Chapter 11 - THE PORTRAIT WITH TWO FACES
By midnight, the Bianchi mansion was quieter than a church.
Damon stood before his father's enormous portrait.
Delaney waited beside him.
Frank guarded the hallway.
Adrian approached the frame.
"Thomas gave me instructions before he died."
Damon looked at him.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because the evidence wasn't complete. We needed to know who was still involved."
Adrian touched the lower corner of the frame.
A concealed release clicked.
The portrait swung outward.
Behind it was a narrow steel compartment.
Damon stared.
"All these years..."
Adrian opened it.
Inside were several document folders, a recording device, and a small wooden box.
Damon took the first folder.
Medical reports.
Bank transfers.
Names of doctors.
One document contained Evelyn's recent blood test results.
Delaney studied them.
The test showed an unexplained sedative in her system.
The report had been signed by an independent laboratory.
Damon's face turned cold.
"Mercer knew."
Adrian nodded.
"Someone has been keeping your mother disoriented."
Delaney felt tears gather.
"She thought she was losing her mind."
Damon closed the folder.
For a moment, he could barely speak.
Then he whispered, "I should have protected her."
Delaney touched his arm.
"You can protect her now."
He looked at her.
Something changed in his expression.
For the first time, he didn't look like a feared mafia boss.
He looked like a son terrified of losing his mother.
Frank opened the second folder.
Inside was a photograph of Charles Hale meeting Dr. Mercer at a private medical office.
Another showed Victoria entering the same building.
The dates matched Evelyn's earliest episodes of confusion.
Damon's phone vibrated.
Victoria.
He answered without speaking.
"Darling," she said sweetly, "why haven't you returned my calls?"
"Where are you?"
"At my father's house."
Damon glanced toward Frank.
"And my mother?"
A pause.
"What about her?"
"Don't lie to me."
Victoria's tone sharpened.
"Damon, you're making a terrible mistake."
He remained silent.
She continued.
"You don't understand what my father has done for your family."
"Then explain it."
Another pause.
Then she said something that made Delaney's blood run cold.
"That waitress is going to ruin everything."
Damon looked at Delaney.
"Touch her, Victoria, and our engagement is over."
Victoria laughed softly.
"Oh, Damon."
"You still think this is about an engagement?"
The call disconnected.
At that exact moment, Frank's radio crackled.
"Sir, we've identified the location where Evelyn is being held."
Damon stood.
"Where?"
Frank hesitated.
"A medical facility outside Chicago."
"Who owns it?"
Frank swallowed.
"Charles Hale."
He paused.
"And, sir, someone just transferred twenty million dollars out of the Bianchi family trust."
Damon stared.
The transfer had been authorized using his mother's signature.
But there was a second signature.
Someone inside the mansion had approved it.
Frank slowly looked toward the hallway.
"Sir..."
Damon turned.
A shadow disappeared around the corner.
May you like
One of his oldest employees had been listening.
And the name on the fraudulent transfer was Frank Marino.
