THE MAFIA BOSS HAD NEVER QUESTIONED HIS FIANCÉE’S LOYALTY, UNTIL HIS HOUSEMAID ARRIVED WITH A BRUISED FACE AND A PHOTOGRAPH OF A CHILD HE DIDN’T KNOW EXISTED.

I sat beneath the fluorescent lights of a gas station convenience store and stared at my phone until the numbers blurred.

Luca had bought two bottles of water and a packet of crackers. Neither of us touched them. The cashier watched a basketball game on a small television, occasionally cheering at a screen that seemed to belong to another universe.

Every instinct told me to run toward Harbor House. I wanted to be the first person through the door. I wanted to hear my mother say my name. But Detective Alvarez had told us to stay away, and I had finally learned how expensive one reckless decision could be.

"What if they're hurting her right now?" I asked.

Luca didn't pretend to know. "Then the people trained to stop them are already there."

His phone buzzed. Mae's name appeared.

"We have the building secured," she said. "Two people tried to leave through a service entrance. Both are being held for questioning. There was a brief struggle, but no serious injuries have been reported. Medical personnel are going inside."

"My mother?"

"We found an older woman matching Nora's description. She is conscious."

The words barely made sense.

"Can I speak to her?"

"As soon as the medics assess her and confirm she can talk. She appears exhausted, and we don't yet know whether she's received her medication."

I put one hand over my eyes. Relief rushed through me so suddenly that it hurt.

Luca leaned toward the phone. "Thank you, Detective."

Mae answered, "Thank the team when this is over. We still need to protect her and complete the investigation."

Twenty minutes later, an ambulance carried my mother to a nearby hospital. We followed, stopping at the emergency entrance where an officer directed us to a family waiting area. I had never hated a clock more than I hated the one above that door.

At last a nurse appeared. "Family of Nora Hayes?"

I was on my feet before she finished.

"She's stable," the nurse told me. "She is dehydrated and her blood pressure is low. The doctors are reviewing her medications and kidney function. She has asked for her daughter."

I followed the nurse down a narrow hall. My mother lay on a hospital bed, a blanket tucked beneath her chin. Her gray hair was flattened on one side. There were bruises on her wrist where someone had gripped her too hard.

She opened her eyes.

"Livvie."

That was all it took.

I crossed the room and wrapped my arms around her as gently as I could. She smelled of antiseptic and the hand cream she'd used since I was a child. I cried into her shoulder, and she cried against my hair.

"I tried to call," she whispered. "They took the phone."

"I know. We found your letter."

She pulled back enough to see my face. Her expression changed.

"What happened to your cheek?"

"I'm okay, Mom."

"That is not an answer."

Even after everything, she could still sound like a mother catching her daughter sneaking out past curfew. I laughed through tears.

"A woman at work hurt me," I admitted. "She won't be allowed near me again."

My mother looked toward Luca, who had stopped at the doorway to give us space. Her eyes widened.

"Mr. Moretti."

"Please call me Luca," he said. "And thank you for helping Isabella and Ethan."

She began to shake her head. "I should have told you."

"My uncle frightened you. I understand more than I did yesterday."

"I still should have tried harder."

Luca approached the bed slowly. "Then we both have things to regret. Let's not put the weight of his choices on you alone."

My mother looked at me, astonished. I could almost hear her thinking that the feared head of the Moretti family was not behaving the way she had expected.

She reached for my hand.

"Did the boy come home?"

"He did," I told her. "He's with both his parents now."

Her eyes filled again. "Thank God."

Before she tired, I unfolded Ethan's drawing and placed it on the blanket. She touched the blue scarf on the page.

"You told him about me?"

"A little. Mostly he figured things out by himself."

"Smart boy."

The doctor asked us to keep the visit short. My mother needed rest, and officers would take a formal statement only when her medical team agreed she was ready. I kissed her forehead and promised I would be back after she slept.

In the corridor, I pressed my hands to the wall and let the relief wash through me again. Luca stood beside me, not speaking. When I finally turned, he handed me a tissue.

"You were right," I said.

"About what?"

"Courage and recklessness being different things. Well, actually, Mom was right. But you listened to her advice without even knowing her."

"I have a feeling I should listen to her more often."

I smiled. The smile pulled at my healing cut. For once I didn't mind.

The next morning, my mother felt strong enough to tell investigators what had happened. A woman claiming to represent the hospital's former employees had visited her apartment. When Mom refused to discuss the register, two men entered. They moved her first to the private care facility, then to Harbor House after police activity increased.

"They never stopped asking about a second notebook," Mom said. "I told them I didn't know where June kept it. They thought I was lying."

Mae explained that June had safely provided that notebook to investigators. My mother's shoulders relaxed for the first time.

Then she added another detail. While held at Harbor House, she had heard Dominic speaking through a partly open door.

"He said the trust money would be transferred by Friday, before the audit could freeze it. Vanessa told him to wait until after the foundation's benefit dinner. She said Luca would be too embarrassed to challenge them in public."

Luca's attorney immediately contacted the relevant financial institutions and authorities about the potential transfer. There were legal steps to follow, but a temporary freeze was possible. Mae said the remarks might help corroborate the financial records Evelyn had surrendered.

"Vanessa is still planning the benefit dinner?" I asked.

"The foundation hasn't canceled it," Luca replied. "Her father built half his social standing on these events."

"She thinks she can make everyone believe she's the victim."

"She can try. It won't change the evidence."

For several hours, the day felt almost peaceful. My mother slept. I ate lunch in the hospital cafeteria and called our landlord to tell him she was safe. Mrs. Carter sent a photo of Ethan proudly showing his crooked train to Isabella. Luca arranged for an independent legal team to review his companies' records. There were difficult decisions ahead, but at least we knew the next steps.

At four in the afternoon, Daniel arrived at the hospital. One glance at him told me something was wrong.

"Boss, we found a problem in the service-door access log," he said.

Luca's eyes narrowed. "What kind?"

"An old mechanical override key is missing from the security cabinet. It was supposed to have been replaced when Vanessa left, but nobody checked the physical keys against the inventory."

"Change the locks now."

"The locksmith is on site. We also discovered that one of the overnight guards, Peter Alden, has been receiving payments from a company tied to Dominic."

"Where is he?"

"He didn't report for work. The police have been informed."

I felt the floor slide beneath my feet.

"Is Ethan safe?"

"He was with Isabella in the nursery twenty minutes ago. I'm confirming again."

Daniel called the mansion. We waited. He listened, frowned, and stepped into the hall. Luca followed him, and I followed Luca.

"What happened?" I demanded.

Daniel looked sick. "Mrs. Carter says Isabella took Ethan to the garden room for a snack. A staff member saw a woman in a courier uniform at the side entrance. She claimed to be delivering medical equipment."

"The locks," Luca said. "Tell me they're changed."

"Not yet."

Another call flashed across Daniel's screen. He answered.

I watched the blood leave his face.

"Say that again," he whispered.

He turned to Luca. "The side door was opened from the outside. Isabella is in the garden room, but Ethan wasn't with her when Mrs. Carter arrived. They're searching the grounds."

I couldn't feel my fingers.

"He was supposed to be safe," I said.

"He was," Daniel answered hoarsely. "Until somebody used that key."

Luca took the phone. His voice was frighteningly steady.

"Seal the exits. Call the police. Nobody assumes he left the property until every room has been checked."

A minute later, a security camera image arrived.

It showed a woman in a courier jacket leading Ethan through a service corridor. She had his hand in hers. He was carrying Captain Fox and looking anxiously toward the door.

The woman turned her face toward the camera.