Chapter 10 - Roman's Way or Mine
Marco was arrested twenty-three minutes later.
Not by Roman.
By police.
That mattered.
He carried duplicate keys, photographs of me, and an old phone.
Roman wanted to question him.
Detective Ellis refused.
I backed her.
Roman paced my apartment like a caged animal.
“He photographed you sleeping.”
“And he's in custody.”
“He threatened Lily.”
“And he's in custody.”
“He worked for me.”
That was the real wound.
“You trusted him.”
“Yes.”
“And he betrayed you.”
“Yes.”
“So don't let him turn you back into the man who thinks control fixes everything.”
Roman stopped.
“You make this sound simple.”
“No. I make it sound like a choice.”
He looked at me for a long time.
Then sat.
That was his choice.
Marco's phone produced evidence.
Payments.
Photographs.
Messages.
But the sender had used encrypted accounts.
One message referenced “E.”
Another said: SHE SHOULD HAVE SOLD THE BUILDING.
My bakery.
The building mattered again.
I searched old paperwork.
Franklin Café.
Previous lease.
Property history.
Then I found something strange.
Before my landlord bought the building, someone else had tried.
Elena Duca.
Roman's sister.
Six months before she died.
I called Roman.
He arrived with Lily.
Lily recognized the paperwork.
“Mom wanted to open something.”
Roman looked at her.
“What?”
“A youth café. For kids who didn't have anywhere to go after school.”
Roman sat down.
Elena had never told him.
Maybe because she didn't want his money.
Maybe because she wanted something that was hers.
That sounded painfully familiar.
Lily touched the old application.
“She wanted a bakery?”
“Café,” I said.
Lily smiled sadly.
“She couldn't bake.”
We laughed through tears.
Then my lawyer called.
The shell company paying Marco had finally been traced.
Not to Celeste.
To a charitable trust.
Roman recognized the name immediately.
Elena Foundation.
Someone had been stealing money from a foundation created after his sister's death.
And using it to terrorize me.
Lily went pale.
“Who controls the trust?”
Roman didn't answer.
I looked at him.
“Roman?”
His phone rang.
He checked the name.
May you like
Then slowly raised his eyes.
“Aunt Sophia.”
