Chapter 10 - THE TRUTH ABOUT MATTEO MORETTI
Matteo Moretti hadn't been murdered because he discovered illegal financial transfers.
That was only part of the truth.
The other part was hidden inside a recording my mother had left on the flash drive.
We found it after returning to Chicago.
The file had been mislabeled as an accounting report.
But when Rebecca's forensic specialist opened it, Matteo appeared on the screen.
He looked younger than Luca.
Dark-haired.
Smiling.
The resemblance hurt to see.
Then Matteo began speaking.
"If anything happens to me, this recording should go to my brother Luca."
Luca went completely still.
I reached toward his hand.
Then stopped.
He looked at me.
I held out my palm.
He took it.
Matteo continued.
"Richard Bennett and Andrew Keller are involved in financial crimes connected to shipping contracts and illegal transfers."
I swallowed.
My father.
My former fiancé.
Both named.
Then Matteo said something unexpected.
"But there are people inside the Moretti organization helping them."
Luca's jaw tightened.
The recording continued.
"Bianca discovered the scheme before I did. She's been trying to protect Margaret Bennett and her unborn child."
My heart stopped.
Grace.
Matteo had known about her.
Then he looked directly into the camera.
"Luca, I know you believe loyalty means protecting the family name. But the name isn't worth protecting if the people carrying it destroy innocent lives."
Tears filled Luca's eyes.
Matteo leaned closer.
"If I disappear, don't seek revenge. Find the evidence. Protect the witnesses. And do better than the men who raised us."
The screen went black.
For a long moment, nobody spoke.
Then Luca slowly released my hand.
He covered his face.
I watched his shoulders tremble.
The most powerful man in the room was crying.
Not because he was weak.
Because he'd spent six years believing revenge would honor his brother.
And now Matteo's final message was asking him for something much harder.
Change.
I moved closer.
"May I?"
Luca looked up.
I opened my arms.
He stepped into them.
For several minutes, we held each other.
Then he whispered, "I didn't know."
"I know."
"I spent years trying to punish the people responsible."
I swallowed.
"And now?"
He pulled back.
"Now I finish what Matteo started."
The investigation expanded.
Financial records connected Bennett Maritime, Andrew's companies, and several former Moretti executives.
Bianca agreed to provide a full statement.
My father was summoned for questioning.
But before investigators could reach him, he disappeared.
His office was empty.
His phone disconnected.
And the private plane he used for business had departed Chicago before dawn.
The destination?
A medical facility in Switzerland.
The same country where my mother's most recent medical records had been located.
I stared at the report.
Then looked toward Luca.
"My father's going to her."
May you like
Luca nodded grimly.
"And he knows we're looking."
