Chapter 8 - The Night Sophia Tried to RunI stared at the forged signature.
Claire Bennett Moretti.
The handwriting was remarkably close to mine.
But I had never signed the document.
I had never authorized a transfer.
And I had not been involved in the foundation's finances for seven years.
Madison contacted the investigators immediately.
Within hours, the attempted transfer became part of a broader fraud inquiry.
Sophia was informed that authorities wanted to interview her.
She did not appear.
Instead, she disappeared.
At first, nobody knew where she had gone.
Her phone was switched off.
Her car was found in a parking garage near O'Hare International Airport.
And Lucas was missing from school.
When Vincent learned that Sophia had taken him without notifying anyone, he called me.
His voice was frantic.
"Claire, she's gone."
"With Lucas?"
"Yes."
"Have you contacted the police?"
"Already."
"Then let them do their work."
"She knows people. She has money. She could leave the country."
I thought of the anonymous messages.
The photograph of Emily.
The warning.
"Vincent, listen to me. Sophia has already tried to frighten us. Don't do anything reckless."
"I have to find my son."
"I know."
His breathing was uneven.
For the first time, I heard something in his voice that had been missing seven years earlier.
The terror of a parent who might lose a child.
"Vincent," I said softly, "you need to stay calm for Lucas."
He was silent.
Then he whispered, "How did you do it?"
"What?"
"All those years. When Emily was sick. When you were afraid. When you didn't know what to do."
I looked down.
"I did what I had to do."
"Alone."
"Yes."
His voice broke.
"I'm sorry."
I closed my eyes.
"I know."
But sorry could not bring back seven years.
The police located Sophia the following evening.
She had driven north toward Wisconsin and checked into a roadside motel under an assumed name.
Lucas was with her.
He was frightened but physically unharmed.
Officers took Sophia into custody in connection with the investigation and arranged for Lucas to be reunited with Vincent under the existing legal arrangements.
Vincent drove to the designated family-services office.
When Lucas saw him, he burst into tears.
"Dad!"
Vincent dropped to his knees.
Lucas ran into his arms.
For several minutes, Vincent held him without speaking.
Then Lucas asked the question he had been carrying for days.
"Are you still my dad?"
Vincent pulled back.
He looked directly into the boy's eyes.
"Yes."
"But Mom said you're not."
Vincent swallowed.
"Lucas, being your dad isn't only about biology."
The boy began crying again.
"Are you going to send me away?"
"Never."
Vincent held him close.
"I've made a lot of mistakes. But loving you was never one of them."
That evening, Vincent sent me a message.
Lucas is safe. Thank you for reminding me what matters.
I read it twice.
Then I put my phone away.
Across the room, Emily was drawing a picture.
Two children stood beneath a large tree.
One had brown hair.
The other had dark hair.
I sat beside her.
"Who's that?"
"Me and Lucas."
I smiled.
"Why are you drawing him?"
"Because I think he needs a friend."
I looked at my daughter.
She had inherited her father's gray eyes.
May you like
But her heart belonged entirely to herself.
And I had never been prouder.
