Chapter 19 - THE LAST MORETTI SECRET|
Lily Bennett was twenty-six years old.
I had never met her.
Robert had kept her existence secret because her mother had died when Lily was a baby, and he had been too ashamed of his debts and criminal associations to raise her himself.
She had grown up with another family, believing her father had abandoned her.
According to Robert, Douglas had found her years ago and used her as leverage.
I felt sick.
“Where is she?”
“I don't know,” Robert said. “Douglas told me she was safe. He said if I cooperated, he'd leave her alone.”
“Did you believe him?”
“I wanted to.”
Evelyn contacted the detective immediately.
Robert provided every detail he remembered: a name, a phone number, and an address where Douglas had once arranged to meet him.
Alexander arrived while we were speaking.
He listened, then made a call.
I raised my hand.
“Police only.”
He stopped.
“I wasn't going to send anyone without telling you.”
“Then call the detective.”
He did.
Within an hour, the police had located a property connected to Douglas. It was a small house outside the city, registered to a company that had received money from Northbridge Development.
They found Lily there.
She was frightened but unharmed.
When I met her at the police station, she looked at me with wary eyes.
“Are you Claire?”
“Yes.”
“Why are you here?”
I sat across from her.
“Because your father asked me to help.”
She looked away.
“He didn't help me when I was growing up.”
“I know.”
“He didn't even call.”
“I know.”
She studied my face.
“Then why should I trust him?”
“You shouldn't have to trust him today.”
Her expression softened slightly.
“Are you the woman who was married to Alexander Moretti?”
I nodded.
“I heard about you.”
“I'm sorry.”
She shook her head.
“Don't be. I think you were the only person who tried to stop them.”
I looked at her.
“What do you mean?”
“Douglas used to talk about you. He said your mother had made the same mistake you were making. He said women who believed they could stand against powerful men always ended up alone.”
I felt anger rise.
“Then he doesn't know women very well.”
Lily gave a small, tired smile.
The detective informed us that Douglas had been arrested on charges connected to fraud, forgery, obstruction, and the attempted assault at the temporary residence. The investigation into my mother's death would continue.
But there was one final piece.
Douglas had kept a private account containing payments made to several members of the Moretti organization.
The account could expose the entire network.
Alexander had to decide whether to surrender the records, knowing that doing so would damage his own businesses and expose people who had been loyal to him for years.
I met him in the courthouse corridor.
“What are you going to do?”
“Give them everything.”
“Even if it costs you?”
“Yes.”
“Even if your family turns against you?”
He looked at me.
“Especially then.”
He handed the detective a sealed envelope.
Inside were the account records, the names of the companies, and a statement admitting that he had failed to investigate warning signs when they first appeared.
His attorneys warned him that the statement could expose him to criminal liability.
He signed it anyway.
For the first time, Alexander Moretti had chosen the truth over his family's power.
I wanted to believe it meant he had changed.
Then, as we left the courthouse, a reporter shouted a question.
“Mr. Moretti! Is it true your wife is carrying your heir?”
Alexander stopped.
He looked at me.
The cameras turned toward us.
I could have walked away.
Instead, I took a breath and faced them.
“My child is not an heir to anyone's empire,” I said. “This baby is a person. And I will raise my child to know that love is never something you have to hide.”
May you like
Alexander stood beside me, silent.
For once, he let my words be the last ones heard.
