Chapter 2: What They Were Trying To Take
I took my mother away from the patio before anyone could say another word.
The celebration continued behind us.
That was the part I couldn’t understand.
People had watched.
They had seen an elderly woman sitting on the ground with a chain around her neck.
And they had done nothing.
Inside the mansion, I placed my mother in a chair near the fireplace.
A doctor arrived within minutes.
Not because I asked twice.
Because everyone knew what happened when someone harmed my family.
My mother hated that.
She always had.
“Salvatore,” she said softly.
I looked at her.
“You’re angry.””
I almost laughed.
“Angry?””
She reached for my hand.
“Anger makes people careless.””
I looked at the bruised skin around her neck.
The words disappeared.
“Mother, someone chained you.””
“I know.””
“Someone starved you.””
Her eyes lowered.
“I know.””
“Then tell me who.””
She stayed silent.
That silence frightened me more than any answer.
My mother had survived decades around dangerous people.
She knew when silence was safer than truth.
The doctor finished his examination and stepped away.
“She needs rest,” he said quietly.
I nodded.
After he left, I closed the door.
“Mother.””
She looked at me.
“What did they want?””
For a moment, she said nothing.
Then she whispered:
“The safe.””
I froze.
“What safe?””
“The one your father left.””
My father had been dead for twelve years.
But there were still things from his past that nobody discussed.
Things buried under money, loyalty, and fear.
“What is inside?””
My mother looked toward the hallway.
“Hattie and Nolan think there is something valuable.””
“Is there?””
She hesitated.
“Yes.””
My chest tightened.
“What?””
Before she could answer, someone knocked.
Hard.
The door opened.
Nolan walked in.
The arrogance had returned slightly.
“Salvatore, we need to discuss what happened.””
I stared at him.
“You need to leave.””
“This affects my family too.””
I stepped closer.
“You put a chain around my mother.””
Nolan’s face hardened.
“You don’t understand the situation.””
“No.””
I looked him directly in the eyes.
“You’re right.””
“I don’t understand how someone convinces themselves that starving an old woman is acceptable.””
Nolan’s jaw tightened.
“You’re making accusations.””
“Because they are true.””
He looked toward my mother.
“Adelaide, tell him.””
My mother looked uncomfortable.
That angered me.
Nolan was still trying to use her.
“Tell him what?”” I asked.
Nolan crossed his arms.
“That she agreed to cooperate.””
My mother said nothing.
And that was the answer.
I walked toward Nolan slowly.
“You forced my mother into silence.””
“That’s not what happened.””
“Then why was she chained?””
No response.
I leaned closer.
“Why was she hungry?””
Still nothing.
Then a voice came from behind him.
Hattie.
“She was protecting herself.””
I turned.
“What?””
Hattie entered the room.
She looked calmer now.
Too calm.
“She knows what she did.””
My eyes narrowed.
“What did my mother do?””
Hattie smiled slightly.
And I knew immediately.
She had rehearsed this.
“Your mother hid something from this family.””
My mother’s face changed.
Only slightly.
But I noticed.
“What did she hide?””
Hattie looked at Nolan.
Then back at me.
“The truth about your father’s final agreement.””
The room became silent.
My father’s final agreement.
A subject nobody had mentioned in years.
I looked at my mother.
She looked away.
And suddenly I understood.
This was never about food.
Never about obedience.
Never about respect.
They weren’t trying to punish my mother.
They were trying to break her.
To make her reveal something.
“What agreement?”” I asked.
Nobody answered.
Then my phone rang.
The screen showed an unknown number.
I answered.
A man’s voice spoke immediately.
“Salvatore Moretti?””
“Yes.””
“You need to get your mother out of that house.””
My grip tightened.
“Who is this?””
A pause.
Then:
“Someone who knows what happened during those five days.””
The call ended.
I stared at the phone.
Because whoever was on the other end knew something I didn’t.
And before I could call back, another message appeared.
One sentence.
One name.
May you like
The name of the person who had been helping Hattie and Nolan all along.
My father’s name.
