Chapter 11 - THE MIDNIGHT SHIP
At 10:47 p.m., Elena Marlo watched a black cargo vessel prepare to leave Boston Harbor.
Somewhere aboard that ship was the mother she had mourned for nineteen years.
And someone intended to make sure Sophia would never remember her daughter's name again.
Dante stood beside her inside an unmarked police vehicle.
Through the windshield, they could see shipping containers stacked beneath enormous cranes.
Blue security lights flashed near the private terminal.
"The vessel is registered to Belandi Maritime Holdings," Marco reported.
Dante looked at the screen.
"Of course it is."
A state investigator approached the vehicle.
"We have authorization to board. Federal agents are approaching from the other side of the terminal."
Elena opened her door.
Dante caught her hand.
"Stay here until they secure the ship."
"No."
"Elena—"
"My mother spent nineteen years waiting for someone to come for her."
His expression softened.
"And you're going to see her. But I won't let you walk into danger when we have trained officers here."
Elena wanted to argue.
Then she saw the fear beneath his composure.
Not fear for himself.
Fear for her.
She nodded.
"Bring her back."
Dante squeezed her hand.
"I will."
Minutes later, officers advanced toward the vessel.
A loudspeaker ordered the crew to remain where they were.
Then a man appeared on the upper deck.
Nathaniel Price.
He wore a dark overcoat and held a phone to his ear.
Dante recognized him immediately.
The physician who had manipulated Sophia's treatment.
The man who had tried to have Elena locked away.
Price shouted something toward the dock.
Then two armed guards emerged from behind a container.
Police ordered them to drop their weapons.
One obeyed.
The other ran.
Marco and two officers intercepted him near the loading ramp.
Dante remained behind the secured perimeter until the officers cleared the boarding area.
Then he followed the investigators aboard.
The ship smelled of saltwater, fuel, and cold metal.
They found Isabella Moretti in a small medical cabin.
She was weak but conscious.
When Dante entered, she opened her eyes.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Isabella whispered, "My boy."
Dante dropped to his knees beside her bed.
"Mom?"
She touched his face.
"You're older."
He laughed once.
A broken sound.
Then tears filled his eyes.
"I buried you."
"I know, sweetheart."
He pressed her hand against his forehead.
"I'm sorry."
"You came," she whispered. "That's what matters."
But Elena's mother wasn't in the cabin.
Sophia had been moved to another part of the ship.
An investigator found the locked room near the stern.
Inside, a medical monitor blinked beside an empty bed.
A nurse had been left behind.
She surrendered immediately.
"Where is Sophia Marlo?" Dante demanded.
The woman trembled.
"They took her off the ship before you arrived."
"Who?"
"Victoria Belandi."
Dante's phone rang.
Elena.
He answered immediately.
Her breathing was uneven.
"Dante, there's a woman standing across the dock."
"Get back inside the car."
"She has my mother's coat."
A cold silence followed.
Then Elena whispered something that made Dante's blood run cold.
"Victoria says she'll give me Sophia."
Dante began moving.
"Elena, don't go near her."
"But she wants something."
"What?"
Elena's voice shook.
"She wants me to sign away the trust."
Dante stopped.
Then another voice came through the phone.
Victoria's.
"Hello, Dante."
A pause.
"I see you've found your mother."
May you like
Her laughter was quiet.
"Now let's see whether Elena is willing to lose hers."
