Chapter 2 - THE UNCLE’S CONFESSION

Vanessa tried to pull her arm away, but Luca’s grip was like iron.

He stared at the gold bracelet on her wrist. The tiny charm was shaped like a dove.

“Elena never took this off,” Luca said, his voice barely controlled. “She was wearing it the night her car went off the bridge. How did you get it?”

Vanessa was breathing fast, panic completely overtaking her. “My father gave it to me! It was a gift!”

“Your father is a financial advisor,” Luca said, stepping closer. “Why would he have the jewelry of my dead girlfriend?”

Carlo let out a bitter chuckle from the corner of the room.

“Because it wasn’t an accident, you fool,” Carlo spat. “Vincent ran her off the road.”

Luca froze.

The entire room seemed to stop spinning.

Teresa pressed a hand to her heart, her face contorting in agony. “No. Dear God, no.”

I watched Luca’s back stiffen. Eight years ago, Elena’s death had broken him. He had stepped away from the family business for two years, wandering Europe, nearly drinking himself to death. He had only returned when his father’s health began to fail.

“Why?” Luca asked, his voice hollow. “Why would Vincent kill Elena?”

“Because she was pregnant!” Vanessa screamed, tears streaming down her face. She stopped fighting Marco and slumped against his grip. “My father found out she was pregnant. He knew if you had an heir with a woman like her—a civilian, an outsider—he could never marry me into the family. He needed the Moretti empire to pay off his debts.”

Luca released Vanessa’s wrist. He took a step back, looking as though he had been shot.

“She was pregnant,” Luca repeated, staring at the floor. “And my father… my father knew?”

“Your father didn’t know until the baby was born,” Teresa said, her voice breaking with sobs.

We all turned to her.

Teresa was weeping openly now.

“Elena survived the crash, Luca,” Teresa confessed. “She lived just long enough to deliver the baby prematurely at a private clinic. Vincent’s men thought she died on impact. By the time they realized she had been taken to a hospital, it was too late.”

“You knew?” Luca asked, looking at his mother with utter betrayal. “You knew I had a child for seven years and you said nothing?”

“We had to protect him!” Teresa cried. “Your father found out through a contact at the clinic. He knew if Vincent learned the baby survived, Vincent would kill the boy to secure Vanessa’s place as your only future. Your father begged Elizabeth to hide him.”

I stepped forward, my mind racing.

“My mother hid the baby?” I asked.

Teresa nodded, wiping her eyes. “Elizabeth was brilliant. She set up a fake identity. She found a private safe house in Vermont. She visited him every month. She was the only one who knew his exact location. But then…”

“Then Vincent found out she was investigating the accounts,” Luca finished, his eyes hardening.

“Yes,” Teresa said. “When Elizabeth realized Vincent was going to kill her, she panicked. She wrote that note on the back of Rachel’s drawing. She left it in the coat for us to find.”

Luca turned to Vanessa. The look in his eyes made my blood run cold.

“Where is he?” Luca asked.

Vanessa shook her head rapidly. “I don’t know! I swear!”

“You’re wearing his dead mother’s bracelet!” Luca roared, his voice shaking the walls. “Where is my son?!”

Vanessa collapsed to her knees on the thick carpet.

“My father found the safe house three days ago,” she sobbed. “He tracked the property taxes Elizabeth was paying. He sent his men up to Vermont.”

Luca’s face went completely white. “Did they kill him?”

“No!” Vanessa cried. “Vincent wanted leverage. In case you ever found out about the cartel debt, he wanted the boy alive to use against you. They moved him.”

“Where?” Marco demanded, drawing his gun and pointing it at the floor near Vanessa’s knees.

“St. Jude’s!” Vanessa screamed. “The old orphanage on 4th Street. My father pays the headmistress to look the other way. They took him there this morning!”

Luca didn’t waste a single second.

He turned to Marco. “Lock Carlo and Vanessa in the wine cellar. Post two guards at the door. If they try to leave, shoot them in the legs.”

“Yes, boss,” Marco said, dragging Vanessa up by her arm.

Luca looked at his mother. “Stay here. Lock the doors.”

Then he looked at me.

“Rachel, come with me.”

“Me?” I asked, startled.

“Elizabeth was the only mother that boy has ever known,” Luca said, his eyes burning with urgency. “If he’s terrified, he might recognize your face from her photos. I need you.”

I didn’t hesitate. I dropped my housekeeper’s apron on the floor. “Let’s go.”

Ten minutes later, we were in the back of an armored SUV, speeding through the rainy streets of the city. Marco was driving, taking corners so fast the tires squealed.

Luca sat next to me, staring out the window. His jaw was clenched so tight I thought it might shatter.

“We’ll get him, sir,” I said quietly.

Luca didn’t look at me. “If Vincent laid a hand on him, Rachel, I’ll burn this entire city to the ground.”

We skidded to a halt in front of St. Jude’s Orphanage. It was a massive, gothic stone building that looked abandoned. The iron gates were locked.

Marco didn’t bother asking for the key. He rammed the SUV straight through the gates, shattering the lock and stopping in the courtyard.

We jumped out. The rain was freezing.

Marco kicked the front doors open.

The main hall was dark and silent.

“Spread out!” Luca yelled. “Find the headmistress!”

I ran down the left corridor, checking empty classrooms. My heart was pounding.

Suddenly, I heard a whimper coming from a small office at the end of the hall.

I pushed the door open.