Chapter 11 - THE MAN WHO CAME BACK FROM HIS OWN FUNERAL
Anthony Romano was supposed to be dead.
Yet the files Camilla had given Victor showed a man with his face entering a private medical facility in Switzerland less than six months earlier.
Victor examined the surveillance photographs in silence.
Nora stood beside him.
“Could they be fake?”
“Possibly.”
Rebecca enlarged the image.
“The facial comparison is consistent. And the passport belongs to an alias linked to an offshore account controlled by Anthony Romano.”
Victor sat back.
For twelve years, he had mourned a father who might have been watching him from a distance.
Every decision.
Every victory.
Every mistake.
“Why pretend to die?” Nora asked.
Rebecca opened another file.
“Federal investigators were preparing charges before his reported death. His disappearance may have allowed him to escape prosecution while retaining access to hidden assets.”
Victor stared at the photograph.
“He left us to clean up his mess.”
Nora noticed something in the background.
A medical facility logo.
She leaned closer.
“I've seen that symbol.”
“Where?”
“On my father's treatment paperwork.”
Victor looked at her.
“Are you certain?”
She nodded.
“The clinic in Switzerland owns part of the hospital network treating him.”
Rebecca checked the documents.
Within minutes, the connection was confirmed.
The Davenport Medical Relief Foundation had financed the network through intermediaries.
Nora covered her mouth.
“They controlled his treatments.”
“Which explains why they knew his schedule,” Victor said.
Leo entered with urgent news.
“We located Adrian's call. It came through a relay, but the original signal pinged near the old Romano estate.”
Victor stood.
“Get the cars.”
Nora moved toward the door.
Victor stopped her gently.
“You should stay somewhere secure.”
“My father is there.”
“Nora—”
“No.”
Her voice was steady.
“I've been frightened since the moment I saw that message. But I'm finished letting these people decide what happens to my family.”
Victor studied her.
Then he nodded.
“You stay with Leo. No improvising.”
They drove toward the abandoned estate beneath a cloudy afternoon sky.
The mansion stood beyond iron gates, its windows dark.
Victor entered with a small security team after confirming the grounds were clear.
Nora waited in a protected vehicle with Leo.
Inside, the house smelled of dust and rain-soaked wood.
Victor found the old dining room.
Someone had restored the chandelier.
A single chair stood beneath it.
On the chair lay a framed photograph of Victor and Adrian as children.
Beneath the frame was a letter.
Victor opened it.
The handwriting was his father's.
MY SONS, ONLY ONE OF YOU WAS EVER MEANT TO INHERIT MY NAME.
A television suddenly switched on.
Anthony Romano appeared on the screen.
Older.
Thinner.
Very much alive.
He smiled.
“Hello, Victor.”
Victor stared.
May you like
His father leaned toward the camera.
“Now let's discuss why Nora Hastings must die.”
