Chapter 5 - THE FATHER WHO KNEW TOO MUCH
Dominic Vale's mansion stood behind iron gates in one of Chicago's wealthiest neighborhoods.
I had never seen a house so beautiful or felt so unwelcome.
Two armed guards escorted us into a private library.
Dominic sat behind a massive wooden desk.
Victor Sloane stood beside the fireplace, turning his silver ring around one finger.
When he saw me, he smiled.
“Well, well. The talented little waitress.”
Caleb stepped between us.
Dominic noticed immediately.
“Sit down, son.”
Caleb didn't move.
I began interpreting his signs aloud.
I'm not a child. Stop treating me like one.
Dominic's jaw tightened.
“What did he say?”
I repeated the words exactly.
For the first time, Dominic seemed genuinely surprised.
Caleb signed again.
I've understood every insult. Every business conversation. Every time you called me useless.
The room fell silent.
Dominic looked away.
Victor gave a short laugh.
“Touching. Are we finished?”
I pulled Isabel's photograph from my bag.
“No. We're not.”
I placed it on Dominic's desk.
His expression changed the moment he saw it.
He picked it up.
For several seconds, his fingers didn't move.
Then he whispered a name.
“Isabel.”
Victor took one step forward.
“Boss, that's an old photograph. It could be—”
“Get out,” Dominic said.
Victor blinked.
“Excuse me?”
“I said get out.”
The room became dangerously quiet.
Victor studied Dominic's face, then walked toward the door.
Before leaving, he looked directly at me.
His smile had disappeared.
Dominic waited until the door closed.
Then he turned to Caleb.
“Where did you get this?”
Caleb signed, and I interpreted.
From Evan Mercer. The man your people helped kill.
Dominic stood so suddenly his chair rolled backward.
“That's a serious accusation.”
“Then tell us why this photograph exists,” I demanded.
He stared at the image.
I watched his face change from anger to something much worse.
Recognition.
“She's alive, isn't she?” I asked.
Dominic closed his eyes.
Caleb signed frantically.
Dad. Answer her.
I translated every word.
Finally, Dominic lowered himself into the chair.
His voice sounded twenty years older.
“Two years ago, Victor showed me proof that Isabel had survived.”
Caleb froze.
I could barely believe what I'd heard.
“You knew?”
Dominic nodded.
My hands shook as I signed the truth to Caleb.
His eyes filled with disbelief.
Then his expression hardened.
For fourteen years, he'd mourned his mother.
May you like
For two of those years, his father had known she was alive.
And he had said nothing.
