Chapter 6 - THE MAN WAITING NINE YEARS TO COME HOME
I met my father in a small house outside Milwaukee.
He was fifty-eight.
Gray-haired.
Thinner.
And alive.
For nine years, I had imagined his voice fading.
Now he stood twelve feet away from me in a quiet living room and whispered:
“Hannah?”
My entire body shook.
“Dad?”
He covered his mouth.
Tyler started crying before either of us moved.
Then my father crossed the room.
I ran into his arms.
Nine years disappeared.
Every birthday.
Every funeral visit.
Every moment Mom stared at the empty chair during dinner.
I hit his chest once.
Hard.
“How could you?”
He held me tighter.
“I know.”
“You let us think you were dead.”
“I know.”
“Mom almost broke.”
His voice cracked.
“So did I.”
I pulled away.
“Then why didn't you come home?”
Dad looked toward the window.
“Because the people watching you never stopped.”
My blood turned cold.
He explained that after leaving the safe house, he discovered one member of Vincent's protection team had been compromised.
He changed locations.
Contacted investigators.
And spent years trying to build a case without exposing us.
Every time he attempted to reach Mom, someone intercepted the communication.
At one point, he was told she had remarried and wanted no contact.
A lie.
Just like we were told he was dead.
Tyler stared.
“Who did that?”
Dad's expression hardened.
“Lorenzo Moretti.”
Vincent stood near the doorway.
For the first time, the feared mafia boss looked ashamed.
“My uncle used my organization to hide what he was doing.”
Dad nodded.
“He counted on you being too busy fighting rivals to look inward.”
Vincent didn't defend himself.
Then Dad looked toward me.
“And Garrett Sloan was part of it.”
My stomach tightened.
“My manager?”
“His father helped create fake construction vendors. Garrett later handled restaurant accounts used to move the money.”
I stared.
The man who canceled my $300 bonus had apparently helped process millions in stolen funds.
Dad continued.
“Your suspension wasn't random.”
My heart pounded.
“What do you mean?”
“Garrett recognized your last name.”
I went still.
“He knew who I was?”
“Not immediately. But when he heard Hannah Reed, he contacted Lorenzo.”
My stomach turned.
Then everything clicked.
The fear on Garrett's face.
The urgency.
The way he pushed me out the moment I challenged him.
Dad looked at Vincent.
“Your mother wasn't supposed to be at table eighteen.”
Teresa frowned.
“What?”
“The reservation was made under another name.”
I stared.
“Whose?”
Dad turned toward me.
“Mine.”
The room went silent.
I felt cold.
“You were supposed to be there?”
He nodded.
“I arranged to meet Teresa because I was finally ready to come back.”
My heart stopped.
“Then why didn't you?”
His expression darkened.
“Someone found out.”
Vincent stepped closer.
“Who?”
Dad looked straight at him.
“Your uncle.”
May you like
Then he revealed the final secret.
“Lorenzo sent Garrett instructions to remove anyone at table eighteen before I arrived.”
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