Chapter 3 - THE ENVELOPE I NEVER KNEW I HAD
"Who is Versani?" I demanded.
Adrien stood beside the window, watching snow drift past the estate's security lights.
"His full name is Carlo Versani."
"And?"
"He controls several operations outside Billings. We've been in conflict for years."
I swallowed.
"Why would he know my name?"
Adrien turned.
"That's what concerns me."
Franco placed my damaged handbag on the table.
"The recovery crew found this in her vehicle."
My heart tightened.
The canvas bag was torn and stained.
Inside were my wallet, keys, a broken compact, and a few loose papers.
Then Franco removed a thick ivory envelope.
I frowned.
"That isn't mine."
Adrien approached.
"Are you sure?"
"I've never seen it."
The envelope had no address.
Only a small blue symbol pressed into the paper.
A circle surrounding three interlocking lines.
Adrien went completely still.
Lucia noticed.
"Adrien?"
He stared at the symbol.
"Where did you get this?"
I shook my head.
"I didn't."
Franco examined the envelope.
"It was hidden beneath the bag's inner lining."
I remembered Connor borrowing my car.
The spare key.
The strange phone call.
My chest tightened.
"Someone planted it."
Adrien looked toward Franco.
"Don't open it here. Preserve it and have it examined."
I stared.
"What's inside?"
"We don't know."
"Then why does everyone look terrified?"
Lucia looked at her brother.
He exhaled slowly.
"Because that symbol belonged to my father."
Silence.
Adrien continued.
"Before he died, my father kept certain records separate from the family business."
"What kind of records?"
"Financial records. Names. Agreements."
I frowned.
"Why?"
"Because he didn't trust the people around him."
The admission surprised me.
I looked at the envelope.
"Your father was involved with organized crime too?"
"Yes."
"And he's dead?"
Adrien nodded.
"Eleven years."
I swallowed.
"Then why would someone put his symbol in my bag?"
Adrien didn't answer.
Instead, he looked toward Lucia.
"Get the original family archive."
She nodded immediately.
That afternoon, the envelope was opened under controlled conditions.
Inside was a single photograph.
A younger Adrien stood beside an older man outside a warehouse.
The older man's face was familiar.
I couldn't understand why.
Then Franco turned the photograph over.
A date appeared.
March 14.
Five years earlier.
Beneath it were four handwritten words.
THE BENNETT GIRL KNOWS.
I stared.
Bennett.
My surname.
Adrien turned toward me.
"Madison, what was your father's name?"
I swallowed.
"Robert Bennett."
His expression changed.
"Did he work in transportation?"
I nodded slowly.
"He managed freight contracts."
Adrien looked toward Lucia.
She covered her mouth.
I felt cold.
"What?"
Adrien stared at me.
"Madison, your father worked for my family."
I shook my head.
"No."
"He disappeared after discovering something involving Carlo Versani."
My stomach tightened.
"My parents died in a car accident."
Adrien looked devastated.
May you like
Then he whispered something that made my blood run cold.
"Your father's death was never officially ruled an accident."
