Chapter 10: The Daughter of a Dead Man
For several seconds, I couldn't hear anything except the pounding of my heart.
My mother's name was written beneath Sophia's on a document connected to a fortune worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Dante Russo's dead father had apparently known I would return to Manhattan someday.
But I had never met the man.
I'd never even heard his name mentioned in my childhood home.
“That's impossible,” I whispered.
Lucia Russo closed the notebook.
“I understand why you feel that way.””
“No, you don't.”” My voice rose.
“My mother worked two jobs to keep our apartment. She cut coupons, repaired my clothes, and sometimes pretended she wasn't hungry so I could have dinner. She never mentioned a trust fund or your husband.””
Lucia looked at me with something resembling pity.
“Your mother was protecting you.””
“From what?””
She glanced toward Dante.
“From the same people who destroyed this family.””
Dante stepped between us.
“Mother, enough riddles. Tell us who Grace's mother was.””
Lucia hesitated.
Then she said a name that made my stomach turn.
“Margaret Bennett.””
I nodded impatiently.
“Yes. That's my mother.””
Lucia shook her head.
“Margaret Bennett was not the name she was born with.””
She opened the notebook again and turned to a page filled with dates, handwritten notes, and copies of old documents.
“Your mother was Margaret Russo.””
The room tilted.
“No.””
“Your mother was your father's younger sister,” Lucia continued.
“She changed her name after she left the family.””
I stared at her.
“My father was Daniel Bennett.””
“Daniel was your adoptive father,” Lucia said gently.
“He raised you after Margaret disappeared from the family. He loved you as his own.””
I backed away.
Every childhood memory suddenly felt unfamiliar.
The photographs on our living room wall. The stories about how my parents had met. The way my mother used to become silent whenever anyone mentioned Manhattan.
My father had died when I was sixteen.
My mother had died four years later.
And now a woman I had met less than an hour ago was telling me that my entire family history was a lie.
“Why would my mother leave?”” I asked.
Lucia lowered her eyes.
“Because she discovered what her brother was doing.””
“Her brother?””
“Richard Vale.””
The name struck me like a physical blow.
Richard wasn't merely connected to the Russo family.
He was my mother's older brother.
The man currently holding Sophia hostage was my uncle.
Dante stared at his mother.
“Why didn't you tell us this earlier?””
“Because Margaret begged me never to reveal Grace's identity unless Richard threatened her life.””
“And you waited until now?””
Lucia's eyes filled with tears.
“I thought the danger had passed.””
I laughed bitterly.
“You thought wrong.””
Dante turned toward me.
“Grace, listen to me. Whatever your family did, you aren't responsible for it.””
“How reassuring.””
“I mean it.””
“You've spent the last three days discovering that your entire life was built on lies. Don't tell me you know how I feel.””
His jaw tightened, but he didn't argue.
Instead, he placed the trust document on the table.
“Your mother was named as the original guardian of the fund. When she died, the rights passed to you.””
I stared at the signature.
Margaret Russo.
My mother's handwriting.
Beneath it, a clause stated that I could authorize the release of the original financial records, but only if I appeared in person and verified my identity.
“Why would I be connected to Sophia's trust?”” I asked.
“Because your mother designed it that way,” Lucia answered.
“She wanted Sophia to have a future that neither Richard nor the Russo family could control.””
Dante studied the document.
“If Grace is the guardian, Richard needs her.””
“And if she refuses,” Lucia said, “he can still use Sophia to force Michael's signature.””
Dante's expression hardened.
“Then we remove both options.””
He reached for his phone.
I caught his arm.
“Wait.””
He looked at me.
“I'm going with you.””
“No.””
“Richard is my uncle. My mother is the reason this trust exists. And if he wants me, I can use that.””
“You're not bait.””
“I'm not asking your permission.””
Dante stared at me for a long moment.
Then he looked toward the hallway, where Michael lay recovering from his wound.
“Richard expects us to come after Sophia,” he said.
“He'll have guards waiting.””
“Then we don't go through the front door.””
A faint smile touched Dante's mouth.
“Your mother would have liked you.””
I swallowed.
“I wish I'd had the chance to ask her about all this.””
His expression softened.
“You still have a chance to decide what kind of family you want to build.””
Before I could answer, Dante's phone rang.
Richard.
Dante answered and put the call on speaker.
“Have you made your decision?”” Richard asked.
Dante's voice was ice.
“You'll never touch the trust.””
“Then I suppose Sophia will have to learn what happens when people disobey me.””
I heard a small sob in the background.
“Uncle Richard?”” a child's voice whispered.
Richard's tone instantly became gentle.
“Yes, sweetheart?””
“Can I go home now?””
Dante closed his eyes.
Richard sighed theatrically.
“I'm afraid your daddy hasn't made that possible yet.””
“Please,” Sophia whispered.
“I want my daddy.””
Dante's hand tightened around the phone.
“Richard, listen carefully. If you frighten her again, I will—”
“You will what? Kill me? Destroy my businesses? Make another enemy disappear?””
Richard laughed.
“You sound exactly like your father.””
“I'm nothing like him.””
“No?”” Richard asked.
“Then prove it. Come to the chapel at midnight. Bring Grace, the original trust documents, and no armed men.””
Dante's eyes narrowed.
“Why the chapel?””
“Because that's where your mother hid the original birth certificate.””
Lucia went pale.
Richard continued.
“Come alone, Dante. If I see anyone else, Sophia dies.””
The call ended.
Dante stared at the dark screen.
I looked at the clock.
11:17 p.m.
Forty-three minutes.
Lucia gripped my hand.
“Grace, there's something else about the chapel.””
“What?””
She swallowed.
“Your mother didn't just hide the birth certificate there.””
“What did she hide?””
Lucia looked directly into my eyes.
“The evidence that proves Richard ordered your father's murder.””
I froze.
“My father died of a heart attack.””
Lucia's face crumpled.
“That's what Richard told everyone.””
She reached into the notebook and pulled out a final photograph.
It showed my father standing outside the old Russo chapel, holding a newspaper dated twenty-two years earlier.
May you like
On the back, my mother had written six words.
Daniel knew who would kill him.
