Chapter 10 - THE MOTHER WHO NEVER DIED
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Claire Donovan refused to say another word without a lawyer.
Rocco had her transferred to a secure location and returned Sophia to her mother. The little girl had a bruised wrist and a frightened silence that troubled him more than the injury.
Elena hugged her daughter so tightly that Sophia protested.
“Mommy, I can't breathe.”
Elena loosened her arms but refused to let go.
“Never do that to me again.”
“I didn't plan to be kidnapped.”
Despite herself, Elena laughed through her tears.
Rocco watched from the doorway.
He had protected powerful men for decades. He had ordered enemies removed and built walls around everyone he loved. Yet a little girl had reminded him that protection was not measured by how many guards stood outside a door.
It was measured by whether someone felt safe enough to sleep.
Later that night, Dominic delivered a new report.
Claire had confessed that Victor Sterling paid her to remove the infant from the mansion. However, she insisted that the baby had not been abandoned because of his identity alone.
He was a witness.
His mother had discovered evidence of a criminal arrangement involving stolen identities, forged inheritance documents, and several hospital transfers.
The mother was believed to be dead.
Her name was Isabella Hart.
Rocco read the report twice.
“Isabella died in a car accident.”
“That's what the official report says,” Dominic replied. “But the accident occurred on a private road owned by a company connected to Victor Sterling.”
Rocco looked up.
“Are you telling me the woman was murdered?”
“I'm telling you the accident investigation was closed within forty-eight hours. The vehicle was destroyed before independent examination.”
Rocco ordered the case reopened through his attorneys and contacted a private investigator who specialized in missing persons.
By morning, the investigator had found a discrepancy.
Isabella Hart had no confirmed funeral record.
The body had been identified through dental records, but the dental comparison had never been independently verified.
There was another detail.
Three days before the accident, Isabella had withdrawn a large sum of money and purchased a train ticket under a different name.
She had been planning to leave Chicago.
A witness at the station remembered a woman with a bandaged hand carrying a newborn.
The infant had been wrapped in a cream-colored blanket.
Rocco stared at the photograph of the blanket recovered from the trash area.
“Isabella survived.”
“Possibly,” Dominic said.
“And the child?”
“The investigator believes she may have left the baby with someone she trusted before disappearing.”
Rocco's phone rang.
It was Dr. Reed.
“I've completed a preliminary genetic comparison using the available medical records,” the doctor said. “The bracelet is not enough to establish identity, but the results suggest the infant may be biologically related to Isabella Hart.”
“Can you confirm that?”
“Not without a proper DNA test.”
Rocco looked toward the nursery.
Sophia was sitting beside the baby, showing him a picture book.
“Then we get one.”
Before he could end the call, Dr. Reed added another detail.
“There is something else. The original neonatal file contains a note about a second infant delivered that same night.”
“Another twin?”
“No. A separate mother. The note says the infant was transferred under the same temporary identification system used for Matteo.”
Rocco's stomach tightened.
“How many children were involved?”
“I don't know.”
The doctor lowered his voice.
“But the record ends with a handwritten instruction.”
“What instruction?”
“Keep the second envelope away from Victor Sterling.”
Rocco ended the call.
He had spent the entire night searching for a missing mother.
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Now he understood that Isabella might not be the only person who had disappeared.
And somewhere in Chicago, someone was still trying to make sure the truth stayed buried.
