Chapter 8 - A Mother With Nothing Left to Lose
Madison snatched the photograph from Vincent’s hand and whispered, “Tell me this isn’t true.”
Three people stood together in the twenty-three-year-old photograph.
Elena Carter.
The man Vincent had called his father.
And Sofia Bellini’s father.
Four handwritten words covered the back.
VINCENT IS HIS SON.
Vincent recognized the handwriting.
It belonged to his mother.
For several seconds, Vincent said nothing.
Cars passed behind them.
Chicago moved normally around the SUV as if his entire life had not just been split open by four words.
Madison looked at him.
“Vincent?”
He took the photograph back.
His eyes moved over it again.
“This could be fake.”
“Is the handwriting?”
His silence answered her.
Madison tightened her arms around Leo.
Vincent stared at the image.
Giovanni Bellini.
Sofia’s father.
A man Vincent remembered from childhood.
Giovanni had been loud, charming, dangerous.
He brought Vincent expensive birthday gifts.
He taught him how to throw a baseball.
Once, when Vincent was nine, Giovanni had taken him fishing without telling anyone.
Elena had been furious.
Vincent remembered Giovanni laughing.
“You worry too much, Elena. The boy’s safe with me.”
The boy.
Vincent closed his eyes.
Old memories rearranged themselves without permission.
Giovanni attending school events when Vincent’s father was away.
Giovanni knowing exactly what food Vincent hated.
Giovanni telling people Vincent had “Bellini stubbornness.”
Everyone had laughed.
Vincent opened his eyes.
“Where did Nico get this?”
“He sent it to you,” Madison said.
Vincent called immediately.
Nico answered on the second ring.
“Boss.”
“Where did you find the photograph?”
“Daniel had it.”
Vincent looked toward the townhouse.
“Put him on.”
A few seconds passed.
Daniel answered.
“Vincent.”
“Where did you get it?”
“Your mother’s safe-deposit box.”
“When?”
“Seven years ago.”
“And you never thought I should see it?”
“I thought you were going to kill me.”
“You should've tried harder.”
“I did. You shot me.”
Vincent's jaw tightened.
Madison heard Daniel through the speaker.
“There's more.”
“What?”
“Come back.”
“No. Tell me now.”
“Not over the phone.”
“Daniel.”
“Vincent, if I'm right, Anthony has spent more than twenty years protecting a lie.”
Vincent’s expression hardened.
“What lie?”
“That depends on what Elena tells us.”
“You know where she is?”
“I know where she was.”
“Anthony has her.”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
“I found something else.”
Vincent waited.
Daniel lowered his voice.
“A message from her.”
“When?”
“Twenty minutes ago.”
Vincent went still.
“She contacted you?”
“No. It came through an old emergency channel.”
“What did it say?”
“Bring Vincent to St. Catherine’s.”
Madison frowned.
“What’s St. Catherine’s?”
Vincent answered without looking at her.
“A cemetery.”
Daniel continued.
“Your father is buried there.”
Vincent’s eyes narrowed.
“What time?”
“Midnight.”
“No.”
Madison spoke before Vincent could.
Both men went silent.
Vincent looked at her.
“No?”
“You’re not walking into another trap because someone sends you a mysterious message.”
“If it's my mother—”
“If it's Anthony pretending to be your mother?”
Vincent paused.
Madison continued.
“You spent your whole life believing you had to react immediately whenever someone threatened your family.”
“This is my mother.”
“And Leo is your son.”
Vincent looked at the baby.
Madison’s voice softened.
“You have a family standing in front of you.”
The words struck him.
Madison saw it.
She almost regretted saying them.
Not because they were false.
Because she wasn't sure they were still true.
Vincent seemed to understand that.
“I'll verify the message.”
“Good.”
He returned to the phone.
“Daniel, trace it.”
“Already trying.”
Vincent ended the call.
Madison watched him.
“What did you find inside Dr. Lang’s house?”
Vincent looked toward the townhouse.
“He's gone.”
“Gone how?”
“Gone.”
“Vincent.”
He met her eyes.
“Dead.”
Madison went still.
“How?”
“Someone got there before us.”
“When?”
“Probably within the last hour.”
Her stomach tightened.
“Rachel.”
“What about her?”
“She called me.”
Vincent’s attention sharpened.
“The nurse?”
“Yes.”
“What did she say?”
Madison told him everything.
The second blood sample.
The genetic marker.
Anthony's suspicion.
The claim that Vincent was not Anthony's biological nephew.
By the time she finished, Vincent's expression was unreadable.
“She said the man you called your father might not have been your biological father.”
Vincent looked at the photograph again.
“And then?”
“Someone entered wherever she was.”
“Did she say where?”
“No.”
“Number?”
“Blocked.”
Vincent called Nico.
“Find a nurse named Rachel who worked Madison’s maternity floor.”
“Last name?”
“We don't have one.”
“I'll get it.”
“Now.”
Vincent ended the call.
Madison looked down at Leo.
Her son slept peacefully.
She touched the tiny crescent behind his ear.
“Why would Anthony care?”
Vincent knew exactly what she meant.
“If Giovanni Bellini was my biological father?”
“Yes.”
Vincent leaned against the SUV.
“Because leadership in my world is built on blood almost as much as fear.”
“But Anthony raised you.”
“That doesn't mean he wanted me to inherit anything.”
“Then why did he?”
“My father named me.”
“The man you thought was your father.”
Vincent’s expression tightened.
“Yes.”
Madison considered the implications.
“If he knew you weren't biologically his and still named you as his heir…”
“Then blood didn't matter to him.”
“But it mattered to Anthony.”
Vincent looked at Leo.
“And now there's another generation.”
Madison followed his gaze.
Understanding hit her.
“Leo.”
“Yes.”
“Anthony tested him because…”
“If Leo carries a Carter marker that I don't…”
“Then Anthony proves you're not biologically Carter.”
Vincent nodded.
Madison felt suddenly cold.
“So the fake paternity report wasn't designed to convince you Leo wasn't yours.”
“No.”
“It was designed to convince everyone else.”
Vincent looked at her.
“Exactly.”
Madison stood.
Her entire posture changed.
Vincent noticed immediately.
“What?”
“He used my baby.”
“Madison.”
“He had people touch my child. Take his blood. Change his bracelet. He sent Sofia into the hospital while I was unconscious.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Her voice sharpened.
“You don't.”
Vincent stared at her.
Madison had been afraid for fifteen days.
Afraid she would die.
Afraid Vincent wouldn't come.
Afraid she couldn't raise Leo alone.
Afraid of Sofia.
Afraid of Daniel's secrets.
Afraid of Vincent’s enemies.
Something inside her had finally run out of room for fear.
“If Anthony wanted to hurt you, he could have come after you.”
“He has.”
“He came after Leo.”
“Yes.”
“He came after a newborn because of a name.”
Vincent stepped closer.
“That's why I need you somewhere safe.”
Madison laughed.
“There is no somewhere safe.”
“I can make one.”
“Your mansion was breached.”
“I'll find another.”
“My apartment was watched.”
“I'll fix it.”
“My hospital room was compromised while I was bleeding to death.”
Vincent had no answer.
Madison looked him directly in the eyes.
“You cannot solve this by putting me in another room and locking the door.”
“What do you want?”
“I want to know everything.”
“Madison—”
“Everything.”
She stepped closer.
“No more protecting me with lies. No more deciding what I can handle. No more sending me upstairs while men discuss my life downstairs.”
Vincent watched her.
“If I stay anywhere near you until this is over, I get a seat at the table.”
He almost smiled.
Not because it was funny.
Because that sounded like the woman he'd fallen in love with.
“Fine.”
“Fine?”
“You want a seat?”
“Yes.”
“You have one.”
Madison blinked.
“That easy?”
“No.”
“Then why agree?”
Vincent looked at Leo.
“Because the last time I decided for you, I lost you.”
The anger inside her faltered.
She hated that he could still do that.
Not charm her.
Vincent wasn't trying to.
He was finally telling the truth.
A car pulled up.
One of Vincent’s guards stepped out.
“Boss.”
“What?”
“We found something behind Lang's house.”
Vincent looked at Madison.
She raised an eyebrow.
“My seat.”
He sighed.
“Come on.”
Madison placed Leo securely into his carrier.
The guard led them behind the townhouse.
A detached garage stood at the end of the alley.
Inside were boxes.
Medical supplies.
Hospital uniforms.
Disposable phones.
Nico's people had begun photographing everything.
Vincent opened one box.
Inside were blood collection kits.
Madison’s name appeared on several labels.
Her face went pale.
“These are mine.”
Vincent examined the dates.
Samples had been collected throughout her pregnancy.
Eight weeks.
Twelve.
Twenty.
Twenty-eight.
Thirty-six.
“They've been testing you for months,” he said.
Madison shook her head.
“I never authorized this.”
Another box contained records.
Vincent opened a folder.
Ultrasounds.
Prenatal screenings.
Doctor’s notes.
Everything.
Someone had been monitoring Madison's pregnancy from the beginning.
Then she noticed a blue folder.
LEO CARTER.
Madison grabbed it.
Inside was a DNA analysis.
She stared at the page.
“Vincent.”
He moved beside her.
The report compared three samples.
MADISON CARTER.
INFANT CARTER.
SUBJECT V.
Vincent frowned.
“Subject V?”
“You.”
“How would they have my DNA?”
“You're asking me?”
He read the result.
Probability of biological paternity:
99.998%.
Madison exhaled.
Vincent closed his eyes.
She looked at him.
“You doubted for half a second.”
His eyes opened.
“I hated myself for the half.”
Madison said nothing.
Vincent folded the report.
“I never doubted you.”
“You doubted the situation.”
“Yes.”
“That still hurt.”
“I know.”
He looked at Leo.
“But he's mine.”
Madison nodded.
“He always was.”
A sound came from the front of the garage.
The guard entered carrying another box.
“This was hidden beneath the floor.”
Vincent opened it.
Old documents.
Photographs.
A cassette recorder.
A stack of letters.
One envelope bore his name.
VINCENT.
The handwriting belonged to Elena.
His mother.
Vincent stared.
Madison touched his arm.
“Open it.”
He did.
The paper inside was yellow with age.
My son,
If you ever read this, then Anthony has already taken more from us than I could stop him from taking.
Vincent swallowed.
Madison stood beside him.
The next lines were harder.
Giovanni Bellini is not your father.
Vincent stopped.
Madison stared.
He read it again.
Not your father.
Then who?
He continued.
I let Anthony believe Giovanni was your father because it was the only way to keep you alive.
Vincent's breathing changed.
The garage became silent.
Your father knew the truth. He loved you from the moment you were born, and he never questioned that you were his son.
Vincent gripped the page.
Then came the sentence that made his blood turn cold.
Anthony was not trying to expose your bloodline.
He was trying to hide his own.
Vincent read faster.
There was another child.
A child born before you.
A child Anthony believed should have inherited everything.
A child your father refused to recognize.
The final paragraph had been torn away.
Vincent stared at the missing edge.
“No.”
Madison looked at him.
“What?”
“This isn't about me.”
He turned toward the boxes.
“Anthony has another heir.”
Madison felt a chill.
“Who?”
Vincent didn't know.
His phone rang.
Nico.
Vincent answered immediately.
“Tell me you found Rachel.”
“We did.”
“Alive?”
Pause.
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“St. Matthew Medical Center.”
“What happened?”
“She was attacked, but she got away.”
“Can she talk?”
“She already is.”
Vincent glanced at Madison.
“What did she tell you?”
Nico hesitated.
“Boss, Sofia wasn't working for Anthony.”
Vincent went still.
“What?”
“She was pretending to.”
“Why?”
“She says your mother recruited her.”
Madison stared.
Vincent's voice hardened.
“Then why did Sofia intercept Madison's calls?”
“According to Rachel, she didn't.”
Silence.
Vincent looked at Madison.
“That's impossible.”
“Nurses were transferred to Sofia through your office system, but someone cloned her extension.”
“Who?”
“We don't know.”
Vincent paced once.
“What about the hospital footage?”
“Real.”
“So Sofia handled Leo.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To stop the other woman from taking him.”
Madison stepped closer.
“Put him on speaker.”
Vincent did.
“Nico,” Madison said, “who was the second baby?”
“We're still tracing that.”
“And why was Sofia dressed like a nurse?”
“She knew someone planned to switch Leo.”
Madison felt the floor shift beneath her again.
“So she stopped it?”
“That's what Rachel says.”
Vincent's expression hardened.
“Where is Sofia now?”
“We don't know.”
“You were supposed to find her.”
“Her phone went dark after she left the hospital.”
Vincent remembered dismissing Sofia from Madison’s room hours earlier.
Go home.
She hadn't argued much.
Maybe because she had never intended to go home.
Madison looked at him.
“If Sofia was trying to protect Leo, why didn't she tell you?”
“Because she didn't trust me.”
The answer came from the garage entrance.
Everyone turned.
Daniel stood there.
Blood had dried near his mouth where Vincent had hit him.
He carried another folder.
Vincent's eyes narrowed.
“What are you doing here?”
“Saving you time.”
Daniel tossed the folder onto the table.
“Your father knew Anthony had a child.”
Vincent opened it.
Birth certificate.
The father's name had been left blank.
Mother:
CATHERINE BELLINI.
Sofia's mother.
Vincent stared at Daniel.
“Sofia?”
“No.”
Daniel shook his head.
“Sofia was born four years later.”
Madison looked at the date.
The child would now be thirty-seven.
“What happened to him?”
“Officially?”
Daniel paused.
“He died at birth.”
Vincent laughed without humor.
“We're developing a pattern.”
Daniel nodded.
“Apparently dead people in this family have a habit of surviving.”
Madison stared at the certificate.
“Name?”
Daniel pointed.
The baby's first name had been partially obscured by water damage.
Only the final letters remained.
...OLAS.
Vincent froze.
Daniel saw it.
“What?”
Vincent grabbed the document.
"...olas."
His eyes lifted.
Nico.
Nicholas.
Nico had been part of Vincent's life for eighteen years.
Anthony had introduced them.
A seventeen-year-old kid with nowhere to go.
No parents.
No history anyone could verify.
Vincent had trusted him more than almost anyone.
Madison saw the realization.
“You think Nico is Anthony's son?”
Vincent didn't answer.
His phone was still connected.
The speaker had gone completely silent.
Vincent slowly looked down at it.
“Nico?”
No response.
“Nico.”
Static.
Then breathing.
Vincent's expression changed.
“Nicholas.”
A man's voice finally came through.
But it wasn't Nico.
Anthony.
“Well done.”
Vincent grabbed the phone.
“Where is he?”
Anthony laughed.
“You're still asking the wrong question.”
“What do you want?”
“Come to St. Catherine’s at midnight.”
Vincent looked at Daniel.
Anthony continued.
“Bring the letter.”
“What letter?”
“The one your mother wrote.”
Vincent's face hardened.
“How do you know I found it?”
A pause.
Then Anthony said:
“Because Peter Lang's garage has had cameras for eleven years.”
Vincent looked upward.
Tiny red light.
Blinking.
Daniel raised his gun.
Madison grabbed Leo's carrier.
“Move!”
A mechanical click sounded beneath the floor.
Vincent knew the sound immediately.
“OUT!”
They ran.
The first explosion tore through the back wall.
Glass erupted across the garage.
Vincent grabbed Madison and shielded her with his body.
Daniel kicked open the side door.
Smoke filled the room.
“GO!”
Madison ran with Leo.
Vincent followed.
They reached the alley as flames swallowed the garage.
Then Madison stopped.
A woman stood at the far end.
Blonde hair.
Pale pink dress stained with blood.
Sofia.
She raised both hands.
“Don't shoot.”
Vincent drew his weapon.
Sofia looked past him at Madison.
“I know who Anthony's son is.”
Vincent stepped closer.
“Say his name.”
Sofia opened her mouth.
A red laser appeared on her chest.
May you like
Madison screamed.
And before Sofia could speak, a gunshot cracked from the rooftop...
