Chapter 10 - THE SOCIAL WORKER WHO KNEW EVERY SECRET
Helen Ward had sat at my kitchen table eighteen months earlier.
She'd handed me tissues while I cried.
Helped me complete housing forms.
And promised that Leo and I would receive the support we needed.
Now she appeared in a photograph beside Peter's missing daughter.
The betrayal made me feel physically sick.
“She knew,” I whispered.
Peter looked toward me.
“Who?”
“Helen Ward.”
Detective Bennett examined her records.
Helen had worked for several child welfare organizations.
She also served as a consultant for private facilities connected to Silvio Castiglione.
The financial relationships were suspicious.
Several payments had been routed through charitable trusts.
And some records showed unusual transfers involving children whose identities had been changed.
I stared at the documents.
“How many families?”
The detective shook her head.
“We don't know yet.”
Peter stood near the window.
His expression was grim.
“My uncle was still doing it.”
I looked at him.
“And you inherited his organization.”
He nodded.
“Yes.”
For once, he didn't defend himself.
That mattered.
The investigation expanded.
Helen was questioned.
The Wisconsin facility's records were reviewed.
And authorities began locating people whose identities had been altered.
Meanwhile, Peter's parents continued recovering.
Sam was gaining strength.
Rose had started knitting again.
And Leo had become her favorite companion.
She taught him Italian words.
He taught her dinosaur facts.
One afternoon, I found Peter watching them.
Rose was laughing as Leo explained the difference between a triceratops and a stegosaurus.
Peter's expression softened.
“My mother always loved children.”
I smiled.
“She loves Leo.”
He looked at me.
“He's a good boy.”
I swallowed.
“He misses his dad.”
Peter nodded.
“I know.”
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then he said quietly:
“I can't replace Daniel.”
I looked at him.
“No one can.”
He nodded.
“But I hope I can be someone Leo feels safe around.”
The words surprised me.
A powerful man asking for something so ordinary.
Trust.
Before I could answer, Detective Bennett called.
She had found Sofia.
Alive.
Living with a foster family in Wisconsin.
Peter stopped breathing.
“Can I see her?”
The detective hesitated.
“We'll need to coordinate with her legal guardian and care team.”
Peter nodded.
He didn't argue.
Then came another revelation.
The investigator had located Adriana Bellini.
Peter's former wife.
She hadn't abandoned Sofia.
She'd spent years searching for her daughter.
And she'd been told Peter arranged the disappearance.
I stared at him.
His face went pale.
But the worst part came when the detective revealed the person who had signed Sofia's original transfer documents.
It wasn't Silvio.
It wasn't Helen.
May you like
It was Vincent Rinaldi.
And Vincent had used Peter's own signature to authorize the transfer.
