Chapter 2: The Woman Who Was Supposed To Be Dead
Nobody moved.
Marco stared at the phone in his hand like it was a bomb.
The restaurant had become so quiet I could hear the soft ticking of the wall clock behind the bar.
Ricardo’s gun was pointed at the floor, but his attention was locked on the screen.
“Answer it,” he ordered.
Marco swallowed.
“Boss…”
“Answer. The. Phone.””
Marco slowly pressed the button.
For a moment, there was only static.
Then a woman’s voice whispered through the speaker.
“Marco?””
My entire body went cold.
I knew that voice.
I had spent twenty-two years hearing it laugh, complain, sing badly in the kitchen, and whisper secrets under blankets when we were children.
“Sarah?”” I whispered.
The phone dropped from Marco’s hand.
Ricardo moved faster than anyone expected.
He grabbed the device.
“Who is this?””
Silence.
Then the voice returned.
“Ricardo?””
The mafia boss who made other men tremble suddenly looked broken.
“Sarah?””
Nobody spoke.
The voice on the phone shook.
“You have to get Leo out.””
Ricardo gripped the phone tighter.
“Where are you?””
A pause.
Then:
“I can’t tell you.””
His jaw tightened.
“You’re alive.””
The woman on the phone said nothing.
That silence was an answer.
My chest tightened.
My sister was alive.
After fourteen months of mourning, after countless nights staring at old pictures and wondering why I never got to say goodbye…
Sarah was alive.
I stepped closer.
“Sarah, it’s me.””
The line went silent.
Then a broken whisper.
“Clara?””
My eyes filled instantly.
“Sarah.””
A sharp breath came through the speaker.
“Oh my God.””
I covered my mouth.
“You’re alive.””
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
That was all she said.
Not an explanation.
Not a reason.
Just an apology.
Ricardo’s expression changed.
“Why did you let everyone believe you were dead?””
Sarah didn’t answer.
“Why did you leave your son?””
The question came out harsher.
Leo looked up at his father.
I saw the regret immediately cross Ricardo’s face.
But Sarah heard it.
“I never left him.””
Her voice cracked.
“Someone took him from me.””
Everyone froze.
Ricardo looked at Marco.
The bodyguard immediately stepped back.
“I don’t know what she’s talking about.””
Ricardo’s eyes became colder.
“Then explain why my son says you brought his mother to him.””
Marco shook his head.
“Boss, I swear—”
The call suddenly cut off.
Ricardo looked at the phone.
“Call back.””
Marco grabbed it.
“It’s dead.””
I stared at him.
“Convenient.””
His eyes snapped toward me.
“You don’t know anything.””
“No,” I said quietly.
“But I know my sister’s voice.””
The room erupted.
Bodyguards moved.
Waiters backed away.
Customers who had been pretending not to listen suddenly found reasons to leave.
Ricardo ignored all of them.
He looked at Leo.
“Son.””
Leo hugged my neck tighter.
“What happened yesterday?””
The little boy became nervous.
“Mommy said not to tell.””
Ricardo’s face changed.
“Leo.””
“She said bad people were watching.””
The words hung in the air.
I felt Ricardo’s hand tighten around the phone.
“Who?””
Leo looked at Marco.
“Uncle Marco.””
Marco’s expression collapsed.
“That’s a lie.””
Leo shook his head.
“No. Mommy was crying.””
Ricardo stared at his oldest friend.
“You brought my wife to my son?””
Marco stepped forward.
“I brought someone who looked like her.””
Nobody expected that answer.
Ricardo went still.
“What?””
Marco looked around.
“She wasn’t supposed to be alive.””
My stomach dropped.
“What does that mean?””
Marco looked at me.
And for the first time, I saw fear in his eyes.
“Sarah wasn’t the only person who survived that explosion.””
Ricardo’s voice lowered.
“Explain.””
Marco looked away.
“Someone wanted the Moretti family to believe she was dead.””
“And you helped them?””
Marco didn’t answer.
That was enough.
Ricardo turned away.
For a moment, I thought he would shoot him.
Instead, he said:
“Take him somewhere private.””
Two guards grabbed Marco.
As they dragged him away, he looked back at me.
“Clara.””
I hated that he sounded desperate.
“Ask your sister why she never told you about the night she disappeared.””
My blood ran cold.
Because Sarah had always been honest with me.
At least, I thought she was.
Later that night, Ricardo’s private security team moved us to a hidden apartment overlooking Manhattan.
Leo slept on the couch beside me, finally peaceful.
Ricardo stood near the window, staring at the city lights.
“She was your sister.””
I nodded.
“Yes.””
“You never knew about me?””
“No.””
He looked at the floor.
“She never mentioned you.””
The pain in his voice surprised me.
I looked at him.
“You loved her.””
His expression softened.
“More than anything.””
For the first time, I saw the man behind the rumors.
Not a mafia boss.
A husband.
A father.
A man who had lost the same woman I had.
Then Leo suddenly sat up.
His eyes were half closed.
“Auntie Clara…”
“What is it?””
He pointed toward the hallway.
“Mommy said you have the other half.””
I frowned.
“The other half of what?””
Leo reached toward my necklace.
“Her secret.””
My fingers touched the heart pendant.
The one Sarah gave me.
The one Ricardo had recognized.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message appeared from an unknown number.
One photo.
One sentence.
The photo showed Sarah standing alive outside a building.
May you like
And the message said:
*She didn’t disappear from Ricardo. She disappeared from you.*
