Chapter 4 - THE SECRET INSIDE OUR WEDDING ALBUM
The red train was wrapped inside my wedding veil.
I found it beneath the album's wooden storage box.
For a moment, I forgot about the police officer standing behind me.
I forgot about Peter Castiglione.
I forgot about the threats.
I simply stared at the ivory lace I'd worn when Daniel promised to love me until his last breath.
Then I began crying.
“Daniel,” I whispered.
He'd hidden the train where he knew I would eventually look.
But only if something went terribly wrong.
Leo climbed beside me.
“Daddy said you'd know what to do.”
I swallowed.
“Did he?”
Leo nodded.
“He said Mommy's smart.”
That broke me.
I hugged my son until he complained I was squeezing too hard.
Then I examined the train.
The brass key fit into a tiny opening beneath the engine.
I turned it.
A compartment clicked open.
Inside was a memory card.
And a folded note.
The handwriting was Daniel's.
MARA, IF YOU FOUND THIS, I COULDN'T KEEP MY PROMISE TO COME HOME.
I covered my mouth.
The next sentence made me tremble.
DON'T TRUST THE MAN WHO CLAIMS HE SAVED THE CASTIGLIONE FAMILY.
I stared at the words.
Peter?
Was Daniel warning me about Peter?
Or someone else?
The police arranged for a forensic technician to copy and examine the memory card.
Later that night, I was allowed to view one recovered video.
Daniel appeared on the screen.
He was sitting inside his ambulance.
Dark circles beneath his eyes.
His uniform stained with rain.
“Mara,” he began, “I don't know if you'll ever see this.”
I started sobbing.
His voice.
His face.
The man I'd loved.
He continued.
“I helped an elderly couple named Samuel and Rosalia Castiglione. They were being kept in a private care facility under false names.”
My hands trembled.
“They told me their son was alive, but powerful people wanted them forgotten.”
Daniel glanced toward the ambulance window.
“I found documents linking their confinement to a company controlled by Silvio Castiglione.”
Peter's uncle.
I stopped breathing.
Daniel continued.
“I tried to bring the evidence to the authorities. But someone warned Silvio.”
His voice broke.
“I think there's a traitor close to Peter.”
Then he held up a photograph.
Peter standing beside another man.
A silver-haired gentleman in an expensive suit.
I recognized the man from the diner.
He'd been standing behind Peter when everyone entered.
His security chief.
Vincent.
Daniel looked straight into the camera.
May you like
And whispered:
“His name is Vincent Rinaldi. And I think he's the man who betrayed me.”
