Chapter 4 - The Lie on the Bridge|
"Talk," Luca commanded softly.
Hannah stood near the foyer entrance, her apron slightly crumpled, red curls hanging loosely around her pale face.
"I didn't mean to cause a scene tonight, Mr. Moretti," Hannah whispered, her voice trembling. "I applied for the catering job three weeks ago. I didn't know your foundation was hosting the event until yesterday morning."
"You knew my daughter was in that room," Luca pointed out, walking slowly toward her, his heavy leather shoes silent against the thick carpet.
"I didn't think she would recognize me," Hannah confessed, tears pricking her eyes again. "It was dark in the river three years ago. She was four years old, terrified, freezing to death under that crushed door. I held her head up above the rising tide for forty minutes until I heard sirens."
"Why were you on Ashwood Bridge at two in the morning, Miss Carter?" Luca asked, stopping two feet away from her. "That road was closed to commercial traffic an hour before the crash."
Hannah went entirely still. The color vanished from her face so fast she looked as if she might faint.
"I was driving home from my late shift at the diner," she lied.
"Don't lie to me," Luca said, his voice dropping into an icy register that made the air in the suite freeze. "I owned Ashwood Bridge's construction contracts. The barrier didn't fail because of rain, Miss Carter. The iron support beams were cut with a thermal torch forty minutes before my wife’s car reached the span."
Hannah gasped softly, her hand flying to her mouth.
"My wife died in that river," Luca continued, his gray eyes locking onto hers with terrifying intensity. "My daughter lost the use of her legs for three years. And you were the only witness who escaped the scene before my enforcers arrived."
"I didn't cut those beams!" Hannah cried out, her chin trembling violently. "I swear on my life, Mr. Moretti! I saw a dark SUV parked on the access road! I saw two men in yellow raincoats holding a torch! I stopped my car because I thought they were city workers!"
Luca’s jaw tightened until the bone looked ready to burst through his skin.
May you like
"Yellow raincoats?" Luca asked softly.
"Yes," Hannah wept. "And when the Lincoln came over the rise... when the road collapsed and the car went into the water... those two men didn't try to help. They got into their SUV and drove away."
