Chapter 7: The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
The old Moretti house looked exactly like the kind of place where secrets went to die.
The mansion sat beyond the city limits, hidden behind iron gates covered in rust and climbing vines. The sky above it was gray, the kind of gray that made the entire world feel like it was holding its breath.
I sat in the back seat of Rico’s SUV, staring at the silver star around my neck.
For fifteen years, I thought it was just a necklace.
A memory.
A piece of my mother.
Now it felt like a key.
And I had no idea what door it opened.
Leo sat beside me, holding his stuffed rabbit.
He had refused to stay behind.
“No Clara,” he had said when Rico tried to leave him with one of the guards.
Rico had looked at his son.
“Leo, it’s dangerous.””
The little boy shook his head.
“Clara makes scary things not scary.””
Nobody had known what to say.
Including me.
So now the most feared man in Brooklyn was driving toward an abandoned mansion with a waitress, a three-year-old boy, and a secret that could destroy his family.
Dante sat in the front passenger seat, checking his weapon.
I noticed Rico watching me through the rearview mirror.
“What?””
He looked back at the road.
“Nothing.””
“You’re staring.””
A pause.
Then he said:
“I’m trying to understand how my wife knew you.””
I looked down.
“So am I.””
“She never mentioned a sister.””
“She didn’t have one.””
“A friend?””
“I don’t know.””
Rico’s fingers tightened around the steering wheel.
“That’s the problem.””
“What?””
“We spent ten years together.””
His voice lowered.
“I thought I knew everything about Isabella.””
I looked at him.
“But you didn’t.””
“No.””
The answer was quiet.
“And now I’m realizing the person closest to me was carrying a secret big enough to get her killed.””
Nobody spoke after that.
When we arrived at the mansion, Dante opened the door first.
The house looked abandoned.
But the cameras were active.
Someone was watching.
Rico noticed too.
“Stay behind me.””
I almost laughed.
“Are you serious?””
He looked at me.
“Yes.””
“You brought me here because I’m connected to this.””
“I brought you here because someone wants you involved.””
“Those are the same thing.””
His expression hardened.
“No. They aren’t.””
Before I could answer, the front door slowly opened.
Nobody touched it.
It just moved.
A cold breeze escaped from inside.
Dante raised his weapon.
“Boss.””
Rico stepped forward.
“Everyone stays close.””
We entered.
The inside smelled like old wood and dust.
But underneath that was something else.
Something fresh.
A candle.
Someone had been here recently.
Leo grabbed my hand.
“Clara.””
I looked down.
“What?””
He pointed toward the staircase.
“My mommy was there.””
I froze.
“What?””
Leo stared at the stairs.
“She carried me there.””
Rico immediately turned.
“Leo, what are you talking about?””
The boy looked confused.
“Mommy said hide.””
My heart started racing.
“When?””
Leo frowned.
“Before the bad day.””
Rico went still.
The bad day.
That was what children called things they couldn’t understand.
The day Isabella died.
“Leo,” Rico said carefully.
“What else do you remember?””
The boy looked around.
“Mommy was crying.””
A silence fell.
Rico looked like someone had punched him.
“My wife never cried in front of him.””
I looked at the staircase.
“She was scared.””
Rico didn’t answer.
Because he knew.
We searched the first floor.
Nothing.
Then Dante found something in the library.
“Boss.””
We rushed over.
Behind a bookshelf was a hidden door.
Inside was a small room.
A room that looked untouched.
Photographs covered the walls.
My mother.
Isabella.
My father.
And Rico.
I couldn’t move.
There were dozens.
My mother and Isabella laughing.
My father shaking hands with Rico’s father.
A picture of Isabella holding me as a baby.
I stepped closer.
“That’s impossible.””
Rico stared at the photograph.
His face had lost all color.
“Isabella…”
She had been holding a baby version of me.
On the back of the picture was a handwritten note.
*The girls will protect each other.*
Girls.
Not girl.
I looked at Rico.
“What does that mean?””
He didn’t answer.
Because another sound came from behind us.
A slow clap.
Everyone turned.
A woman stood in the doorway.
Older.
Pale.
But unmistakable.
The same eyes.
The same smile from the photographs.
Isabella Moretti.
Alive.
Leo dropped my hand.
“Mommy?””
The woman’s face broke.
“Leo.””
Rico stepped forward like the ground beneath him had disappeared.
“No.””
Isabella looked at him.
“Rico…”
His voice shook.
“You’re dead.””
She looked at me.
Then at the necklace.
“I know.””
I couldn’t breathe.
“You were alive this whole time?””
Isabella’s eyes filled with tears.
“I was trying to keep you alive.””
Rico stared at his wife.
“You let me bury you.””
She looked away.
“I had no choice.””
“Your son thought he lost his mother.””
The pain in his voice was worse than anger.
Isabella closed her eyes.
“I know.””
Then she looked at me.
“Clara, your mother saved my life.””
I stepped back.
“What?””
Isabella whispered:
“And I was supposed to save yours.””
Before anyone could ask another question, the lights suddenly went out.
A gunshot exploded through the darkness.
May you like
And Isabella screamed one word.
“Vincent.””
