Chapter 10 - THE BROTHER I SACRIFICED EVERYTHING FOR
Nico Romano.
My older brother.
The person I'd given up my college savings to protect.
The person my father said had made a mistake.
The person Marietta always treated like a prince.
Had allegedly been involved in the conspiracy that killed our mother.
Isabella stared at the investigator.
“No.”
Her voice was barely audible.
“Nico was only twenty-two when Mom died.”
Marco looked at her.
“That doesn't mean he couldn't have been involved.”
She shook her head.
“He was my brother.”
Sofia reached for her hand.
“Isabella…”
But Isabella pulled away.
She needed space.
She needed air.
She walked outside Bellavita and stood beneath the streetlights.
Chicago traffic moved around her.
People laughed.
Cars passed.
Life continued.
But inside her, something had shattered.
For years, she'd carried guilt for leaving her family.
She'd wondered whether she was selfish.
Whether she should have stayed.
Whether she owed her father another chance.
Now she was beginning to understand that the people she'd sacrificed for might have been hiding terrible crimes.
Marco followed her outside.
He stopped several feet away.
“Do you want company?”
Isabella wiped her eyes.
“Yes.”
He stood beside her.
For a while, neither spoke.
Then she whispered:
“I gave Nico everything.”
Marco looked toward the street.
“I know.”
“My savings. My time. My trust.”
Her voice broke.
“And he let me believe I was selfish for asking for anything back.”
Marco turned toward her.
“Isabella, helping family doesn't mean allowing them to destroy you.”
She looked at him.
His expression was serious.
But gentle.
For the first time, she understood why Rosa trusted him.
Beneath the fearsome reputation was a man who knew what it meant to carry a family's mistakes.
Then her phone rang.
Nico.
She stared at the screen.
Marco noticed.
“You don't have to answer.”
Isabella took a breath.
“I want to.”
She answered.
“Nico.”
His voice sounded strained.
“Isabella, where are you?”
“Why?”
“You need to stop talking to the DeLucas.”
She closed her eyes.
“Did you know what happened to Mom?”
Silence.
Then Nico said:
“Don't believe everything they tell you.”
“Did you know?”
He exhaled sharply.
“It's complicated.”
Her stomach turned.
“No. It isn't.”
“Isabella—”
“Did you help Marietta?”
A long pause.
Then Nico whispered:
“I didn't think anyone would die.”
The world seemed to stop.
Isabella covered her mouth.
Nico continued.
“I thought they only wanted to frighten Mom into signing the documents.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“And when she died?”
He began crying.
“I panicked.”
Isabella stared at the pavement.
“You let me spend twelve years believing it was an accident.”
He said nothing.
Then his voice changed.
“Listen, there's something worse.”
She felt cold.
“What?”
“Marietta knows you're with Marco.”
“So?”
Nico swallowed.
“She has the original trust documents.”
Isabella's heart raced.
“And?”
“She plans to destroy them tonight.”
May you like
Then he whispered:
“Because those papers prove the DeLuca fortune doesn't belong entirely to Marco.”
