She was crying silently now.
Lorenzo approached her.
"He is alive."
She looked up.
"After eleven years."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I don't know."
She shook her head.
"I don't know whether to be happy or furious."
"You can be both."
She looked at him.
"Do you think we'll find him?"
Lorenzo nodded.
"We will."
"How can you be certain?"
"Because I owe him."
Elena wiped her face.
"Is that the only reason?"
Lorenzo considered the question.
"No."
He looked toward the photograph of his father.
"Your father once saved a man who had not earned it. I intend to prove that his decision was not wasted."
***
The next forty-eight hours were the longest of Lorenzo's life.
He summoned his closest advisers.
He reviewed financial records.
He questioned every employee who had access to the estate.
And he discovered something that disturbed him more than Adrian's threats.
Someone had been removing documents from Vittorio's private archive.
The missing pages concerned payments made eleven years earlier.
The person responsible had access to the old security system.
Only six people possessed the necessary authorization.
One was Matteo.
Another was Lorenzo's personal accountant.
A third was his cousin, Gabriel Moretti.
Gabriel had been Lorenzo's closest relative since childhood.
He had attended the same schools, shared the same holidays, and stood beside him at Vittorio's funeral.
He had also spent the past decade managing several of the family's legitimate businesses.
Lorenzo trusted him.
That was precisely why the discovery was dangerous.
At midnight, Lorenzo called Gabriel.
"Come to the estate."
"Now?"
"Yes."
"Is something wrong?"
"We'll discuss it when you arrive."
Gabriel came twenty-five minutes later.
He entered the study wearing a dark coat.
"What's happening?"
Lorenzo poured two glasses of water.
"Someone has been accessing my father's archive."
Gabriel took a glass.
"Have you identified them?"
"Not yet."
"Then perhaps you should start with the security staff."
"I did."
Gabriel nodded.
"Good."
Lorenzo watched him.
"Do you remember Daniel Marin?"
Gabriel's expression remained neutral.
"Vaguely."
"He worked with my father."
"I remember."
"He disappeared eleven years ago."
Gabriel took a drink.
"Yes."
"He is alive."
The glass stopped.
Only for a fraction of a second.
But Lorenzo saw it.
Gabriel placed the glass down.
"That's unexpected."
"Is it?"
"Of course."
Lorenzo moved toward the desk.
"Daniel said someone inside the organization was helping Adrian."
Gabriel frowned.
"Do you believe him?"
"I believe he knows something."
"Then perhaps he's trying to create suspicion."
"Perhaps."
Lorenzo opened a folder.
Inside were photographs of the archive's access records.
He placed them on the desk.
"Your authorization was used three times."
Gabriel looked at the documents.
"That doesn't prove anything."
"No."
Lorenzo sat down.
"But it gives us a place to start."
Gabriel's expression hardened.
"You're accusing me?"
"I'm asking."
"After everything we've been through?"
Lorenzo looked at him.
"Especially after everything we've been through."
Gabriel stood.
"This is ridiculous."
He turned toward the door.
Lorenzo spoke without raising his voice.
"Sit down."
Gabriel stopped.
For a moment, neither moved.
Then Gabriel slowly turned.
"You should be careful, Lorenzo."
"About what?"
"About believing a man who disappeared for eleven years."
Lorenzo studied him.
"Why?"
"Because people who have nothing left to lose are capable of saying anything."
Lorenzo nodded.
"That may be true."
He leaned forward.
"But people who have something to hide are usually more careful."
Gabriel stared at him.
Then he left.
Lorenzo did not stop him.
He waited until the door closed.
Then he called Matteo.
"Follow him."
***
Gabriel did not go home.
He drove to a private restaurant in Midtown.
A black vehicle was already waiting outside.
Adrian Voss stepped out.
They greeted each other without shaking hands.
"Does he suspect you?" Adrian asked.
Gabriel looked toward the street.
"He knows about the archive."
"That wasn't my question."
"He's suspicious."
Adrian smiled.
"Then we need to move faster."
Gabriel's expression darkened.
"You said this would be finished months ago."
"It would have been if Elena had stayed away from the records."
"Why didn't you get rid of her?"
Adrian gave him a cold look.
"Because I needed the original ledger."
"And now?"
"Now we need Daniel."
Gabriel shook his head.
"Daniel is a liability."
"Daniel is the only person who can authenticate the final documents."
"Then kill him."
Adrian's smile disappeared.
"You have become careless."
Gabriel stared at him.
"What do you want?"
"The ledger. Daniel. And Lorenzo's signature."
"His signature?"
Adrian stepped closer.
"The old ownership agreements need to be transferred. Lorenzo has been refusing to cooperate for years. Now he has a reason to reconsider."
Gabriel understood.
Adrian did not merely want the records destroyed.
He wanted the Moretti organization weakened enough to take control of its legitimate businesses.
And Gabriel had been promised a position at the top.
"What happens to Elena?" Gabriel asked.
Adrian adjusted his coat.
"She is the reason Daniel will come out of hiding."
***
Elena discovered the photograph at breakfast.
It had been delivered in a plain envelope.
There was no return address.
The picture showed Daniel Marin standing outside a small building.
He looked older.
His hair was gray.
His face was thinner.
But it was unquestionably him.
On the back was a message.
TONIGHT. MIDNIGHT. COME ALONE.
Elena carried the photograph directly to Lorenzo.
He was in the dining room with Matteo.
When he saw her expression, he stood.
"What happened?"