Chapter 6 - The Invitation That Wasn't an Invitation|
The invitation arrived the following morning, delivered by a messenger wearing white gloves.
It was a cream card embossed with the Vitali family crest. Adriana was hosting a charity gala at the Palmer House, and the card requested Massimo's presence.
A second line had been handwritten beneath the printed invitation.
Bring the florist. We have something that belongs to her.
Sophie read it twice.
“Why would they have something that belongs to me?”
Massimo examined the card.
“They may not.”
“Then why invite me?”
“Because they want me to bring you.”
“Which means I shouldn't go.”
“Correct.”
“Good. We're learning.”
He folded the invitation.
“You're still going.”
Sophie stared at him.
“You just agreed I shouldn't!”
“I agreed you shouldn't walk into a trap without knowing what it is. There's a difference.”
“I have a flower shop to run.”
“And someone has been using your shop, your schedule, and your name to reach me.”
“Then send your security team.”
“They won't know what they're looking for.”
“And I will?”
Massimo looked at her.
“You notice things other people ignore.”
It was the closest thing to a compliment she had received from him.
Sophie hated that it pleased her.
That evening, she wore a deep green dress borrowed from Maya, who declared that if Sophie was going to be involved in organized crime, she might as well look expensive.
Massimo arrived in a black suit.
He paused when he saw her.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“You're staring.”
“I'm reconsidering the wisdom of bringing you.”
“Because I look terrible?”
“Because everyone will look at you.”
Sophie raised an eyebrow.
“Is that a problem?”
“Potentially.”
She smiled despite herself.
At the gala, the ballroom glittered with chandeliers, champagne glasses, and people who had perfected the art of appearing friendly while calculating one another's weaknesses.
Adriana approached them near the entrance.
“You came.”
“You invited us,” Massimo replied.
“I invited you. The florist was a request.”
“Then you should have asked her.”
Adriana studied Sophie.
“I'm glad you came.”
Sophie couldn't tell whether she meant it.
A string quartet played near the staircase. Wealthy donors mingled beneath enormous floral arrangements, many of which Sophie recognized as her own designs.
She was examining one centerpiece when she noticed a small black camera concealed inside a cluster of white orchids.
She leaned toward Massimo.
“There's a camera in the flowers.”
He didn't look at it.
“Don't touch it.”
“I'm a florist. I can tell when something doesn't belong.”
“Can you identify it?”
“Not from here.”
He called Rafael, who quietly removed the device.
Inside its casing was a memory card.
Minutes later, Rafael returned with a message.
“The card contains photographs of the trust's private meetings.”
Massimo's eyes narrowed.
“Who had access to the room?”
“Dominic Shaw. Your uncle. Two accountants. And Mrs. Romano's secretary.”
Sophie looked across the ballroom.
Vittorio was laughing with Dominic near the bar.
Adriana stood alone beside the staircase, watching them.
Then a waiter approached Sophie carrying a silver tray.
“Miss Miller? Someone asked me to give you this.”
On the tray lay a small envelope.
Inside was a photograph of Sophie as a child, standing beside a woman she barely remembered.
Her mother.
Sophie felt the ballroom tilt.
Beneath the photograph was a handwritten message.
YOUR MOTHER DIDN'T DIE IN AN ACCIDENT. ASK ISABELLA ROMANO WHAT SHE SAW.
Sophie gripped the paper.
Massimo noticed immediately.
“What is it?”
She handed him the photograph.
For the first time that evening, his composure broke completely.
He looked at the picture, then at Sophie.
“Where did you get this?”
“A waiter brought it.”
Massimo turned toward the crowd.
But the waiter had disappeared.
Across the ballroom, Isabella Romano was standing beside the grand staircase.
She had seen the photograph.
May you like
And when Sophie approached her, the elderly woman's face filled with a grief that looked older than the house itself.
“Oh, child,” Isabella whispered. “I prayed no one would ever tell you.”
