Chapter 8 - The Woman Behind the Green Uniform
Nia recognized the face immediately.
"Rosa?"
Enzo nodded.
Rosa Bennett was the estate's head housekeeper.
Fifty-six years old.
Widowed.
Mother of three.
She had been the first person to welcome Nia when she arrived at the mansion.
She had shown her where to eat, how to operate the industrial laundry machines, and which guards were kind enough to help carry heavy furniture.
When Nia worked late, Rosa saved her dinner.
When Nia received another overdue medical bill, Rosa quietly left a twenty-dollar bill in her locker.
Nia had thought of her as the closest thing she had to family in Denver.
"No," Nia whispered.
Enzo looked at her.
"I'm sorry."
"What exactly did they find?"
"Her fingerprints on an inner seal recovered from the tea supplies. It's a lead, not proof of what she knew."
Nia shook her head.
"She wouldn't."
Matteo looked at the photograph.
"Bring her in for questioning through the investigators."
Enzo nodded.
But Nia caught his arm.
"Let me talk to her first, with the detectives present."
He hesitated.
"She may be involved."
"Then I want to hear it from her."
An hour later, Rosa sat inside a police interview room.
Her hands were folded tightly in her lap.
When Nia entered with a detective, Rosa began crying.
"I'm sorry, baby."
Nia stopped.
Those three words hurt more than an accusation would have.
"Why?"
Rosa covered her face.
"They had my son."
Nia felt the room shift.
"What?"
Rosa explained that her youngest son, Marcus, had borrowed money from men connected to Carlo.
When he couldn't repay it, they threatened him.
Then Beatrice approached Rosa.
She wanted her to replace a sealed package of tea in Matteo's suite.
Rosa had been told it was a harmless herbal blend.
But later she became suspicious.
She asked questions.
And Carlo threatened Marcus again.
"I didn't know he was trying to kill Mr. Costa," Rosa whispered.
Tears ran down her cheeks.
"When I figured out something was wrong, I was afraid they'd hurt my boy."
Nia sat across from her.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because you would've tried to help."
"Yes."
"And they would've hurt you too."
Rosa began sobbing.
The detective gently asked her to explain everything she remembered.
She described Beatrice's instructions, the dates she handled the package, and the messages she received.
She also provided information about where Marcus was being held.
Authorities immediately began working to locate him.
Nia stepped outside.
Her emotions were tangled.
Rosa had helped create an opportunity for Matteo to be poisoned.
She had also been threatened.
Neither fact erased the other.
Enzo stood beside the vending machine.
"What happened?"
"She says Carlo threatened her son."
Enzo nodded slowly.
"We'll make sure investigators have everything."
Nia looked toward the interview room.
"She should've told someone."
"Yes."
"But she was terrified."
"I know."
Nia wiped her eyes.
"I hate what fear does to people."
Enzo looked at her.
"So do I."
By evening, Marcus had been located safely.
Rosa agreed to cooperate with the investigation.
Her testimony connected Beatrice to the handling of the suspicious tea.
Meanwhile, detectives obtained additional financial evidence involving Carlo's companies.
The emerging picture was larger than anyone had imagined.
Carlo had allegedly diverted millions from apartment maintenance funds, charitable accounts, and legitimate Costa businesses.
When Matteo began asking questions about missing revenue, Carlo had started preparing the succession documents.
Then Matteo became sick.
Nia sat in the hospital conference room as an investigator explained the timeline.
"This appears to involve both financial fraud and a suspected attempted homicide," Detective Allison Reed said.
Matteo sat beside his attorney.
His expression was unreadable.
Reed continued.
"We also need to discuss the broader activities of the Costa organization."
Matteo glanced at his lawyer.
"I understand."
Nia studied him.
He had spent years ruling through intimidation.
Now the same world was collapsing around him.
But there were people beyond the mansion who had suffered because of those businesses.
Families in the Lakewood apartments.
Workers who had been cheated.
People who had been threatened.
Nia wanted Carlo stopped.
She also wanted the victims to matter.
After the meeting, Matteo asked her to stay.
"There's something I need to tell you."
She folded her arms.
"What?"
"I knew some of the businesses weren't clean."
Nia felt her stomach tighten.
"How much did you know?"
"Not enough about Carlo's scheme. But enough about other things."
"Did you hurt people?"
He looked away.
"Yes."
Nia took a step back.
For weeks, she had begun seeing him as a man fighting for his life.
But his illness didn't erase what he'd done.
"You can't just say you're sorry."
"I know."
"You can't buy forgiveness."
"I know."
"And you can't expect me to pretend you're innocent because I helped save you."
Matteo met her eyes.
"I don't."
Nia's voice softened.
"Then what are you going to do?"
He looked toward the window.
For a long time, he didn't answer.
Then he said:
"I'm going to tell the truth."
The next morning, Matteo began formally cooperating with investigators through his attorney.
He provided records, identified accounts, and agreed to disclose information about the organization's criminal operations.
His cooperation did not guarantee immunity.
He understood that.
But he continued.
Carlo, meanwhile, had not disappeared.
He was hiding in a remote mountain property owned through a shell company.
And he had one final plan.
At 11:46 p.m., the hospital lost power.
Emergency lights flickered on.
A backup generator activated.
Nia was walking toward Matteo's room when the elevator doors opened.
A man in a maintenance uniform stepped out.
He carried a toolbox.
His face was partially concealed beneath a baseball cap.
Nia glanced down.
A gold signet ring gleamed on his finger.
Her blood turned cold.
"Carlo."
He slowly looked up.
May you like
And smiled.
"Hello, sweetheart."
