Chapter 11 - THE SECRET ABOUT LEO'S FATHER
For ten months, Luca Moretti had raised Leo as his son.
He fed him.
Held him.
Walked the nursery at night when the baby couldn't sleep.
Learned how to change diapers.
And spent hours trying to understand why the little boy cried whenever unfamiliar people approached.
Now Vittorio was claiming there was a secret about Leo's biological father.
Luca stared at Sarah.
"What secret?"
She answered carefully.
"The recording suggests Elena believed Leo's parentage had been falsified."
My stomach tightened.
I looked toward Luca.
His expression changed.
But he didn't pull away from Leo.
Didn't stop holding him.
He simply looked down at the child.
Then whispered:
"Whatever the truth is, he's my son."
The words made my eyes fill.
Because that was what mattered.
Not DNA.
Not paperwork.
Not money.
Leo knew Luca.
Trusted him.
Loved him.
And Luca loved him back.
The investigators reviewed the records.
The clinic had used multiple patient identification numbers.
Several birth certificates contained inconsistencies.
And medical records showed signs of alteration.
A legally authorized genetic comparison was eventually arranged.
The results were unexpected.
Leo was biologically related to Luca.
But not in the way everyone assumed.
I watched Sarah examine the report.
Her expression changed.
"What?" Luca asked.
She hesitated.
"The testing indicates Leo is a close biological relative."
Luca frowned.
"He's my son."
Sarah looked toward him.
"The specific relationship requires additional verification."
My heart pounded.
More records were examined.
More family samples compared through appropriate consent and legal procedures.
Then the truth emerged.
Leo was not Luca's biological son.
He was the son of Luca's late younger brother, Marco Moretti.
Luca stopped breathing.
"Marco?"
Marco had died two years earlier.
A car bombing.
An attack everyone believed came from a rival organization.
Luca had mourned him.
Then taken over his share of the family businesses.
Now he was learning his brother had left behind a child.
I looked toward Leo.
The boy smiled.
Unaware that another piece of his life had just changed.
Luca covered his face.
"Why would Elena raise Marco's son?"
Sarah opened another file.
"Because Marco had asked her to."
Luca looked up.
"What?"
"Elena became Leo's legal guardian under an arrangement made before Marco died."
He stared.
"But why did she tell me the baby was ours?"
Sarah hesitated.
"That may have been part of the plan to keep him safe."
My stomach tightened.
"From Vittorio."
Sarah nodded.
"Possibly."
Luca looked toward Leo.
Then whispered:
"My brother knew."
He swallowed.
"Marco knew the family was dangerous."
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Sarah showed us another document.
A handwritten letter.
From Marco Moretti.
Addressed to Luca.
The first sentence made him begin crying.
Brother, if you're reading this, then I didn't survive long enough to tell you the truth.
Luca's hands trembled.
He continued.
Leo is my son.
His mother died shortly after childbirth.
Elena promised to help me protect him.
Luca closed his eyes.
Then reached the final paragraph.
I couldn't trust Vittorio.
And I couldn't tell you because you trusted him more than anyone.
His voice broke.
The letter ended with one request.
Please love my son as if he were your own.
Luca pulled Leo close.
Tears streamed down his face.
"I already do."
Then Sarah's phone rang.
She answered.
Her expression changed.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
She looked toward us.
"Investigators located Amelia."
My heart stopped.
"Alive?"
Sarah nodded.
"Yes."
Relief nearly knocked me down.
May you like
But her next words changed everything.
"Amelia says Elena never intended to disappear forever. She was preparing to testify against Vittorio when someone inside Luca's household betrayed her."
