Chapter 17 - The Recording Elena Left Before She Disappeared
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Two days after the gala, Charlotte called me into her office.
Naomi was already there.
So was Detective Olivia Hart, a Chicago investigator reviewing the financial complaints and evidence related to Elena Vega's disappearance.
I had met Hart once before.
She wasn't impressed by the DeLuca name.
That suited me.
“Mr. DeLuca,” she said, “we have information you should hear.”
I sat down.
Charlotte opened a folder.
“Samuel Pike's records led investigators to an archived digital file from Havenbridge.”
“What kind of file?”
“A recording made by Elena Vega.”
My chest tightened.
“Before the fire?”
Hart nodded.
“Three days before.”
Charlotte explained that the recording had been preserved with a private attorney who once represented Elena in an employment dispute.
The attorney had retired, and the file was discovered during a recent records review.
It had been provided to investigators through proper legal channels.
Hart pressed play.
A woman's voice filled the room.
It was quiet.
Exhausted.
But determined.
“My name is Elena Vega. If this recording is being heard because I can no longer explain what happened, I want one thing understood.”
I stopped breathing.
“I was employed by the DeLuca Family Relief Trust. I discovered transfers that did not match the purposes reported to donors.”
A faint sound came through the recording.
Papers moving.
Then Elena continued.
“I tried to resolve the discrepancies internally. After I raised concerns, I began receiving warnings.”
My fists tightened.
“I have two children. Lucas and Renee. They have done nothing wrong.”
For several seconds, Elena was silent.
Then her voice broke.
“If someone tells them I abandoned them, please tell them I didn't.”
I closed my eyes.
Charlotte placed a tissue box beside me.
The recording continued.
“There is a location where copies of the documents were stored. The entrance is painted blue. It was a temporary records office used by Havenbridge.”
I sat upright.
The blue door.
Renee's drawing.
Her memory hadn't been meaningless.
It had been a fragment of something real.
Elena continued.
“If the records are still there, they'll show who approved the payments and who ordered the changes.”
Then the recording ended.
I stared at the laptop.
Nobody spoke.
Finally, Hart leaned forward.
“We've identified a former Havenbridge property matching that description.”
“Where?”
“On the South Side.”
I stood.
“Then let's go.”
Hart raised her hand.
“Our team is pursuing access through the appropriate legal process. We don't want anyone interfering with potential evidence.”
I forced myself to sit back down.
For years, I'd been accustomed to acting immediately.
Now restraint mattered more than speed.
Charlotte looked toward me.
“There's another development.”
“What?”
“The hospital record associated with Elena's reported death was questioned shortly after the warehouse incident.”
I felt a chill.
“By whom?”
“A physician who treated an unidentified woman admitted that night.”
I stared at her.
Hart continued.
“The woman's injuries were consistent with smoke exposure. She survived and was transferred for further care.”
“Was it Elena?”
“We're still confirming the identification.”
I leaned forward.
“And where did she go?”
Hart hesitated.
“The transfer record lists a different name.”
She handed me a copy.
I stared at it.
The patient had been transferred to a private rehabilitation facility.
The destination was outside Chicago.
And the authorization listed a financial guarantor.
A company controlled by Victor March.
I looked up slowly.
“Victor paid for her treatment?”
Hart nodded.
“According to the record.”
My stomach tightened.
May you like
If Elena had survived, Victor may have known all along.
And if he knew where she was, he could also know where Lucas had been taken.
