Chapter 2 - The Woman Who Knew Too Much
The message stayed on my screen for eleven seconds.
Eleven seconds was enough time for my entire world to change.
Ask your nanny what happened the night your wife died.
I read it again.
Then again.
My fingers tightened around the phone until my knuckles turned white.
My wife.
The one subject I never allowed anyone to use against me.
The one wound I had buried so deep that even my enemies knew better than to touch it.
Sophia DeLuca had been gone for three years.
Three years since I received the call that destroyed everything.
Three years since I walked into a hospital room and saw the woman I loved lying beneath a white sheet.
Three years since I promised myself I would never let anyone hurt my family again.
And now someone was telling me the nanny knew something about her death.
I looked up at the mansion.
The place where my children slept.
The place where I thought they were safe.
But suddenly every hallway looked different.
Every locked door felt like it was hiding something.
I walked inside.
The security guards moved out of my way.
Nobody spoke.
They knew my expression.
They knew what happened when Roman DeLuca stopped asking questions and started searching for answers.
"Lena," I called.
My voice echoed through the entrance hall.
No response.
I looked toward the staircase.
"Where is she?"
One of my guards hesitated.
That hesitation told me everything.
"Mr. DeLuca..."
I turned toward him.
"Where is she?"
He swallowed.
"She went upstairs with the children after the incident."
I started walking.
Fast.
The mansion had never felt so quiet.
The same walls where my children laughed hours earlier now felt like the walls of a prison.
I reached the second floor.
My son's bedroom door was open.
Inside, I saw Lena sitting beside the bed.
My youngest son was asleep.
My older son was awake, holding a blanket close to his chest.
Lena looked up.
The moment her eyes met mine, I saw something.
Fear.
Not fear of me.
Fear of what I was about to discover.
"Roman..."
Nobody called me by my first name except people who knew me personally.
I ignored it.
"What happened tonight?"
Her expression changed.
"I protected your children."
"I know."
She looked surprised.
"You know?"
"I watched the footage."
The room went silent.
Lena slowly stood.
"You watched?"
"Every second."
She looked down.
I noticed her hands.
They were shaking slightly.
That was the first time I had ever seen her lose control.
"Who was he?" I asked.
"I don't know."
"Don't lie to me."
"I'm not."
I stepped closer.
"Lena, someone entered my home. Someone grabbed my son. Someone had access to my security system."
Her eyes became serious.
"I know."
"Then explain how."
She didn't answer.
That bothered me more than anything.
Because Lena was not someone who avoided questions.
She was direct.
Honest.
Even when I made things difficult.
But now she was silent.
"How long have you known something was wrong?" I asked.
She looked away.
That was the answer.
Too long.
My jaw tightened.
"You knew."
"Roman..."
"You knew someone was watching my children."
"No."
"Then what did you know?"
She took a slow breath.
"I knew someone was watching this house."
The words hit harder than I expected.
I stared at her.
"How long?"
"Six weeks."
Six weeks.
Someone had been inside my home.
Near my children.
And nobody told me.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I didn't have proof."
I laughed once.
Not because it was funny.
Because I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"Proof?"
I stepped closer.
"My son was almost taken tonight."
"I know."
"And you were worried about proof?"
Her eyes filled with frustration.
"No. I was worried about keeping your children alive."
That stopped me.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Because she didn't sound defensive.
She sounded exhausted.
Like she had been carrying something alone.
"What did you see?" I asked.
Lena looked toward the sleeping children.
Then back at me.
"The first time I noticed something strange was when your son's bedroom window was unlocked."
My expression changed.
"The second floor window?"
She nodded.
"He told me he didn't open it."
"When?"
"Six weeks ago."
I felt anger rising.
"What else?"
"Small things."
She walked toward a small table beside the bed.
She picked up a folded piece of paper.
"I found this inside the children's playroom."
I took it.
It was a simple drawing.
A child's drawing.
Two children.
A woman.
A house.
But in the corner, there was something unusual.
A black figure standing outside the house.
Watching.
"Who drew this?"
"Your son."
I looked toward him.
My eight-year-old son was pretending to sleep.
But I knew him.
He was listening.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
Lena's voice softened.
"Because he was scared."
Those words hurt more than any threat.
My son had been afraid.
And I didn't know.
I had built an empire.
I had protected myself from every enemy.
But I had failed to see what was happening inside my own home.
Then I noticed something else.
A small mark on the paper.
A circle.
With the letter S inside.
I looked at Lena.
"What is this?"
Her face changed.
"I was hoping you wouldn't notice that."
I stepped closer.
"Lena."
She was silent.
Then she whispered:
"Your wife used that symbol."
The room froze.
My hand tightened around the drawing.
"Sophia?"
She nodded.
"Before she died."
The name felt like a ghost entering the room.
"What does it mean?"
Lena looked toward the hallway.
As if she was afraid someone could hear.
"It means she knew."
"Knew what?"
Lena opened her mouth.
Then stopped.
A sound came from downstairs.
A door closing.
Both of us turned.
Nobody should have been there.
My guards were outside.
The mansion staff had been sent home.
I reached for the weapon hidden beneath my jacket.
"Lena, stay here."
She grabbed my arm.
"Don't go alone."
I looked at her hand.
Then at her face.
For the first time, I realized something.
Lena wasn't just protecting my children.
She was protecting me.
I moved quietly through the hallway.
The lights flickered.
The mansion was silent again.
But this silence was different.
Someone was inside.
I reached the staircase.
A shadow moved across the lower floor.
I stopped.
"Who is there?"
No answer.
I walked down slowly.
Every step echoed.
The figure disappeared into the office.
My office.
The one room in the mansion nobody entered without permission.
I reached the door.
It was slightly open.
That was impossible.
I always locked it.
I placed my hand on the handle.
Then I heard a voice from inside.
A voice I recognized.
A voice that should have been impossible.
"Roman..."
My blood turned cold.
May you like
Because the person waiting inside my office was the last person I expected to see.
Sophia DeLuca's personal doctor.
