Chapter 5 - The Mafia Boss Pretended Not to Care When She Walked Away—Until His Own Family Tried to Destroy Her Reputation
The warning photograph changed the atmosphere inside the Romano estate.
Security personnel reviewed access records. The technology team preserved the available system logs. Luca arranged for the office corridor cameras to be checked, while Sebastian instructed the foundation's independent compliance adviser to secure the original financial records.
Elena spent most of the following morning comparing the suspicious transfers with the foundation's public grant reports.
By lunchtime, she had identified four additional companies that appeared repeatedly in the payment history.
None had a clear record of delivering the equipment listed on the invoices.
One operated from a registered office that no longer existed.
Another shared a mailing address with a company that had been dissolved two years earlier.
The remaining two had received transfers shortly after Bellanova Outreach was paid.
The money was moving.
But the goods it supposedly purchased were difficult to find.
Elena created a schedule showing the dates, amounts, authorizations, and supporting documents associated with each transaction. She deliberately avoided labeling any individual as responsible.
The figures had to speak for themselves.
When she finished, she carried the report to Sebastian's office.
He was speaking with Luca beside the windows.
Both men stopped when she entered.
"I have something."
Sebastian gestured toward the desk.
"Show me."
Elena spread out the documents.
"The original Bellanova invoices list approximately the same equipment across several separate deliveries. The serial numbers repeat, and the payment amounts have been divided into smaller transactions. The supporting records don't establish that all the equipment reached the clinics."
"How much money is involved?" Luca asked.
"I've confirmed discrepancies in payments totaling $2.4 million so far. That's not necessarily the total loss, and I haven't established which transfers were fraudulent. But the pattern is consistent enough to justify a full forensic audit."
Sebastian stared at the figures.
"Two point four million dollars."
"At least."
He looked toward the photographs displayed on the wall.
"That money was supposed to fund medical outreach."
"I know."
"How many people were affected?"
"I don't know yet. We need to establish which equipment was actually delivered and which programs were left without the promised resources."
Sebastian ran a hand over his face.
For the first time, Elena saw him struggle to maintain his composure.
It was not the reaction of a man embarrassed by a financial scandal.
It was the reaction of someone who had discovered that a promise he cared about might have been broken in his name.
"What do you need?" he asked.
"Permission to interview the regional coordinators, obtain the original delivery records, and review the vendor onboarding process."
"Granted."
"I also need the authority to report findings directly to the independent audit team, even if someone in the family disagrees with them."
"Granted."
"And I need you not to interfere when the evidence points toward someone you love."
The room fell silent.
Luca looked toward Sebastian.
Elena regretted the bluntness of her wording, but she did not take it back.
Sebastian met her gaze.
"Granted."
She nodded.
"Thank you."
He looked at the report again.
"Elena."
"Yes?"
"If you discover that someone in my family stole from the foundation, I want to know."
"You will."
"Even if it is Anthony."
"Especially if it is Anthony."
Sebastian gave a slow nod.
Then he turned toward Luca.
"Arrange the interviews. Preserve every relevant record. No one changes permissions or deletes files without documenting the action."
Luca left to carry out the instructions.
Elena began collecting the pages.
She had almost finished when Sebastian said, "You know what this means for you."
She looked up.
"What?"
"Someone is already trying to intimidate you. If the audit expands, that pressure may increase."
"I understand."
"You could withdraw from the engagement."
Elena studied him.
"Are you asking me to leave?"
"No."
"Then what are you asking?"
"I'm asking whether you still want to do this."
She considered the question.
Part of her did want to leave.
She wanted to return to her apartment, find a quiet accounting firm, and spend her evenings worrying about ordinary things instead of suspicious transactions and men who believed they could make people disappear from inconvenient conversations.
But she also knew that walking away would not make the truth less important.
And now that she had seen the photographs of the clinics, she could not pretend that the money existed only on a spreadsheet.
"I want to continue," she said. "But I want the arrangement to remain professional."
Sebastian nodded.
"It will."
"And the fake relationship?"
His eyes held hers for a moment.
"We can end it whenever you choose."
Elena waited.
He did not try to persuade her otherwise.
She found that more difficult than she expected.
"Let's keep it for now," she said. "If the engagement announcement is delayed, it gives us time to finish the audit."
Sebastian's expression softened slightly.
"All right."
"That's a professional decision."
"Of course."
"And the fact that we danced last night has no bearing on it."
"Naturally."
She narrowed her eyes.
"You're enjoying yourself again."
"A little."
Elena shook her head and left before he could see her smiling.
That afternoon, Elena and Luca visited a mobile health program on the South Side.
The clinic operated from a converted community center, where nurses distributed medication, performed basic screenings, and helped patients arrange follow-up appointments.
Elena had expected a polished administrative facility.
Instead, she found a crowded reception area, several folding tables, and a medical refrigerator that appeared older than she was.
A nurse named Danielle Cooper greeted them.
"You're here about the Bellanova deliveries?"
"Yes," Elena replied. "I'd like to verify what the program received."
Danielle led them through the clinic.
She showed Elena a small examination room, a cabinet containing basic medical supplies, and a storage area that held unopened boxes of disposable gloves.
When Elena asked about the portable diagnostic stations listed on the invoices, Danielle shook her head.
"We never received those."
"Any refrigeration equipment?"
"No. We had to borrow a unit from the community hospital next door when the old one failed."
Elena recorded the information.
"Did you submit a report?"
"Three times."
"To whom?"
"The program coordinator, then the foundation's grants office. We were told the shipment was on its way."
"Did anyone ask you to sign a delivery confirmation?"
Danielle's expression changed.
"Yes. Mark Ellison brought one by in May."
Elena looked up.
"What did he say?"
"He told us the equipment had been delivered to a central warehouse and that our supplies would be transferred later. I refused to sign because our clinic hadn't received anything."
"Did he insist?"
"He said the paperwork needed to be closed before the quarterly review."
Danielle lowered her voice.
"I told him I wasn't going to certify equipment I had never seen."
Elena felt a cold knot form in her stomach.
"Did he threaten you?"
"Not directly. But he told me that if I made the foundation look bad, our future funding might be reconsidered."
Luca's expression hardened.
Elena continued taking notes.
"Would you be willing to provide a written statement?"
"Yes."
Danielle led them back to the reception area.
Before they left, she stopped beside the entrance.
"I should tell you something else. A woman called the clinic last week asking whether we'd received the equipment. She said she was from Bellanova."
"Do you remember her name?"
"Victoria. I didn't catch her last name."
Elena looked at Luca.
Neither spoke.
The name did not prove Victoria had participated in the fraud.
But it placed her closer to the missing deliveries than she had admitted.
On the drive back to the estate, Elena reviewed her notes.
"If the clinic never received the equipment, someone needs to explain the invoices."
"Yes," Luca replied.
"And someone knew the deliveries hadn't arrived."
"Possibly."
She looked at him.
"You really are careful with your language."
"It's a useful habit."
"Is that why you never tell me what you're thinking?"
"I generally tell Mr. Romano what I'm thinking."
"How fortunate for him."
Luca smiled.
"He's accustomed to the worst of my opinions."
Elena laughed.
Then Luca's phone rang.
He answered, listened, and immediately looked toward the driver.
"Take us back to the estate. Now."
Elena sat upright.
"What happened?"
"Mark Ellison is missing."
Her blood ran cold.
"What do you mean, missing?"
"He didn't report to work. His apartment is empty, and his phone has been switched off."
"Have you contacted the police?"
"Yes."
She looked down at her notes.
Mark had given her the anonymous transfer sheet.
He had warned her that someone was hiding something.
Now he had disappeared.
"Do you think someone took him?"
"I don't know."
"But you suspect it."
Luca did not answer.
Elena stared out at the passing buildings.
The investigation was no longer simply about money.
People were afraid.
And fear was becoming the most reliable pattern she had found.
When Elena returned to the estate, Anthony Romano was waiting in the library.
He was in his late fifties, with neatly combed silver hair, a tailored suit, and the practiced warmth of a man who had spent decades making powerful people feel comfortable.
He rose when Elena entered.
"Miss Foster. I've been hoping to meet with you."
Elena set down her bag.
"Mr. Romano."
"Please, call me Anthony."
"Thank you."
He gestured toward a chair.
"May we talk?"
Elena remained standing.
"Certainly."
Anthony smiled.
"I understand you've been asking questions about Bellanova Outreach."
"I'm conducting an audit."
"Of course. A necessary process. But I worry that you've been given an incomplete picture."
"Then I'm happy to review any additional documentation you can provide."
He folded his hands.
"The foundation operates through dozens of programs, contractors, and regional partnerships. Sometimes paperwork arrives late. Sometimes a delivery is recorded at a central warehouse before it reaches a clinic. It can look suspicious if you examine a single document without understanding the larger arrangement."
"That is why I'm reviewing the entire transaction history."
"Excellent."
He paused.
"However, I would caution you against assuming that every discrepancy represents wrongdoing."
"I haven't made that assumption."
"Good."
Anthony's smile remained pleasant.
"Then perhaps you can explain why you've been asking staff members about missing equipment and speaking with outside organizations without consulting the foundation's finance office."
"Because the finance office authorized the payments I'm reviewing."
For the first time, his expression changed.
Only slightly.
But Elena saw it.
"The finance office is responsible for processing the transactions," he said. "That does not mean its employees were involved in any irregularity."
"I agree."
"Then I trust you'll be careful."
Elena met his gaze.
"I intend to be accurate."
Anthony leaned back.
"Your work has attracted considerable attention. My nephew appears to have developed an unusual interest in your findings."
"He's the foundation's executive director."
"Yes. And he has a tendency to become emotionally involved in matters that should remain objective."
Elena studied him.
"Are you suggesting my relationship with Sebastian is affecting the audit?"
Anthony smiled faintly.
"I'm suggesting that a young woman who has worked with my nephew for less than a week may not fully understand the consequences of becoming involved in this family's internal affairs."
"I understand that the records need to be examined."
"That is a very narrow answer."
"It's the answer relevant to my work."
Anthony's smile faded.
He rose and approached the bookshelf.
"My brother believed he could turn the family into something entirely respectable. He wanted the foundation to be a symbol of redemption. He wanted to prove that money accumulated through difficult means could be used for good."
Elena listened carefully.
"He was a good man," Anthony continued. "But he sometimes forgot that good intentions don't remove the complexities of the world."
"Are you saying the foundation's rules are optional?"
Anthony turned.
"No. I'm saying that a person who doesn't understand the full situation should be careful before deciding who deserves blame."
Elena collected her notebook.
"Then perhaps we should allow the independent audit to establish the facts."
Anthony regarded her for several seconds.
Finally, he nodded.
"Perhaps."
She moved toward the door.
His voice stopped her.
"Miss Foster."
She turned.
"If you discover information that could damage this family, I hope you'll remember that there are people whose lives depend upon the foundation remaining operational."
Elena looked at him.
"The people who depend upon the foundation are precisely why the accounts need to be accurate."
For the first time, Anthony had no immediate response.
Elena left the library.
She found Sebastian waiting in the corridor.
"How did that go?"
"He wanted me to understand that the transactions are complicated."
Sebastian's expression tightened.
"That is what people say when they cannot explain them."
"Not always."
She handed him her notes.
"But sometimes."
He read the summary of the conversation.
"Did he threaten you?"
"No. He warned me."
"About what?"
"Consequences."
Sebastian looked toward the library door.
Then he turned back to her.
"You did the right thing."
Elena felt a small warmth spread through her chest.
She tried to ignore it.
"Don't praise me for doing my job."
"I'm praising you for refusing to abandon it when someone tried to intimidate you."
She looked down at her notes.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Sebastian said, "Mark's disappearance worries me."
"It worries me, too."
"If you want to suspend your involvement while the authorities investigate, I will support that decision."
Elena shook her head.
"No. But I want to make one thing clear."
"Go ahead."
"I won't be used as a reason to cover up what happened. If someone is stealing from the foundation, I want the investigation to continue whether or not the fake relationship does."
Sebastian met her gaze.
"Agreed."
She nodded.
"Good."
He hesitated.
"Elena, there's something else."
"What?"
"The public announcement about our relationship has been delayed. My grandmother wants us to attend a family dinner tomorrow evening, and Victoria has been invited."
Elena groaned.
"Of course she has."
"There's a reason."
"Let me guess. She knows something."
"I believe she may know more than she's telling us."
Elena studied him.
"And you want me there because she'll talk?"
"I want you there because she's likely to repeat the same story she's been giving everyone else. If it contradicts the records, we'll know which questions to ask next."
Elena thought about it.
Then she nodded.
"I'll attend."
Sebastian's expression softened.
"Thank you."
"But if your grandmother mentions wedding dresses, I reserve the right to leave."
"That seems reasonable."
"And if Victoria calls me inexperienced again, I reserve the right to correct her."
"Also reasonable."
"And if anyone asks whether we slept together, I'm telling them I fell asleep over a ledger."
Sebastian smiled.
"I would expect nothing less."
She walked away before he could see her grin.
But as she reached the staircase, she received a message from an unknown number.
It contained a single photograph.
Mark Ellison stood outside a warehouse beside a black vehicle.
Beneath the image were six words.
Ask Sebastian what happened to Mark.
Elena stopped moving.
For a moment, she could hear nothing but the pounding of her heart.
Someone was trying to make her suspect Sebastian.
Someone wanted to separate her from the only person in this family who had consistently respected her boundaries.
She stared at the photograph, searching for details that might establish when it had been taken.
Then another message appeared.
He knows why the former controller died.
Elena looked up at the staircase.
Sebastian was standing at the top, speaking with Luca.
He glanced down and noticed her expression.
"Elena?"
She closed her hand around the phone.
May you like
For the first time since accepting the consulting contract, she wondered whether the answers she was searching for might lead directly to the man she was beginning to care about.
And she knew that if that happened, she would have to choose the evidence over the feelings she had never intended to develop.
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