Chapter 2: The First Recording
Vittorio stared at the photograph.
“When was this taken?””
“Last Thursday,” Emma said.
“That isn't possible.””
He had spoken to his attorney, Charles Whitmore, that morning.
Charles had told him he was spending the week in Boston.
Vittorio enlarged the image.
There was no mistaking him.
Gray hair.
Navy suit.
Gold wedding band.
Charles was sitting in a private booth at Bellini's, less than fifteen minutes from Vittorio's home.
Across from him sat Bianca.
Marcus stood near the booth.
“What were they discussing?””
“I couldn't hear everything,” Emma said.
“But I recorded part of it.””
Bianca stepped forward.
“You invaded my privacy.””
Emma flinched.
Vittorio noticed.
Not normal nervousness.
Fear.
“Why were you afraid of her?”” he asked.
Emma looked toward Lucy.
“That started before I began recording.””
Bianca scoffed.
“She's an employee who became obsessed with our family.””
“Our family?”” Vittorio repeated.
Bianca softened her voice.
“Vittorio, listen to me. You're upset. I understand. What happened tonight looked terrible.””
“Looked?””
“I was disciplining Lucy.””
Lucy tightened her grip on his hand.
Vittorio felt it.
Bianca saw him feel it.
For the first time, she seemed to realize she had lost control of the room.
Marcus tried another approach.
“Vittorio, we're all emotional. Let's talk tomorrow.””
“No.””
“Then at least let Bianca explain.””
“No.””
Marcus's voice sharpened.
“You don't get to treat my sister like a criminal.””
Emma tapped the phone.
A woman's voice filled the kitchen.
Bianca's voice.
“If she tells Vittorio, I'll say she's making it up for attention.””
Nobody moved.
Then came Lucy's voice.
Small.
Terrified.
“I won't tell Daddy.””
The recording continued.
“You better not,” Bianca said.
“Because fathers get tired of difficult little girls.””
Vittorio's face went blank.
Lucy began crying silently beside him.
He stopped the recording.
“When?””
Emma's eyes were wet.
“Seventeen days ago.””
“You heard this?””
“Yes.””
“And you didn't tell me?””
“I tried.””
Vittorio stared at her.
“When?””
“The morning you left for London.””
Memory struck him.
Emma had followed him toward the front door.
She had said, “Sir, there's something about Lucy—”
Bianca had appeared on the staircase.
Then his driver had called.
Vittorio had told Emma they would talk when he returned.
They never had.
Emma looked ashamed.
“After you left, Bianca told me I'd be fired if I interfered again.””
Bianca crossed her arms.
“I employ her too.””
“No,” Vittorio said.
“You don't.””
Bianca blinked.
“This house belongs to me.””
“The house belongs to a trust.””
Her confidence flickered.
Marcus looked at Bianca.
Only for a second.
But Vittorio caught it.
“You told him something different, didn't you?””
Bianca said nothing.
Vittorio handed Lucy to Emma.
“Take her upstairs.””
Lucy immediately resisted.
“No, Daddy.””
He crouched.
“I'm not leaving.””
“Promise?””
“I promise.””
She studied his face.
“Are you mad at me?””
The question hurt more than anything Bianca had said.
Vittorio touched her cheek.
“Never for telling the truth.””
Lucy whispered, “I didn't steal.””
“I know.””
“I only took bread because Bianca said dinner was for family.””
Emma covered her mouth.
Vittorio slowly stood.
“What?””
Lucy stared at the floor.
“She said I wasn't real family anymore.””
Bianca exhaled sharply.
“She twists everything.””
Lucy recoiled.
Vittorio stepped between them.
“Don't speak to her.””
“Vittorio—”
“Not one word.””
Emma guided Lucy toward the stairs.
As they passed Bianca, Lucy pressed herself against Emma's side.
That tiny movement told Vittorio more than any recording could.
When they disappeared upstairs, he locked the kitchen door.
Marcus noticed.
“What are you doing?””
“Making sure this conversation finishes.””
Bianca laughed nervously.
“You're being ridiculous.””
“Play the meeting recording.””
Emma hesitated.
“There are other things first.””
“What things?””
She scrolled.
“Lucy wasn't the only person Bianca was controlling.””
Emma opened another video.
The image shook as though the phone had been hidden inside a pocket.
Bianca and Marcus stood in Vittorio's study.
Marcus was holding papers.
Bianca spoke first.
“Once he signs the revised trust documents, Lucy's position becomes irrelevant.””
Marcus answered, “And if he reads them?””
“He won't.””
Vittorio's breathing slowed.
Marcus's face turned gray.
On the recording, Bianca continued.
“Charles said the medical authorization is more important. Once Vittorio's judgment is officially questioned, we can move faster.””
Vittorio stopped the video.
“What medical authorization?””
Bianca didn't answer.
He looked at Marcus.
“Tell me.””
Marcus shook his head.
“It's not what you think.””
“What do I think?””
“That we're trying to take your money.””
Vittorio's eyes narrowed.
Interesting.
He hadn't mentioned money.
Emma noticed too.
She opened another photograph.
A document lay on Vittorio's desk.
His signature appeared at the bottom.
Vittorio leaned closer.
“I never signed this.””
Bianca finally lost her composure.
“You sign hundreds of things.””
“I know my signature.””
Marcus moved toward the door.
Vittorio blocked him.
“Where are you going?””
“I need air.””
“You need a lawyer.””
Marcus stared at him.
“So do you.””
Emma suddenly whispered, “There's more.””
Vittorio turned.
She opened the last audio file.
“This was recorded yesterday.””
A man's voice emerged.
Charles.
“If the girl disappears from the household, custody becomes easier.””
Then Bianca answered.
“She doesn't have to disappear forever.””
Vittorio felt something cold settle in his chest.
“What does that mean?””
Emma's hand trembled.
“I didn't know until this morning.””
She reached into her apron and removed a folded envelope.
Bianca screamed.
“No!””
She lunged.
Vittorio caught her before she reached Emma.
The envelope fell open.
Inside was a one-way airline itinerary under Lucy DeLuca's name.
Departure: tomorrow morning.
Destination: Zurich.
Vittorio looked from the ticket to Bianca.
“Why were you sending my daughter to Switzerland?””
Bianca's mouth opened.
No answer came.
Then Emma pulled one final item from the envelope.
A photocopied custody authorization.
Vittorio's forged signature appeared beneath a name he had never seen before.
Emma pointed at it.
“I searched that name.””
Her voice dropped.
“The woman waiting for Lucy in Zurich isn't a nanny.””
Vittorio stared at her.
“Who is she?””
May you like
Emma looked directly at Bianca.
“Her real mother.””
