attorney.
Nora moved closer to Giovanni.
“Mr. John, you don't have to be afraid anymore.”
His eyes softened.
She took his hand.
“Lily will be here soon. You promised to meet her.”
Giovanni's lips trembled.
“Li…”
Nora smiled through tears.
“That's right.”
Lorenzo looked at his father.
“Do you want to meet your granddaughter?”
Giovanni blinked.
A tear moved down his cheek.
Lorenzo bowed his head.
For a moment, the feared head of the Moretti family looked like a son who had spent five years waiting for his father to come back.
Then Matteo's phone rang.
He listened, his expression hardening.
“Sir, the security office has received a call from an unknown number. They say Mrs. Gable has something that belongs to Mr. Giovanni.”
“What?”
“A recording.”
Lorenzo stood.
“What kind of recording?”
Matteo looked toward the old man.
“Apparently, it contains a conversation from the night before his first stroke.”
Giovanni's eyes widened.
Lorenzo turned slowly.
“Who was speaking?”
Matteo swallowed.
“Your father. And your uncle, Victor Moretti.”
The room went silent.
May you like
Lorenzo had been told that Victor died overseas twelve years earlier.
If the recording was real, then the story of his family's past was about to become far more complicated.
