Chapter 10 - The Price of Staying Alive
Dominic read the message twice.
Valentina sat across the room doing homework with Rosa.
He locked the phone.
Marco noticed.
"What?"
"Office."
Inside, Dominic handed him the phone.
Marco cursed.
"Why Rico?"
"Because Victor knows the treatment is working."
"He wants you dead."
Dominic stared toward the door.
"He always did."
Another message arrived.
Come alone tomorrow. No police. Bring the original memory card.
Marco shook his head.
"We don't have to play this game."
"We do if Rico is alive."
"The Feds—"
"Victor has insiders."
Dominic thought.
Three years earlier he would have handled the situation through violence.
Now every decision contained Valentina.
What happened if he died?
What happened if he was arrested?
What kind of father solved every problem by creating more bodies?
He called the federal investigator.
They constructed a controlled exchange.
Victor chose an abandoned medical storage facility.
Dominic arrived apparently alone.
His treatment had weakened him badly.
Victor laughed when he saw him.
"The great Dominic Moretti."
"Where's Falcone?"
"Still trying to save people."
"Let him go."
Victor emerged holding a weapon.
"Your wife ruined everything."
Dominic said nothing.
"She couldn't leave things alone."
"She discovered children were being exploited through charities carrying my name."
"Business."
"No."
Dominic's voice was quiet.
"That word doesn't cover everything."
Victor smiled.
"Look at you. Becoming moral because a little girl held your hand."
Dominic stepped closer.
"Maybe that's all it takes."
Victor raised the gun.
"You think giving away money fixes you?"
"No."
"Closing businesses?"
"No."
"Adopting a street kid?"
"No."
Victor's grin widened.
"Then why bother?"
Dominic answered, "Because fixing everything isn't required before you stop making it worse."
Victor's smile disappeared.
A sound came from behind a storage wall.
Dominic recognized Rico's cough.
"He's alive."
"For now."
Victor demanded the card.
Dominic tossed it.
Victor bent to retrieve it.
Federal agents moved.
Victor fired.
Dominic dropped.
Shots shattered windows.
Within seconds Victor was surrounded.
He attempted to use Rico as a shield.
Falcone did something no one expected.
He bit Victor's hand.
Victor screamed.
Marco tackled him.
When it ended, Victor lay handcuffed on the floor.
Falcone stared at Marco.
"I had the situation."
Marco laughed.
Dominic leaned against a wall, exhausted.
Rico approached.
"You missed treatment."
"I was busy."
"Hospital."
"Rico—"
"That was not a suggestion."
Hours later Valentina entered Dominic's room furious.
"You left!"
Dominic looked at Rosa.
"You told her?"
"Try lying. See what happens."
Valentina planted both hands on her hips.
"You said you're trying to live."
"I am."
"You went where people shoot."
"Technically—"
"Dominic."
Rosa covered a smile.
Dominic surrendered.
"You're right."
Valentina climbed onto the chair.
"Don't do that again."
"I'll try."
"Promise."
Dominic hesitated.
"I promise not to intentionally walk into another kidnapping."
"That's too specific."
Marco laughed from the doorway.
Dominic pointed at him.
"Get out."
Valentina finally smiled.
The next scan was even better.
Tumors had shrunk by nearly half.
Falcone cautioned everyone.
It was not remission.
Not yet.
But it was extraordinary.
Dominic allowed himself to hope.
Then Aleandro requested a meeting.
Federal custody transformed him.
He looked older.
Smaller.
Dominic sat across from him behind reinforced glass.
Aleandro picked up the phone.
"Victor is finished."
"Yes."
"He'll testify."
"Probably."
Aleandro nodded.
"Good."
Dominic stared.
"Why did you ask to see me?"
Aleandro struggled.
"I need to tell you about the crash."
Dominic's hand tightened.
"You already confessed."
"Not all of it."
Dominic waited.
Aleandro looked directly at him.
"Isabella knew the brakes had been tampered with."
Dominic stopped breathing.
"What?"
"She found out before she left."
"Then why did she drive?"
"She wasn't supposed to."
Dominic's face went pale.
Aleandro continued.
"She called someone. Said she had a plan."
"Who?"
"I don't know."
"Why was Matteo in the car?"
Aleandro lowered his eyes.
"I've never understood."
Dominic stood.
Aleandro pressed his hand against the glass.
"Dom, wait."
Dominic lifted the phone again.
"What aren't you telling me?"
Aleandro whispered.
"The vehicle found after the crash wasn't the car Isabella left the garage in."
Silence.
Dominic stared.
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know."
"It means you know more."
"I swear—"
Dominic slammed his hand against the glass.
"What car did my wife leave in?"
Aleandro's lips trembled.
"A second vehicle."
"And where is it?"
"Victor had it destroyed."
Dominic felt the room spin.
"If Isabella knew the brakes were compromised, why was she on that highway?"
Aleandro whispered something Dominic could barely hear.
"Maybe she wasn't."
Dominic froze.
The official investigation had identified Isabella through personal effects and dental records.
Matteo too.
There had never been any doubt.
But suddenly Dominic remembered something.
Isabella had undergone dental work one week before the crash.
The records submitted to the coroner had come from a dentist recommended by—
Aleandro.
Dominic slowly sat back down.
One impossible question entered his mind.
"What if Isabella didn't die in that car?"
Aleandro stared.
"I don't know."
Dominic left the prison with his heart racing.
Three years of grief shifted beneath his feet.
By morning Marco had reopened every record from the crash.
At 4:17 a.m. he called Dominic.
"I found something."
"What?"
"The DNA identification was never completed."
Dominic sat upright.
"Why?"
"Fire damage. They relied on dental records and belongings."
"Matteo?"
"Same."
Dominic's voice broke.
"Marco."
"I know."
Dominic looked toward Valentina sleeping on the sofa in his hospital room.
"What are you saying?"
Marco hesitated.
"I'm saying we buried two people."
A pause.
May you like
"But we may not have buried Isabella and Matteo."
---
