Chapter 5 - My Mother Was Alive—And The Woman Vanessa Hated Most Had Been Protecting Me

The search for Elena changed everything.

She was alive.

Somewhere.

And she'd spent years watching from the shadows.

Richard gave us one clue.

A cabin in northern Michigan.

We drove through the night.

I couldn't stop imagining what my mother would look like.

Would she recognize me?

Would she hate me?

Would she regret leaving?

Would she cry?

Dante sat beside me in silence.

Eventually, he spoke.

"I loved her."

"I know."

"She was the only person who ever challenged me."

"You loved her very much."

"More than anything."

"What happened?"

"My father threatened her."

"Why didn't you protect her?"

He looked at me.

"Because I thought she was safe."

His voice broke.

"That is the mistake I regret most."

We reached the cabin at dawn.

The door was unlocked.

Inside was a small kitchen.

A sewing machine.

Books.

Photographs.

And a woman's scarf.

Dante picked it up.

He knew it immediately.

"She's been here."

We searched every room.

Then I found a letter.

Maya.

The handwriting was shaky.

I opened it.

My daughter,

If you are reading this, then your father finally found you.

I cried before I finished the second sentence.

Elena explained everything.

The attack had been planned by Dante's father.

He wanted to remove Dante and use Amara as leverage.

Elena escaped with me.

But she was injured.

She believed anyone around her could be compromised.

So she left me in a safe place and disappeared.

She had spent years investigating the family.

The ledger wasn't the only evidence.

She had built an archive.

And she wanted me to find it.

Behind the fireplace, we discovered a hidden door.

Inside was a room filled with photographs.

Dante stood motionless.

"There she is."

I looked at the pictures.

My mother had been watching me.

At school.

At the restaurant.

At the hospital.

She had followed my life from a distance.

I found photographs of me at six.

Twelve.

Sixteen.

Twenty-one.

She had never forgotten.

She had simply been unable to come home.

Then we heard footsteps.

Dante moved in front of me.

A woman entered.

Gray hair.

Thin face.

Tired eyes.

But I knew her.

I knew her before she spoke.

"Amara."

My knees weakened.

"Mom?"

She broke down.

I ran to her.

We held each other.

I cried against her shoulder.

She cried into my hair.

"I'm sorry."

"Why didn't you come back?"

"Because every time I tried, someone found me."

"Who?"

She looked at Dante.

"His father."

Dante stepped forward.

"Where is he?"

Elena shook her head.

"He's in Bellmont."

"Where?"

"He owns half the city's legitimate businesses."

Dante understood instantly.

"The mayor?"

Elena nodded.

My stomach dropped.

The city's most respected businessman.

The man who attended charity galas.

The man newspapers called a philanthropist.

He was Dante's father.

The architect behind everything.

Before we could say more, the lights went out.

Gunfire erupted.

Dante grabbed Elena.

I ducked behind the wall.

Someone broke through the side entrance.

Security returned fire.

Then a voice shouted:

"Take the girl!"

Hands grabbed me.

I fought.

Someone struck me.

Then Dante appeared.

He hit the attacker so hard the man collapsed.

Dante pulled me into his arms.

"You're safe."

I looked at him.

"My mother..."

"She's safe."

We escaped through the back.

But before we left, Elena handed me a flash drive.

"Everything is on there."

"Everything?"

"Every name."

"Who is the last name?"

She looked at Dante.

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Then at me.

"Your grandfather."