Chapter 8 - The Heir Who Never Existed
# Chapter 8 - The Heir Who Never Existed
The fifth filing cabinet contained a birth certificate for a man who, according to every official Moretti family record, had never existed.
Dominic Moretti stared at the yellowed document beneath the sterile basement lights.
The father's name was unmistakable.
VITTORIO ANGELO MORETTI
But the mother's name was not the woman Dominic had called Mom his entire life.
It was ISABELLA VENTURI.
And the child?
ADRIANO VITTORIO MORETTI.
Born February 18, 1984.
Three years before Dominic.
For thirty-seven years, Dominic had believed he was his father's only son.
Now an official-looking birth certificate suggested that Vittorio Moretti had fathered another child.
An older son.
A brother.
And potentially the rightful heir to a fortune that had torn five innocent babies apart.
Detective Sarah Mitchell stood beside him, studying the document.
"Mr. Moretti, please step back."
Dominic barely heard her.
"Adriano," he whispered.
The name awakened a memory.
Not of a person.
Of an argument.
He had been eleven years old, sitting on the staircase outside his father's study.
His parents had been fighting.
His mother was crying.
And Vittorio had shouted something Dominic had never understood.
I made arrangements for the boy. What more do you want from me?
Dominic had assumed they were discussing a relative.
A cousin.
Someone who had gotten into trouble.
But now—
"Mr. Moretti."
Mitchell's voice became firmer.
"We need to document everything before anyone handles these records."
Dominic stepped back.
Adrian Cole, standing near the doorway, watched his expression.
"You recognize the name?"
"No."
"Then what's wrong?"
Dominic looked toward the birth certificate.
"My father spent my entire life telling me that blood was everything."
He laughed once, without humor.
"Apparently, some blood mattered more than others."
The fifth cabinet had been secured with two separate locks.
The silver key Peter Voss gave Luca had opened the first.
Detective Mitchell's team had obtained authorization to open the second while preserving the contents as potential evidence.
Inside were three shelves.
The upper shelf contained legal documents.
The middle shelf held medical files, photographs, and sealed envelopes.
The lower shelf contained a small metal box with a five-pointed star engraved on its lid.
Adrian examined the folders from a distance while the investigators photographed their contents.
One was labeled:
MORETTI FAMILY SUCCESSION — RESTRICTED
Another:
ADRIANO V. MORETTI — IDENTITY RECORD
And a third:
PROJECT LEGACY — BENEFICIARY CONTINGENCY
Dominic's gaze settled on the third folder.
"That's the same name from the Barrett files."
Adrian nodded.
"Project Legacy."
Mitchell opened the succession folder.
The first document was a memorandum signed seven years earlier.
It concerned a dispute between Vittorio Moretti and his younger brother, Richard, over the terms of a family trust.
Dominic watched as Mitchell carefully separated the pages.
A paragraph had been highlighted.
The recognition of the firstborn male descendant shall supersede any previously designated successor, subject to verification of lawful parentage and the terms established in the executed trust.
Dominic frowned.
"Adriano."
Adrian leaned closer.
"Possibly."
"Richard knew about him."
"The documents suggest the family was considering a previously unrecognized heir. We still need the executed trust and authenticated records."
Dominic looked at the birth certificate again.
If Adriano was Vittorio's eldest son, he could have been entitled to a position Dominic believed belonged exclusively to him.
But that did not explain Elena's children.
Or why Gabriel had been separated from his mother.
Then Mitchell turned another page.
A handwritten note appeared beneath a list of proposed trust amendments.
If A.V.M. cannot be recognized, succession shall pass through an eligible child of D.V.M., subject to the sealed beneficiary designation.
Dominic's pulse quickened.
A.V.M.
Adriano Vittorio Moretti.
D.V.M.
Dominic Vittorio Moretti.
He understood the initials.
What he didn't understand was why the family trust apparently required a particular child.
"Why Gabriel?" he whispered.
Adrian glanced at him.
"What?"
"Why not Luca? Leo? Nico? Or Matteo?"
Mitchell examined the page.
"The document doesn't identify Gabriel."
Dominic knew she was right.
But someone had selected Baby E before the children were born.
And that selection had started a chain of events that destroyed two families.
He looked toward the metal box.
Whatever was inside might explain why.
At Seabrook, the boy calling himself Daniel sat at the kitchen table with a cup of warm milk.
He had refused breakfast.
He had refused to remove his coat.
And he had asked three times whether the front door was locked.
Elena sat opposite him.
She had wanted to embrace him the moment she saw his face.
He looked so much like Matteo.
The same dark eyebrows.
The same shape of mouth.
Even the same serious expression when someone asked him a question.
But she forced herself to remain calm.
The child had arrived frightened, carrying a photograph of strangers and wearing a watch that belonged to a dead man.
He needed safety, not another adult demanding that he explain who he was.
"Would you like some toast?" she asked gently.
Daniel shook his head.
"Fruit?"
Another shake.
"That's all right."
He stared at his hands.
Elena noticed a faint red mark around one wrist.
"Does that hurt?"
He quickly pulled his sleeve down.
"No."
She didn't press.
A few minutes passed.
Then he asked, "Are you Elena?"
"Yes."
"Elena Rossi?"
"Yes."
Daniel looked toward the doorway.
"The man said you were nice."
"What man?"
He hesitated.
"The man with Daddy's face."
Elena felt a chill.
"Did he tell you his name?"
Daniel shook his head.
"He said names were dangerous."
She swallowed.
"Did he take care of you?"
The boy considered the question.
"Sometimes."
"Was he kind?"
Daniel looked uncertain.
"He brought me books."
"What kind?"
"Space books. Gabriel likes space."
Elena's heart tightened.
"Is Gabriel your friend?"
Daniel nodded.
"He's my brother."
The words hung between them.
Elena felt her pulse quicken.
"Why do you call him your brother?"
"Because he told me."
"Do you know who your mother is?"
The boy looked down.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he whispered, "They said she didn't want me."
Elena's eyes filled.
"Oh, sweetheart."
Daniel stiffened when she moved her hand.
She immediately stopped.
"I'm sorry. I won't touch you unless you want me to."
He looked up, surprised.
"Really?"
"Really."
He studied her face.
Then asked, "Are you going to send me back?"
"No one is going to send you anywhere just because you ask questions. We're getting help to find out where you belong and how to keep you safe."
Daniel's expression changed.
"Then don't let the doctor come."
Elena went still.
"What doctor?"
The boy's breathing quickened.
"The one who makes Gabriel sleep."
At 10:21 a.m., Dr. Evelyn Hart entered the kitchen with Marco.
She had been kept away from the children while security reviewed the circumstances surrounding her attempt to take Luca, Leo, and Nico toward the gate.
Marco had found no evidence that she planned to remove them from the property.
But Dominic had insisted that no one speak privately with the boys until authorities could establish what happened.
Evelyn stopped when she saw Daniel.
Her face lost its color.
"Oh, my God."
Daniel looked up.
And immediately slid beneath the table.
Elena stood.
"Daniel?"
The boy covered his ears.
"No."
Evelyn took a step forward.
"Sweetheart—"
"Stay away!"
His voice cracked.
Elena moved between them.
"Evelyn, stop."
The doctor froze.
Daniel began sobbing.
"Don't let her take me!"
Marco immediately asked Evelyn to remain by the doorway.
Elena crouched beside the table.
"Daniel, you're safe. Nobody is taking you."
The boy shook his head violently.
"She was there."
Elena looked up.
Evelyn appeared devastated.
"Daniel, I never hurt you."
The child crawled farther beneath the table.
"She was there when they took Gabriel!"
Silence fell.
Evelyn's mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
Elena slowly stood.
"Is that true?"
Evelyn looked at Daniel.
Then at Marco.
Finally, she whispered, "Yes."
Elena's face hardened.
"You told us you hadn't been inside Bellwether for years."
"I didn't say that."
"You let Dominic believe it."
Evelyn lowered her eyes.
"I visited three weeks ago."
"Why?"
"Because someone contacted me about Gabriel."
"Who?"
Evelyn hesitated.
Elena's patience broke.
"Stop hiding things!"
The doctor flinched.
"I was trying to arrange an independent medical assessment. Dr. Whitmore refused to release the boy's records, and Charles Barrett ordered me removed from the building."
Daniel spoke from beneath the table.
"That's not what happened."
Everyone turned.
The child was trembling.
"You came with the man."
Evelyn went still.
"What man?"
"The one who said Gabriel wasn't allowed to remember anymore."
Elena felt a cold sensation move through her chest.
"Daniel, can you tell me what you mean?"
He shook his head.
Then whispered, "Gabriel remembered the room with the babies."
Evelyn's expression changed.
Daniel continued.
"He told the doctor."
"What did the doctor do?" Elena asked.
The boy stared at Evelyn.
"He got angry."
Evelyn gripped the back of a chair.
"Daniel, listen to me—"
"No!"
The boy pressed his hands over his ears.
"You're not supposed to know I heard!"
Elena stepped closer to protect him.
"That's enough, Evelyn."
The doctor lowered her head.
And for the first time, Elena wondered whether Evelyn's guilt was connected to something far more recent than the original hospital transfers.
At 11:06 a.m., Dominic received Elena's call.
He answered immediately.
"Are the boys safe?"
"Yes."
"Daniel?"
"He's frightened. But physically he seems stable. We're arranging an assessment with an independent pediatric team."
Dominic exhaled.
"What happened?"
Elena told him about Evelyn.
About the visit to Bellwether.
About Daniel's fear of the doctor.
And about Gabriel remembering a room filled with babies.
Dominic listened without interrupting.
Then he asked, "Did Daniel say who the other man was?"
"No."
"Did Evelyn?"
"She stopped answering."
Dominic looked toward the filing cabinet.
"Keep her separate from the children until investigators can speak with her."
"Marco already has."
A pause.
Then Elena asked, "Did you find anything?"
Dominic stared at the birth certificate.
"Yes."
"What?"
He hesitated.
His entire family history had just been overturned.
He barely knew how to explain it to himself.
"My father had another son."
Silence.
Then Elena whispered, "What?"
"An older son. His name is Adriano."
"Dominic..."
"I don't know whether he's alive. I don't know why my father hid him. But his name appears in the trust documents."
Elena was quiet for several seconds.
Then she asked, "Does that explain Gabriel?"
"Not yet."
He heard Daniel speaking faintly in the background.
Elena turned away from the phone.
"What is it, sweetheart?"
A pause.
Then she returned.
"Dominic."
Something in her voice changed.
"What?"
"Daniel heard the name."
"Adriano?"
"Yes."
Dominic felt his pulse accelerate.
"What did he say?"
Elena swallowed.
"He says that's what the man called himself when he thought the children were asleep."
Dominic looked toward the photograph of the unknown man.
His older brother.
Alive.
And apparently involved in the lives of children Dominic hadn't known existed.
At 11:42 a.m., Detective Mitchell's team opened the metal box.
Inside were three items.
A sealed letter.
A photograph.
And a compact digital storage device.
The photograph showed Vittorio Moretti standing beside a teenage boy.
Dominic immediately recognized the resemblance.
Dark hair.
Broad shoulders.
The same heavy eyebrows.
The boy appeared about fifteen.
On the back was a handwritten date.
June 1999.
And a message:
Adriano, someday you will understand why I couldn't bring you home.
Dominic stared at those words.
A boy waiting for his father.
Another child denied a family.
For all Vittorio's speeches about loyalty, he had apparently built his household around an absence.
Mitchell examined the letter.
The envelope was addressed to:
MY FIRST SON
She photographed it before opening it.
Dominic watched silently.
The letter was handwritten in Vittorio's familiar sharp script.
Adrian read only after Mitchell had documented and provided the relevant excerpt.
Adriano,
I made the mistake of believing that denying your existence would protect you. Instead, it placed you in the hands of people who saw your bloodline as an opportunity.
Richard knows what happened. Charles knows more.
If you are reading this, I may no longer be able to stop them.
The agreement was supposed to protect one child. It was never meant to become a trade.
Dominic felt his stomach tighten.
A trade.
The children had been treated like commodities.
The letter continued.
Your younger brother is innocent. Whatever they tell you, Dominic did not know about the arrangement.
Dominic closed his eyes.
For one brief moment, the words felt like something he had wanted his father to say while he was alive.
Then the next paragraph destroyed that comfort.
I allowed the deception to begin. I permitted Elena to be threatened. I believed I could control Richard and Charles until the original beneficiary was old enough for the trust to be settled.
I was wrong.
Dominic's hands curled into fists.
His father had known.
He had permitted Elena to be threatened.
He had allowed Dominic to believe the woman he loved had abandoned him.
And he had done it to preserve a financial arrangement involving a child.
The letter ended with one final statement.
If Gabriel survives, tell him I am sorry.
Dominic stared.
Not if Gabriel is found.
Not when Gabriel grows up.
If Gabriel survives.
His father had known the boy faced danger.
Possibly before Vittorio himself died.
"Detective," Dominic said quietly, "what's on the storage device?"
Mitchell shook her head.
"We'll have the forensic team examine it."
Dominic nodded.
For once, he didn't argue.
He was beginning to understand that every attempt to force the truth from people had created another opportunity for evidence to disappear.
This time, he wanted the truth preserved.
Even if it destroyed what remained of his father's legacy.
At 12:34 p.m., Sloane Barrett disappeared.
Her phone was found on the floor of her father's office.
The guardianship folder was gone.
And Charles Barrett's personal assistant told Adrian that both father and daughter had left the building together.
But the security footage told a different story.
Sloane had attempted to leave through the rear staircase.
Charles intercepted her.
They argued.
Then two men in dark suits appeared.
One took Sloane's handbag.
The other opened the door to a waiting vehicle.
The footage showed Sloane resisting as they guided her inside.
Charles followed.
The SUV drove away.
Dominic watched the recording on Adrian's tablet.
"Has her disappearance been reported?"
"Yes. Detective Mitchell's colleagues are coordinating with local police."
Dominic stared at the image.
Sloane had deceived him.
She had hidden information about Gabriel.
She had agreed to an engagement that served purposes he never understood.
But she had also risked her father's anger to bring him evidence.
And now Charles had taken her somewhere against her apparent wishes.
"Where did the vehicle go?"
"Last confirmed camera sighting was westbound."
"Toward Bellwether?"
"Possibly."
Dominic looked at Adrian.
"Find the route. Preserve the footage."
Adrian nodded.
Then Dominic asked, "What about Daniel Mercer?"
"Still missing."
The answer weighed heavily.
Sloane's former lover.
The father of her child.
The lawyer who had helped Elena trace the secret payments.
And the brother of a man who died investigating Bellwether.
If Daniel Mercer was alive, he might know more about Charles Barrett's operations than anyone else.
But someone had already spent years destroying his credibility.
And now Sloane had disappeared.
At 1:18 p.m., Daniel was drawing at the kitchen table when Luca approached him.
The other boys had been told that Daniel was a guest who needed a safe place to stay.
Elena had deliberately avoided telling them that his appearance might be connected to their birth.
Luca pulled out a chair.
"Hi."
Daniel looked up.
"Hi."
"I'm Luca."
"I know."
Luca frowned.
"How?"
Daniel shrugged.
"Gabriel told me."
Luca became interested.
"You know our brother?"
Daniel nodded.
"He's nice."
"Does he like dinosaurs?"
"Not really."
Luca looked disappointed.
"He likes stars."
"Yeah, Dad said."
Daniel stared.
"Dad?"
Luca nodded.
"Dominic."
Daniel's expression changed.
"He's your dad?"
"Yes."
The boy looked down.
"Maybe he's mine too."
Luca considered this.
Then asked, "Do you want to play?"
Daniel blinked.
"What?"
"Dinosaurs."
For the first time since arriving at Seabrook, Daniel smiled.
A small, uncertain smile.
"Okay."
The boys moved to the rug.
Luca handed him a green plastic dinosaur.
Daniel examined it.
"That's a Stegosaurus."
Luca grinned.
"You're smart."
Daniel shrugged.
"Gabriel taught me."
They played quietly.
Then Luca noticed the watch hanging beneath Daniel's shirt.
"That's cool."
Daniel immediately tucked it away.
"Don't touch."
"I wasn't going to."
The boy looked frightened.
Luca lowered his voice.
"Sorry."
Daniel hesitated.
Then whispered, "It's important."
"Why?"
"Because the man said it belongs to the real heir."
Luca frowned.
"What's an heir?"
Daniel thought about the question.
"Someone who gets something when somebody dies."
Luca made a face.
"That's sad."
Daniel nodded.
"Gabriel says it is."
They played for another minute.
Then Daniel looked toward the hallway.
"Do you think Dominic will be mad?"
"About what?"
"If I tell him the watch doesn't belong to Gabriel."
Luca shrugged.
"Why would he be mad?"
Daniel lowered his voice.
"Because it belongs to his brother."
Luca stared.
"His brother?"
Daniel nodded.
"The man with Daddy's face."
"Adriano?"
Daniel looked startled.
"How do you know his name?"
"I heard Mom say it."
The boy's face became serious.
"Don't say it too loud."
"Why?"
Daniel leaned closer.
"Because he hears everything."
At 2:09 p.m., Rebecca Lin completed her preliminary review of the recent photograph showing Evelyn Hart beside the unknown child.
She called Adrian.
"The image appears to have been taken with a phone camera rather than a professional security system."
"Can you identify the date?"
"The embedded metadata isn't reliable, but I found something useful in the background."
"What?"
"A wall calendar."
Adrian leaned forward.
"Which month?"
"September."
"Could be old."
"Yes. But there's also a poster for a pediatric research symposium held last month."
Adrian became still.
"Then the photograph is recent."
"Likely. I can't establish the exact day."
"Can you identify the location?"
"There's a partial hospital emblem reflected in a window."
"Bellwether?"
"Yes."
Adrian thanked her and ended the call.
Then he called Dominic.
"Evelyn really was at Bellwether recently."
Dominic's expression hardened.
"Do we know why?"
"Not yet."
"What about Charles?"
"He's visible in the background, but we can't establish whether they arrived together."
Dominic looked toward his father's letter.
Evelyn had helped expose the conspiracy.
But she had also withheld crucial information.
Was she protecting someone?
Or trying to avoid prosecution for her own role?
"Have Mitchell's team interview her formally."
"Already arranged."
Dominic stared out the window.
"And Adrian?"
"Yes?"
"Make sure someone checks on Daniel. Not just physically."
"You mean psychological support?"
"Yes. That boy has been through something."
Adrian paused.
Then said, "You're changing, Dominic."
Dominic gave a tired smile.
"I have five reasons to."
A moment later, his expression darkened.
"Possibly six."
At 3:26 p.m., the forensic team recovered a video from the storage device found in Vittorio's cabinet.
The recording was dated December 3, five years earlier.
Approximately two months before Vittorio's death.
Dominic watched with Adrian and Detective Mitchell.
His father appeared on screen.
Older.
Thinner.
Obviously ill.
He sat behind a wooden desk in a dimly lit room.
For several seconds, Vittorio said nothing.
Then he looked directly into the camera.
"If Dominic is watching this, then I've failed."
Dominic's throat tightened.
Vittorio continued.
"I never intended for the children to be harmed. That is not an excuse. I allowed Richard to make arrangements because I believed Charles Barrett could secure the family's succession without exposing Adriano."
He paused to cough.
Dominic stared at the screen.
His father's voice had become fragile.
He remembered that voice from the final months of Vittorio's life.
The man who once commanded entire rooms had been reduced to whispers.
Vittorio continued.
"When Elena became pregnant, the trust's conditions changed. Richard discovered that the existence of multiple sons could be used to challenge the sealed beneficiary designation."
Dominic leaned forward.
"How?"
The recording continued.
"Charles offered a solution. One infant would be transferred under private guardianship, and another identity would be used to establish a separate line of succession."
Adrian exchanged a glance with Mitchell.
Vittorio lowered his eyes.
"I agreed to conceal Gabriel's existence from Dominic. I believed the boy would receive proper care until the trust dispute was resolved."
Dominic felt nausea rise in his throat.
His father had knowingly separated a son from him.
And had the audacity to call it care.
Then Vittorio looked back at the camera.
"But Richard took another child. He altered the arrangement without my knowledge. By the time I discovered it, the records had been changed and the children had been moved."
The old man struggled to breathe.
"I tried to reverse the transfer. Charles refused. Richard threatened to expose Adriano."
Dominic stared.
His father's older son had been used as leverage.
Vittorio continued.
"And then I learned the truth about the fifth child."
Dominic went still.
"What truth?"
The recording flickered.
For several seconds, the image distorted.
When it returned, Vittorio was holding a photograph.
Five newborn babies.
He pointed toward the last incubator.
"Gabriel was never supposed to be the designated heir."
Dominic stopped breathing.
The old man looked directly into the camera.
"The beneficiary was supposed to be Baby D."
Matteo.
Or the child originally designated Baby D.
Vittorio's voice became weaker.
"Richard changed the designation after discovering that the child in Elena's custody was not the infant originally recorded under that number."
Dominic felt his entire body go cold.
The switch had altered the succession arrangement.
But someone had concealed it rather than correct it.
Vittorio coughed violently.
Then continued.
"If Gabriel is alive, he has been kept hidden to preserve the deception. If the original Baby D is alive, he may be the only person whose verified identity can invalidate Richard's claim."
Dominic looked at Adrian.
The investigator's face was grim.
Vittorio slowly lowered the photograph.
"I cannot prove where the original Baby D was taken. Peter has been searching. Evelyn has copies of the medical records. But there is another person who knows."
The recording paused.
Dominic leaned forward.
Then his father spoke the name.
"Adriano."
Silence.
"Adriano was there when the children were moved."
Dominic felt his heartbeat pounding in his ears.
The hidden brother.
The man with his face.
The man who had apparently visited Gabriel.
The man who had given Daniel the watch.
Vittorio's final words were barely audible.
"If you find Adriano, ask him why he let Richard take the wrong child."
The recording ended.
At 4:02 p.m., Dominic called Seabrook.
Elena answered immediately.
"Dominic?"
"I need to speak to Daniel."
"Why?"
"He's met Adriano."
Elena hesitated.
"Dominic, he's frightened."
"I know. I just need to ask whether he knows where Adriano is. We can do it with you there, and we won't press him."
A pause.
"All right."
A few moments later, a small voice came through the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Daniel. It's Dominic."
"Hi."
"How are you feeling?"
"Okay."
"Did you have lunch?"
"Yes."
"What did you eat?"
"Chicken."
Dominic smiled faintly.
"Good."
The boy hesitated.
"Are you coming back?"
"Yes. As soon as I can."
"Okay."
Dominic took a breath.
"Daniel, can I ask you something about Adriano?"
Silence.
Then the boy whispered, "Are you mad at him?"
Dominic considered the question.
"I have things I need to understand."
"He's not bad."
"Did he tell you that?"
"No."
"Then how do you know?"
Daniel was quiet.
Then he said, "Because he cried."
Dominic froze.
"When?"
"When Gabriel got sick."
Dominic's throat tightened.
"What happened?"
"I don't know. The doctor gave Gabriel medicine. He couldn't wake up for a long time."
Dominic closed his eyes.
"And Adriano?"
"He yelled at the doctor."
"What did he say?"
Daniel hesitated.
"He said they weren't allowed to do that anymore."
Dominic felt a chill.
"Anymore?"
"Yeah."
"Did he say anything else?"
The child lowered his voice.
"He said he'd tell you."
Dominic stared at the phone.
"Tell me what?"
Daniel's breathing quickened.
"About the room."
"What room?"
"The one where they keep the pictures."
"Unit Five?"
"Maybe."
"Daniel, do you know where Adriano is now?"
A long silence.
Then the boy whispered, "He said he was going to see his mother."
Dominic stopped.
"Isabella Venturi?"
"Yes."
"Do you know where she lives?"
Daniel hesitated.
Then said, "The white house."
"What white house?"
"The one near the water."
Dominic frowned.
There were countless houses near water in Massachusetts.
He tried another question.
"Did Adriano tell you what town?"
"No."
"Anything else?"
Daniel thought for a moment.
"There's a lighthouse."
Dominic felt a sudden memory rise.
A white house.
Near the water.
A lighthouse.
When he was a child, his father had occasionally disappeared for weekends to a coastal property in Maine.
Vittorio claimed it belonged to an old business associate.
Dominic remembered seeing photographs.
A white house overlooking a rocky shore.
A red-and-white lighthouse in the distance.
And a woman standing beside the garden gate.
He had never known her name.
Now he wondered whether she had been Isabella Venturi.
At 5:17 p.m., Dominic returned to Seabrook.
He found Elena in the living room with the children.
Daniel sat beside Luca, drawing spaceships.
Matteo was building a tower.
Leo and Nico were arguing over a board game.
For a brief moment, the house looked almost ordinary.
Six children.
A mother.
A father returning home.
Except one child was missing.
Gabriel.
And another child's identity remained uncertain.
Dominic watched them.
Then Daniel looked up.
His expression changed.
He stood slowly.
"Are you him?"
Dominic crouched.
"Who?"
"The man from the photograph."
"Which photograph?"
Daniel reached into his coat.
He removed the old picture he had carried to Seabrook.
Dominic and Elena.
Six years earlier.
Smiling beside the ocean.
Dominic looked at it.
"Yes. That's me."
Daniel studied his face.
Then whispered, "Adriano said you didn't know."
Dominic nodded.
"That's true."
The boy looked relieved.
"He said you'd be angry."
"At him?"
Daniel nodded.
Dominic paused.
"I want to know why he didn't tell me about you and Gabriel."
Daniel stared.
Then asked, "If he tells you, will you still be his brother?"
The question struck Dominic unexpectedly.
He looked toward Elena.
She was watching silently.
Dominic turned back to the boy.
"I don't know what happened between Adriano and my father. But if he's my brother, that doesn't change because I'm angry."
Daniel considered this.
Then reached into his pocket.
He removed a folded piece of paper.
"Adriano gave me this."
Dominic froze.
"When?"
"Before he sent me here."
"What is it?"
"He said to give it to you if you found the cabinet."
Dominic carefully accepted the paper.
Inside was an address.
A town in coastal Maine.
Beneath it were four words.
Come without Richard's people.
Dominic stared at the handwriting.
Then Daniel whispered, "He said his mother knows everything."
At 6:49 p.m., Dominic stood alone on the Seabrook terrace.
Elena joined him.
"You're going to Maine."
He nodded.
"Yes."
"To find Adriano?"
"And Isabella."
Elena stared at the ocean.
"What if it's another trap?"
"It might be."
"Dominic."
He turned.
She looked exhausted.
Frightened.
But determined.
"I lost you once because your family decided what was best for us."
His expression softened.
"I know."
"I won't let them decide again."
He reached for her hand.
"This time, we'll make the decisions together."
Elena looked at him.
For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then she asked, "Do you think Adriano is responsible?"
Dominic considered everything he had learned.
The watch.
The photograph.
The hidden records.
Gabriel's fear.
Daniel's insistence that Adriano had tried to protect them.
"I think Adriano knows how this started," he said.
"And?"
"And I think he's terrified of what happens if the truth comes out."
Elena nodded slowly.
Then she whispered, "What if the truth means Matteo isn't ours?"
Dominic looked toward the windows.
Inside, Matteo was laughing with his brothers.
"I don't know who carried him into that hospital room," Dominic said. "But I know who raised him."
Elena's eyes filled.
"And who loves him."
"Yes."
She leaned against him.
For the first time since their reunion, Dominic allowed himself to hold her without wondering whether she would pull away.
She didn't.
But the moment was interrupted by his phone.
Adrian.
Dominic answered.
"Tell me."
"I found Isabella Venturi."
Dominic straightened.
"Where?"
"At the Maine address Daniel gave you."
"Is she alive?"
"Yes."
"Does she know about Adriano?"
Adrian hesitated.
"Dominic, there's something unusual."
"What?"
"Isabella has been living under a different name for almost twenty years."
Dominic frowned.
"Why?"
"According to the records, she entered a protected relocation arrangement after testifying in a federal investigation."
"Against whom?"
Adrian paused.
"Vittorio Moretti."
Dominic went still.
His father's former lover had testified against him.
And afterward, she had disappeared.
"Do you know what the investigation concerned?"
"Financial fraud, witness intimidation, and suspected illegal adoption arrangements."
Dominic felt cold.
"Illegal adoptions?"
"Yes."
He looked toward the living room.
Six children.
One missing son.
A hidden brother.
And a family whose secrets seemed to reach far beyond his own generation.
"Adrian," he said quietly, "what exactly was my father involved in?"
The investigator didn't answer immediately.
Then he said, "I think the children weren't the first."
Dominic closed his eyes.
And before he could ask another question, Adrian added something that made his blood run cold.
"Dominic, Isabella's original testimony includes a reference to a child taken from a hospital in 1984."
Adriano's birth year.
Dominic stopped breathing.
"Who was the child?"
Adrian's voice lowered.
"According to her statement, Vittorio and Richard arranged for Isabella's newborn son to be placed with another family."
Dominic stared.
"Adriano?"
"Yes."
"Then how did he get his name back?"
A pause.
"That's what makes the testimony disturbing."
Dominic gripped the phone.
"Adrian."
"The baby Isabella gave birth to was named Adriano. But the child who later returned to Vittorio claiming that identity had a different birth date."
Dominic felt the world tilt.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying the man who calls himself your brother may not be Isabella's biological son."
Silence.
Then Adrian delivered the final revelation.
"And according to a surviving hospital record, Isabella's real baby was never recovered."
Dominic looked toward the house.
Toward the children.
Toward the photograph of the man who looked like him.
The hidden heir whose existence had supposedly triggered the family succession dispute.
The brother who had guided Daniel to Seabrook.
The man who knew Gabriel.
A man whose own identity might have been manufactured.
And suddenly Dominic understood something terrifying.
The deception surrounding his sons hadn't begun six years ago.
It had begun forty-two years earlier.
With another stolen child.
Another grieving mother.
And a boy named Adriano Moretti who might never have existed at all.