Chapter 4 - THE SIGNATURE
"You're lying."
My voice didn't sound like my own. It was a hollow, desperate rasp.
Luca released Vanessa's arm as if she had burned him. He turned to his lead guard, Marco.
"Call the school. Now," Luca ordered.
Marco stepped back, pressing his phone to his ear.
Vanessa simply smoothed the sleeve of her coat. "Don't bother. He's not hurt. He's just enjoying some ice cream with my associates. As long as we all stay reasonable."
I lunged for her.
I didn't think about the guards, the guns, or the fact that I was just a housekeeper. I just wanted my hands around her throat.
Luca caught me around the waist, pulling me back with sheer force.
"Claire, stop!" he commanded. "Let me handle this."
"She has Tommy!" I screamed, struggling against his grip.
"Sir," Marco interrupted, his face pale. "The school confirms. Thomas Bennett was checked out at 9:00 AM by a woman claiming to be his aunt. They had the proper authorization codes."
My knees gave out. Luca caught my weight, lowering me gently to the floor.
Vanessa looked down at me with mild amusement.
"You see, Claire," Vanessa said, "you thought you were a hero last night. You thought you were saving little Isabella from a wicked stepmother. But you don't understand the game you're playing."
Luca stepped between me and Vanessa, his towering frame blocking her from my view.
"What do you want, Vanessa?" His voice was dead calm. The kind of calm that precedes a slaughter.
"I want the girl," Vanessa said simply.
"You will never touch Isabella."
"It's already done, Luca." Vanessa reached into her designer handbag and pulled out a folded piece of thick legal paper. She held it out to him.
Luca didn't take it. Marco stepped forward, took the paper, and unfolded it.
"What is it?" Luca demanded.
Marco read it quickly, his eyes widening. "It's... it's a transfer of custody, boss. To the Falcone family. And... it has your signature."
"That's impossible," Luca snarled. "I never signed anything giving my daughter away."
"Oh, but you did," Vanessa purred. "Last week. Tucked right in the middle of our prenuptial agreements. You were so distracted by wedding planning, you just signed where my lawyers told you to."
Luca’s face went rigid.
The Falcones. The rival family. The ones with the hawk crest.
The pieces slammed together in my mind. The locket. The tattoo Isabella remembered. The crash that killed Elena.
Vanessa wasn't just a cruel, vain woman. She was a Falcone plant.
"The paperwork is legally binding," Vanessa said. "The judge who stamped it is on our payroll. Isabella belongs to Don Falcone now. He’s her legal guardian."
"She is my flesh and blood," Luca roared, the sound shaking the chandelier.
Vanessa’s smile widened into something truly venomous.
"Is she, Luca?" Vanessa asked softly. "Is she really?"
Luca went completely still.
"Bring the girl to the front gates by midnight," Vanessa said, turning toward the door. "If you do, Claire gets her brother back. If you don't, we'll send the boy back in pieces. And we’ll just come in and take Isabella anyway."
She walked out the front doors, her heels clicking sharply on the stone steps.
I sat on the marble floor, sobbing, my hands covering my face.
Luca knelt beside me. He didn't offer empty comforts. He just looked at me with cold, absolute resolve.
"I will get him back, Claire," Luca vowed.
"How?" I choked out. "She has the law. She has Tommy. She has everything."
"Not everything," Luca said softly.
He stood up and looked toward the grand staircase.
I followed his gaze.
Isabella wasn't there.
"Marco," Luca snapped. "Where is my daughter?"
"She was just upstairs, boss."
We ran up the stairs, tearing through the hallways to her bedroom.
The door was open.
May you like
The bed was empty.
Isabella was gone. And on her pillow lay a single, crumpled drawing of a black hawk.
