Chapter 10: Elena’s Last Warning
I couldn't read the second sentence.
My hands were shaking too badly.
For two years, I had forced myself to accept that Elena's death was one of those cruel things life did without explanation.
She had collapsed at home.
The doctors told me it was an aneurysm.
I had stood beside a hospital bed while machines breathed around her.
I had signed papers.
I had buried my wife.
And three days before she died, she had written:
"If anything happens to me, protect Noah.""
"Rocco.""
Daniel's voice brought me back.
"Open the full document.""
I did.
There were six pages.
The first wasn't about Elena.
It was about Noah.
"I found discrepancies in Noah's medical records. Appointments we never attended. Evaluations we never authorized. Names added after documents were signed.""
Maria whispered, "Morrow.""
I kept reading.
Elena had discovered that one of Noah's early hearing specialists occasionally referred families to Morrow Family Services.
But Noah had never been referred.
Someone had created the referral anyway.
Then came a name.
Charles Bennett.
I stopped.
Victoria stared over my shoulder.
"What does it say?""
I read aloud.
"Charles told me the paperwork was routine. It isn't.""
Daniel's jaw tightened.
Elena had apparently confronted Charles about unauthorized trust documents.
He told her she misunderstood them.
She didn't believe him.
So she started investigating.
There were dates.
Meeting notes.
Account numbers.
Then another name appeared.
Marcus Hale.
My best friend.
My business partner.
A man who had stood beside me at Elena's funeral.
According to Elena, Marcus had met privately with Charles at least four times before her death.
I felt physically sick.
"No.""
Maria touched my arm.
I pulled away instinctively.
Not because of her.
Because I suddenly couldn't stand being touched.
I read faster.
Elena believed someone was building a system around wealthy families with vulnerable children.
Morrow created questionable assessments.
Lawyers created paperwork.
Business associates exploited the resulting family crisis.
But Elena didn't know how large it was.
Then I reached the final page.
"If you're reading this, I may not have gotten the chance to explain everything.""
I stopped.
My vision blurred.
I could hear Elena's voice in my head.
The way she used to say my name when I worked too late.
The way she laughed when Noah threw food.
The way she once told me:
"You can't protect us by only protecting the company.""
I hadn't listened.
And now I was reading words she'd left behind because she knew I might not.
I continued.
"Do not assume every person involved understands the whole operation. They isolate people. They use fear, jealousy, money, and secrets. Follow the documents, not the stories people tell you.""
My eyes moved to Victoria.
She looked away.
Then came the final line.
"Start with the blue ledger.""
Daniel frowned.
"What blue ledger?""
I didn't know.
But Maria did.
Her face changed.
"Rocco.""
I looked at her.
"Your old house.""
"What?""
"The house you shared with Elena.""
I stared at her.
After Elena died, I couldn't stay there.
Every room reminded me of her.
So I moved with Noah.
The property remained in the family trust.
Mostly untouched.
Maria continued.
"When we moved your office belongings, there was a blue notebook in Elena's desk.""
My heart accelerated.
"What happened to it?""
"I packed it.""
"Where?""
"Storage.""
Daniel immediately said, "We need it before the board hearing.""
I checked the time.
7:12 a.m.
Forty-eight minutes.
"We won't make both.""
Daniel looked toward the company headquarters visible several blocks away.
"If you miss the hearing, Marcus controls the narrative.""
"And if that ledger disappears?""
Nobody answered.
I looked at Victoria.
"Go to the hearing.""
She blinked.
"What?""
"You're listed as their witness.""
Her face tightened.
"You want me to testify?""
"I want you to tell the truth.""
Marcus still believed Victoria was useful.
Maybe that was our only advantage.
Daniel nodded slowly.
"She's right. If she doesn't appear, they'll know immediately she's switched sides.""
Victoria stared at me.
"You trust me?""
"No.""
The word hurt her.
It was supposed to.
"But I'm giving you one chance to do something honest.""
She swallowed.
"What do you want me to say?""
"The truth.""
She nodded.
Maria and I drove toward the storage facility.
Halfway there, my phone rang.
Noah's nanny.
I answered immediately.
"Is he okay?""
"He's fine, Mr. DeLuca.""
I exhaled.
Then she said:
"But someone just delivered a package.""
My stomach tightened.
"Don't touch it.""
"I didn't.""
"Who delivered it?""
"A courier.""
"Who is it addressed to?""
A pause.
"To Noah.""
I closed my eyes.
"Call security.""
"They're already here.""
"What does the package look like?""
"Small. Brown box.""
Maria was watching me.
Then the nanny said something that made my blood freeze.
"Mr. DeLuca?""
"What?""
"There's writing on the side.""
"What does it say?""
She read it slowly.
"Every child needs a quiet place.""
I nearly turned the car around.
Maria grabbed my arm.
"That's what they want.""
I looked at her.
"They want you scared. Distracted.""
She was right.
Again.
"Security locks down the house," I told the nanny.
"Nobody opens that package until authorities examine it.""
I ended the call.
We reached storage at 7:31.
The unit door was already open.
I stopped.
"Maria.""
"I see it.""
We entered carefully.
Boxes had been ripped apart.
Elena's belongings covered the floor.
Someone had beaten us here.
"No.""
I started searching.
Photographs.
Clothes.
Books.
Nothing.
Then Maria crouched beside an overturned wooden desk.
"Rocco.""
She reached beneath the bottom drawer.
There was a hidden panel.
Inside was a blue notebook.
I almost laughed from relief.
Then I opened it.
The first pages contained names.
Families.
Doctors.
Lawyers.
Payments.
Near the end, Elena had circled one name repeatedly.
Marcus Hale.
Beside it she had written:
"Marcus isn't running this.""
I turned the page.
One final name was underlined.
Charles Bennett.
May you like
And beneath his name:
"He answers to someone on Rocco's board.""
