Chapter 3 - The Things She Couldn't Replace
“I didn't throw everything away.”
Vanessa's answer came so quietly that I almost didn't hear it.
Luca stood beside the dining table, one hand resting on the back of Sophie's chair.
“That wasn't my question.”
Vanessa looked toward the remaining guests.
“Luca, please. Not in front of everyone.”
“Then you should've thought of that before humiliating my daughter in front of everyone.”
Nobody moved.
Sophie still held her medal.
The blue ribbon was twisted between her fingers.
Vanessa swallowed.
“I arranged for the belongings to be removed by Lakefront Estate Exchange.”
Luca frowned.
“An estate company?”
“They handle unwanted furniture and personal possessions.”
“Unwanted by whom?”
Vanessa looked away.
I watched Luca's expression change.
He wasn't simply angry anymore.
He looked frightened.
As though he were realizing that something he'd taken for granted might already be gone.
“Vanessa, where are Anna's things?”
Anna.
His late wife.
In nearly two years of working for the Moretti family, I'd rarely heard him say her name.
Not because he'd forgotten her.
But because sometimes saying it seemed to cost him something.
Vanessa folded her arms.
“I told them to remove everything from the old bedroom and arrange for the pieces to be sold or donated.”
Sophie made a small sound.
I looked down.
Her eyes had filled again.
“Mommy's things are for sale?”
Vanessa immediately softened her voice.
“Sweetheart, nobody was using them.”
“I was.”
The room went quiet.
Sophie looked toward the fireplace.
“I used Mommy's piano every day.”
Luca crouched beside her.
“Baby, the piano isn't going anywhere.”
She searched his face.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
Vanessa sighed.
“You can't make promises without understanding the arrangements.”
Luca slowly stood.
“Then explain the arrangements.”
She hesitated.
“The company has already collected most of the personal belongings. The piano was scheduled for pickup tomorrow morning.”
“Cancel it.”
“Luca—”
“Cancel it.”
His voice remained controlled.
But the pain underneath it was unmistakable.
Vanessa looked toward Daniel, the security chief standing near the restaurant entrance.
Then she reached for her handbag.
“I'll contact them.”
Luca shook his head.
“Daniel will speak to the company. Nothing else leaves my property.”
Daniel nodded.
“Yes, sir.”
One of the guests quietly stood.
Then another.
Luca turned toward them.
“I'm sorry this evening has become uncomfortable. My staff will arrange transportation for anyone who needs it.”
His uncle approached.
“Luca, do you want me to stay?”
Luca looked at Sophie.
“Not tonight, Uncle Paul. Thank you.”
Within minutes, the guests began leaving.
Nobody asked about the postponed concert.
Nobody mentioned the engagement toast.
But I noticed several people glancing toward the little girl who sat silently beside her father's untouched dinner.
That hurt.
Sophie had come to show her medal.
Instead, she'd become the center of a family argument she never should've had to witness.
I gently placed her navy-blue coat over the back of her chair.
“Would you like some more pasta, sweetheart?”
She shook her head.
“Can I just sit here?”
“Of course.”
Luca heard her.
He pulled his own chair closer.
“You can stay beside me as long as you want.”
She leaned against him.
For a moment, he simply held her.
Then he looked toward Vanessa.
“Tell me why you did this.”
Vanessa's eyes filled.
“Because we've spent months planning our wedding, Luca, and everything still revolves around Anna.”
He stared at her.
“That's not true.”
“Isn't it?”
She gestured toward the old upright piano.
“Her piano is in the restaurant. Her photographs are in your bedroom. Her clothes have been hanging in the closet for four years.”
Her voice trembled.
“Every time I suggest changing something, you look at me like I've said something terrible.”
Luca lowered his eyes.
I could see that some of her words had reached him.
Not because she was right about removing Anna's belongings.
But because there was a conversation they'd clearly avoided having.
“I know I haven't handled everything well,” he said.
Vanessa stepped closer.
“I love you. But I don't know how to build a life with someone who's afraid to change anything.”
Luca looked at her.
“Then we should've talked about that.”
“I tried.”
“You didn't talk to Sophie.”
Vanessa's expression tightened.
“She's a child.”
“She's Anna's child.”
“And I'm supposed to spend the rest of my life being reminded of that?”
Luca became very still.
Vanessa seemed to regret the words immediately.
“That's not what I meant.”
But Sophie had heard.
She pressed closer to her father.
He placed a protective hand against her back.
“Vanessa, I think you should leave for tonight.”
Her face changed.
“Luca?”
“We're not discussing our wedding while my daughter is sitting here wondering whether she's allowed to remember her mother.”
Tears slipped down Vanessa's cheeks.
“Are you ending our engagement?”
He looked exhausted.
“I'm telling you I can't marry someone I don't trust.”
Vanessa picked up her handbag.
Then walked toward the entrance.
Before leaving, she turned to me.
“Emily, I suppose you're pleased with yourself.”
I felt my face burn.
But Luca answered before I could.
“Emily told the truth. Don't punish her for it.”
Vanessa looked at him.
Then left without another word.
For several minutes, we remained at the table.
The restaurant was quiet.
Mrs. Russo, the longtime dining-room manager, began collecting the remaining glasses.
Daniel checked the morning removal order.
And Sophie stared at her medal.
Then she whispered, “Daddy?”
Luca immediately looked down.
“Yes, baby?”
“Are you going to put Mommy's things back?”
“Everything I can find.”
“Even her blue dress?”
“If it's there, sweetheart.”
She hesitated.
“And the music box?”
He swallowed.
“We'll look for that too.”
Sophie lowered her eyes.
I thought she was simply afraid the belongings were gone.
Then she said something that made Luca stop.
“Daddy, I need to tell you something.”
He brushed a loose strand of hair from her cheek.
“You can tell me anything.”
She twisted the ribbon around her fingers.
“Vanessa asked me if I wanted you to be happy again.”
Luca nodded slowly.
“And what did you say?”
“I said yes.”
“Of course you did.”
Sophie began crying.
“Then she said I had to help you stop being sad.”
Luca went very still.
“What did she ask you to do?”
Sophie looked toward the piano.
Then back at her father.
May you like
Her voice was barely a whisper.
“Daddy, I told her she could take Mommy's things.”
