Chapter 9 - THE TRUTH
The mansion felt different the next morning.
The heavy, suffocating tension was gone.
The wedding was officially canceled.
The caterers had been sent away. The flowers were donated.
I sat in the kitchen of the guest house, making pancakes for Leo.
He was sitting at the table, drawing with his crayons.
He looked safe. He felt safe.
There was a knock at the door.
I opened it to find Vanessa standing there.
She wasn’t wearing silk or diamonds.
She wore jeans and a simple sweater. She looked exhausted, but her eyes were clear.
“Caroline,” she said softly.
“Come in.”
She stepped inside, looking nervously at Leo, who waved at her with a red crayon.
“I came to apologize,” Vanessa said, turning back to me. “For everything. For threatening your son. For pushing you. I was a cornered animal.”
“You were protecting your child,” I said quietly. “I understand that. But you should have trusted Luca.”
“I know.”
She took a deep breath.
“I’m leaving today. Luca arranged a private jet. He’s sending Mia and me to the best pediatric oncology center in Switzerland. He’s paying for everything.”
She reached into her purse and pulled out an envelope.
She placed it on the counter.
“This is for you. A college fund for Leo. It’s the least I can do.”
Before I could refuse, she turned and walked out the door.
An hour later, I walked up to the main house.
I found Luca in his study.
He was looking out the window at the driveway, watching a black car pull away.
Vanessa and Mia.
“She’s gone,” I said from the doorway.
Luca turned.
He looked tired, but the darkness that usually shadowed his face had lifted.
“She’s safe,” he corrected. “They both are.”
He walked over to his desk and sat down.
“And my uncle gave up the names of everyone in the syndicate who helped him. They’re being handled.”
He looked at me.
“You don’t have to work here anymore, Caroline. I can set you up anywhere. A new house. A new job.”
I thought about the sixty-seven dollars I had two days ago.
I thought about the fear.
But I also thought about the man who had stood between my son and a loaded gun.
“I like my job,” I said.
Luca raised an eyebrow.
“Even the terrible boss?”
I smiled slightly.
“He’s getting better.”
Luca stood up and walked around the desk.
He stopped right in front of me.
“I want you to stay, Caroline. But not as a maid.”
My breath hitched.
“Then as what?”
May you like
He reached out and gently tucked a strand of hair behind my right ear.
“As someone who doesn't have to hide anymore.”
