Chapter 6 - Dante Chooses the Wrong Story
Dante stood in the middle of Sophia’s empty bedroom while Bianca spoke to the police downstairs.
The bed had not been slept in.
A sweater was missing from the closet.
The tablet from the library had been left on the desk after ordering a car.
Sophia had entered Elena’s address herself.
That fact should have relieved him.
Instead, it made him angrier.
Elena had been warned to stay away.
She had ignored every boundary.
Marco entered the room.
“We found the vehicle that took Sophia from the estate.”
“Where?”
“The driver dropped her outside Elena’s apartment.”
“Then why didn’t your team bring her home?”
“Elena refused access.”
“Did you call the police?”
“I believed it would be better to avoid public attention before the wedding.”
Dante turned toward him.
“My niece is missing. The wedding is irrelevant.”
Marco lowered his head.
“You’re right.”
“What happened at Elena’s apartment?”
“She left through another exit.”
“How?”
“We were monitoring the main entrance.”
“You had three officers watching one building.”
“Elena received assistance.”
“From whom?”
“Miriam Cole.”
Dante recognized the name.
“She wrote Adrian’s trust.”
“Yes.”
“Why would she help Elena?”
Marco removed a folder from his coat.
“Because Elena contacted her months ago.”
Inside were printed emails between Elena and Miriam.
The messages discussed challenging Dante’s trusteeship, questioning his emotional fitness, and establishing a separate guardianship fund.
Dante read them twice.
“They wanted to remove me.”
“It appears so.”
“Why wasn’t I shown this earlier?”
“We were still verifying the messages.”
Dante threw the folder onto the bed.
“You had no problem showing me the messages involving the journalist.”
“Those had already been authenticated.”
“By whom?”
Marco hesitated.
“Our digital team.”
“Bring them to me.”
“Tonight?”
“Now.”
Marco remained still.
Dante’s eyes narrowed.
“Is there a problem?”
“No.”
“Then go.”
Marco left the room.
Dante looked at the framed photograph on Sophia’s desk.
It showed Adrian, Camila, and Sophia at the lake house.
The backing had been pulled loose.
He picked it up.
The cardboard flap hung open.
Something had recently been removed.
Bianca appeared in the doorway.
“The police need a recent photograph of Sophia.”
“There are hundreds downstairs.”
She entered.
“You should let Marco handle this.”
“Marco failed to bring her home.”
“He was trying to avoid a scandal.”
“My niece isn’t a scandal.”
Bianca sat on the edge of the bed.
“You’re blaming everyone except Elena.”
“I’m blaming the people responsible for security.”
“Elena took Sophia because she wants control.”
“Control of what?”
“Her trust.”
Dante looked at her.
Bianca continued.
“Elena believes she should have been named guardian. She thinks Adrian chose the wrong side of the family.”
“Did she tell you that?”
“She told several people.”
“Which people?”
Bianca’s gaze shifted.
“Marco has statements.”
“Of course he does.”
She stood.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means every piece of information I receive comes through Marco.”
“He protects you.”
“He works for me.”
“And Elena is using your guilt.”
Dante’s voice became quiet.
“What guilt?”
“You believe you failed Adrian.”
Dante looked away.
Bianca stepped closer.
“You believe that if you had stopped him from flying that night, he would still be alive.”
“Enough.”
“You are so desperate to correct the past that you cannot see what Elena is doing now.”
Dante’s phone rang.
The head of his digital security division was calling.
“Mr. Vale,” the man said, “Marco asked us to delay your request.”
Dante turned toward the window.
“What request?”
“The authentication files for Elena Marlowe’s messages.”
“Why?”
“He said you were not in a condition to review them.”
Dante’s face hardened.
“Send everything directly to me.”
“There is a problem.”
“What problem?”
“The original devices were never examined.”
Dante looked at Bianca.
“How were the messages authenticated?”
“They weren’t. We received screenshots from Mr. Bell’s private office.”
Bianca’s expression remained calm, but one hand tightened against her dress.
Dante ended the call.
“Where did Marco get the screenshots?”
“I don’t know.”
“You just told me he had statements.”
“He does.”
“From whom?”
Bianca stepped back.
“Why are you interrogating me?”
“Because Sophia is missing, Elena has been accused of manipulating her, and every accusation came through the man who failed to stop her from leaving.”
A security alarm sounded somewhere below.
Dante’s phone lit up with a notification.
An access door had opened in the underground garage.
He checked the camera feed.
Marco was walking toward a black vehicle with two suitcases.
Dante called him.
Marco did not answer.
The vehicle accelerated toward the exit.
Dante turned to Bianca.
“What is he running from?”
Bianca’s face finally lost its perfect calm.
“Maybe he isn’t running from you.”
“Then who?”
Before she could answer, Dante’s screen changed.
A message appeared from an unknown number.
Ask your fiancée why the plane’s passenger list was changed.
Attached was a photograph of the flight manifest from the night Adrian and Camila died.
Three names were visible.
Adrian Vale.
Camila Marlowe Vale.
Marco Bell.
Marco’s name had been crossed out.
May you like
Dante looked up.
Bianca was already leaving the room.
