Chapter 5 - THE ATTORNEY WHO KNEW TOO MUCH|
Robert Hale arrived at the mansion forty minutes later.
He entered through the front doors carrying a leather briefcase, accompanied by two men Dominic had never seen before. Their suits were expensive, their expressions blank, and their hands rested suspiciously close to their jackets.
Marcus met them in the foyer.
“Mr. Hale, you're going to have to leave your men here.”
Robert frowned.
“I'm the family's attorney.”
“And this is the family's house.”
Dominic appeared at the top of the staircase.
“Let him through. His friends can wait outside.”
Robert climbed the stairs slowly. He was seventy-one, with silver hair and a carefully cultivated reputation for discretion. He had advised three generations of Vitale men and survived every internal dispute by remaining useful to the winner.
Dominic had always considered that a virtue.
Tonight, it looked like cowardice.
They entered the private study.
Dominic placed the photograph of Anthony on the desk.
“Explain.”
Robert studied it without visible surprise.
“How long have you known he was alive?”
“Since your father's funeral.”
Dominic felt the words like a physical blow.
“You told me you identified his body.”
“I told you the identification had been accepted by the authorities.”
“You let me bury an empty coffin?”
Robert lowered his eyes.
“Your father believed Anthony was more dangerous alive than dead. He wanted the family to move forward.”
“So you lied to me for fifteen years.”
“I protected you.”
Dominic struck the desk with his palm.
“Don't you dare use that word.”
Robert flinched.
The older man took a breath.
“Anthony was involved in a criminal organization known as the Black Wolf Circle. Your father discovered that the group was moving money through legitimate businesses and using children to manipulate wealthy families. He tried to expose them.”
“Then why fake Anthony's death?”
“Because Anthony offered to cooperate. Your father agreed to hide him until the investigation was complete.”
“And the warehouse fire?”
“An accident arranged to make the disappearance convincing.”
Dominic stared at him.
“You expect me to believe my father faked his own brother's death to protect him?”
“No. Your father believed Anthony would eventually testify against the Circle.”
“What happened?”
Robert's face grew weary.
“Anthony changed his mind. He decided the organization offered him more power than his family ever could.”
Dominic turned toward the window.
“And Emily?”
Robert was silent too long.
“Emily discovered the truth about the Circle's financial network. She found records that connected several influential people to the organization.”
“Who?”
“Politicians. Businessmen. Police officers. Some people inside your own organization.”
Dominic looked back.
“Was my father involved?”
Robert didn't answer.
“Tell me.”
“Your father accepted money from the Circle before he understood what it was being used for. When he realized the truth, he tried to withdraw. They threatened his family.”
Dominic remembered the years when his father had become distant, the locked study, the sudden security upgrades, and the arguments that ended whenever Dominic entered a room.
“How did Emily die?”
Robert rubbed his forehead.
“I don't know whether Anthony arranged the accident. But I know Emily was trying to meet someone the night she died.”
“Who?”
“She never told me.”
Dominic leaned forward.
“Why did you give Anthony access to my security system?”
Robert looked genuinely shocked.
“I didn't.”
“Your code was used.”
“Then someone has stolen my credentials.”
Dominic studied him.
Robert might be telling the truth, or he might simply be better at lying than Serena.
“What is the blue key?”
The attorney opened his briefcase and removed a faded photograph of a small brass key attached to a blue ribbon.
“It opens a safety deposit box registered under your father's name. The box contains documents that could destroy the Black Wolf Circle.”
“Where is it?”
“Your father gave it to Emily.”
“Why?”
“Because he trusted her more than he trusted anyone in the family.”
Dominic looked at the photograph again.
Rose had mentioned a blue key, but she claimed not to know where it was.
“Did Emily tell you where she hid it?”
“No.”
Robert paused.
“But she left a message in her estate papers. I never understood it until now.”
He pulled a document from the briefcase.
The message was written in Emily's handwriting.
When the house forgets the truth, ask the child what the piano remembers.
Dominic's pulse quickened.
The piano.
The hidden letters.
The photograph of Rose.
He suddenly understood that the child had not been targeted merely because she was the heir to his family.
Someone believed she knew where Emily had hidden the key.
Dominic grabbed his coat.
“Marcus! We're going back to the music room.”
Robert rose quickly.
“Dominic, wait.”
“What now?”
The attorney's face had gone pale.
“There's something else. Anthony wasn't the only person who knew about the safety deposit box.”
“Who else?”
Robert looked toward the door.
“Your girlfriend.”
Dominic froze.
“Serena?”
Robert nodded.
“Because Serena Vale isn't the woman she told you she was.”
Before Dominic could question him further, Marcus's radio crackled.
A security officer spoke in a panicked voice.
“Boss, we've got a problem. Serena's escaped.”
Dominic turned sharply.
“How?”
“She disabled the cameras and took a vehicle from the underground garage.”
Marcus listened for another second, then looked at Dominic.
“She left something behind.”
He held up a small silver necklace.
Attached to it was a miniature photograph of a young man.
May you like
On the back were three words.
FIND MY BROTHER.
