Chapter 9 - THE FILE WITH HIS NAME
“What does that mean?”
Elliot stared at the label bearing his name.
Dominic looked equally confused.
Norah stepped closer.
“Could Enzo have been using you for something besides the financial transfers?”
Elliot typed rapidly.
The room filled with the soft clicking of his keyboard.
He accessed an archived directory from Northbridge Medical Holdings.
Inside were dozens of patient records.
Most were ordinary.
But one folder carried a designation that made him stop.
ER-PROJECT-01.
It contained medical assessments, handwritten observations, and recordings from Elliot's childhood.
Norah felt sick.
“These are your private records.”
Elliot opened a document.
His father's signature appeared at the bottom.
He looked at Dominic.
“You authorized this?”
Dominic went pale.
“When you were fifteen, Enzo persuaded me that a specialist could help you become more independent.”
Elliot's voice became dangerously quiet.
“Independent?”
Dominic swallowed.
“I thought they were evaluating your support needs.”
Elliot scrolled farther.
The project had never been about support.
Enzo had commissioned a private consulting firm to assess Elliot's memory, pattern recognition, and ability to detect inconsistencies.
The report described his abilities in unusually technical terms.
Then came a recommendation.
Restrict the subject's access to company records. Minimize opportunities for external communication regarding internal financial activity.
Norah covered her mouth.
“He wasn't trying to help you.”
“No,” Elliot replied.
“He was trying to keep me from noticing what he was doing.”
For years, Elliot had believed his exclusion from family affairs reflected his father's embarrassment.
Now he could see that Enzo had deliberately encouraged that belief.
His isolation had been useful.
Dominic stared at the screen.
“I let him convince me…”
Elliot closed the document.
“This wasn't caused by my autism, Father. It was caused by your decision to trust Enzo instead of listening to me.”
Dominic lowered his eyes.
“You're right.”
Suddenly, an alarm sounded from Elliot's computer.
A new message had arrived from an encrypted account.
It contained a live video.
Norah's mother sat inside a windowless room.
Her hands were tied.
A masked man stood behind her.
Then Enzo stepped into view.
“Hello, little brother.”
Elliot's face went still.
Enzo smiled.
“Bring me your evidence before sunrise.”
Norah moved closer to the monitor.
“Where's my mother?”
Enzo ignored her.
Instead, he looked directly into the camera.
“There's something Father never told you, Elliot.”
Dominic suddenly stood.
“Enzo, don't!”
But his eldest son was already smiling.
May you like
“Ask Dad what really happened to your mother.”
And the screen went black.
