Chapter 7 - The Betrayal Inside the Moretti House
The final investigation revealed something none of us expected.
The person closest to Nicholas was not Gabriel.
Not Bianca.
Not some corrupt official.
It was Alessandro's younger sister, Isabella.
She had been feeding Nicholas information for years.
When Alessandro discovered the records, he refused to believe it.
“She would never.”
Daniel looked at him.
“People do things for reasons.”
“What reason?”
“Money.”
I stared at Alessandro.
He was devastated.
Isabella had been his closest family member after his parents died.
She had stood beside him through funerals.
Business wars.
Threats.
She had even helped raise him.
But the bank records were undeniable.
Her security code had been used to access the vault.
And her signature appeared on several transfers.
Alessandro confronted her at the family estate.
She didn't run.
She waited.
When he entered, she poured two glasses of wine.
“You found out.”
“Yes.”
She nodded.
“I knew you would.”
“Why?”
She looked at him.
“Because Nicholas said you were getting sentimental.”
Alessandro's face hardened.
“Because of Elena?”
She glanced at me.
“No.”
Then she pointed toward Emma.
“Because of her.”
I stepped forward.
“Why did you want my daughter?”
“Not your daughter.”
“The trust.”
“Yes.”
Isabella admitted she had helped Nicholas for years.
She believed Alessandro would eventually destroy the family by trying to leave the criminal world.
She believed Nicholas was the only person capable of preserving the empire.
Alessandro stared.
“You trusted him over me.”
“I trusted the system.”
“The system was destroying us.”
“You were too blind to see it.”
He laughed bitterly.
“You helped him destroy Dad.”
Her expression changed.
“I was protecting you.”
“By helping Nicholas?”
“Yes.”
“What did you do to Daniel?”
She looked at him.
“I didn't know he would survive.”
My stomach turned.
She had known.
All these years.
She knew Daniel was alive.
She knew Elena had been frightened.
She knew Emma existed.
She knew everything.
But there was one thing she hadn't expected.
The red bank seal.
Alessandro placed the envelope on the table.
“You underestimated one child.”
Isabella looked at Emma.
The little girl stood beside me.
She wasn't afraid.
She never was when she believed she was right.
Isabella smiled sadly.
“Her honesty is going to get her hurt.”
“No,” I said.
“It is exactly what saved us.”
That night, Isabella was arrested.
She agreed to testify against Nicholas.
She gave investigators the location of the island.
We prepared to go.
But before leaving, Alessandro came to me.
“If something happens—”
“No.”
“Listen.”
“No.”
He smiled.
“You always interrupt.”
“Because I know what you're about to say.”
“You don't.”
“You're going to say protect Emma.”
“Yes.”
“And leave you behind.”
“Yes.”
I shook my head.
“Not happening.”
He looked at me.
“I spent seven years alone.”
“You spent seven years grieving.”
“And now I have something to lose.”
“You had something to lose before.”
“I didn't know it was alive.”
He took my hand.
“You changed everything.”
“So did Emma.”
He smiled.
“She certainly did.”
On the island, Nicholas was waiting.
The estate was enormous.
Security covered every entrance.
But Isabella's information gave us a way in.
We entered before dawn.
The island was quiet.
Too quiet.
Then the lights came on.
Nicholas stood at the top of the stairs.
Alessandro stared at him.
“For twenty years.”
Nicholas smiled.
“Twenty years.”
“You were my brother.”
“And you were the perfect heir.”
Alessandro stepped forward.
“Why?”
“Because you had what I didn't.”
“What?”
“Your father's trust.”
“You could have asked.”
Nicholas laughed.
“Power is never given.”
Daniel came forward.
“You killed people for it.”
Nicholas looked at him.
“You survived.”
“You failed.”
Nicholas smiled.
“Not yet.”
He revealed a screen.
A bank transfer was already underway.
The trust was being drained.
Sophia's identity was being used.
But Daniel shook his head.
“You can't access it.”
Nicholas looked confident.
“I have the child.”
Emma was not on the island.
Nicholas had assumed she was.
His security team had been watching a decoy vehicle.
Alessandro smiled.
“You don't have my daughter.”
Nicholas's face changed.
“Where is she?”
“Safe.”
For the first time, Nicholas looked afraid.
The trust could not be opened without Emma.
And Emma was nowhere near him.
Then Nicholas pulled out a gun.
He pointed it at Daniel.
“You ruined everything.”
Alessandro stepped between them.
“No.”
Nicholas smiled.
“You always protect everyone.”
“Yes.”
“That's your weakness.”
Alessandro looked at him.
“No.”
He glanced toward me.
“That's my strength.”
The room erupted.
Security rushed in.
Alessandro tackled Nicholas.
Daniel moved behind cover.
I stayed low.
Within minutes, federal agents stormed the estate.
Nicholas was arrested.
But before they took him away, he said one final thing.
“You think this ends with me?”
Alessandro looked at him.
“Yes.”
Nicholas laughed.
“You don't know what your father left behind.”
Alessandro said nothing.
May you like
Because he knew there was still one mystery.
What exactly had Alessandro's father hidden?
