Chapter 2 - The Receipt with Her Name on It
Hannah did not scream.
The narrow-faced man looked disappointed by that.
He held the paper between two fingers.
“Interesting hobby.”
Hannah's gaze moved toward the kitchen door.
The scarred man stood there.
Blocking it.
“How did you get behind my counter?”
The stranger smiled.
“Doors open.”
“That one doesn't.”
He looked at the receipt.
“You wrote down his arrival time.”
Hannah said nothing.
“And his license plate.”
Still nothing.
The man walked closer.
“You should be careful what you save.”
Hannah's heart hammered, but her face remained still.
Six years of overnight shifts had taught her another useful skill.
Never let frightening men know exactly how frightened you were.
“It's a receipt.”
“You made it something else.”
He placed it on the counter.
“What do you want?”
“A schedule.”
“I don't have one.”
“When does Luca Moretti return?”
The name hit her harder than she expected.
Luca Moretti.
She had heard it before.
Everyone in Chicago had.
Moretti Construction.
Moretti Logistics.
Moretti Hospitality.
And beneath the legitimate businesses, rumors.
Gambling.
Protection.
Organized crime.
People disappearing.
Trials collapsing.
Witnesses changing their stories.
Luca Moretti had never been convicted.
Hannah looked at the photograph.
Suddenly the bodyguards made sense.
The black sedan made sense.
The man's constant awareness of doors and windows made sense.
“What happens if I tell you?”
The narrow-faced stranger tilted his head.
“Nothing happens to you.”
“That wasn't my question.”
His expression hardened.
Hannah continued.
“What happens to him?”
“That isn't your concern.”
“And the baby?”
Something flickered in the man's face.
There.
Hannah saw it.
Sofia mattered.
Maybe more than Luca did.
“You need to leave.”
He laughed softly.
“You really don't know who you're talking to.”
“Neither do you.”
The scarred man shifted.
Hannah reached beneath the counter.
The narrow-faced man's hand moved instantly toward his coat.
Then Hannah pressed the silent security button.
Nothing happened.
Because the silent security button hadn't worked in eighteen months.
But the stranger didn't know that.
Hannah smiled.
“Police should be here soon.”
The two men exchanged a look.
The narrow-faced man leaned close enough for Hannah to smell mint on his breath.
“If Moretti comes back, you tell him Adrian Vale is looking for him.”
Then he tapped the receipt.
“And tell him we know about Elena.”
They left through the kitchen.
Hannah stayed frozen until the SUV disappeared.
Then her knees weakened.
She gripped the counter.
Elena.
Luca had said his wife chose Sofia's name.
St. Agnes Women's Clinic.
Raw skin beneath a missing ring.
Hannah took out her phone.
She searched Luca Moretti.
Articles appeared instantly.
Business photographs.
Charity galas.
Court appearances.
And beside him in several pictures stood a beautiful blonde woman.
Elena Moretti.
Hannah clicked the newest article.
ITALIAN-AMERICAN BUSINESSMAN'S WIFE MISSING AFTER LATE-NIGHT VEHICLE ACCIDENT.
Her stomach tightened.
The article was six weeks old.
Elena's SUV had been found abandoned near the Des Plaines River.
Blood was discovered inside.
No body.
Police suspected foul play.
Luca had declined public comment.
A second article claimed investigators had questioned him.
A third suggested marital trouble.
A fourth called Elena's disappearance a possible gang retaliation.
Hannah looked toward the booth where Luca had held his daughter.
Something didn't fit.
The next night, Luca did not come.
Nor the night after.
Hannah kept checking the parking lot.
On Friday she finally convinced Millie to let her review the security footage.
“Why?” Millie asked.
“Some guy walked into the kitchen.”
“That happened?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Tuesday.”
“You waited three days to tell me?”
“He didn't steal anything.”
“Hannah.”
“Can I see the footage?”
Millie complained for ten minutes, then handed over the password.
Hannah reviewed the recording.
At 3:12 a.m., Adrian Vale appeared near the kitchen.
But he didn't enter through the back door.
He came from the hallway beside the restrooms.
Meaning he'd already been inside.
For how long?
Hannah rewound.
2:51.
A man entered wearing a baseball cap.
He sat in the far corner.
He had been watching Luca for fifteen minutes.
She zoomed in as best she could.
Adrian.
Hannah continued backward.
2:42.
A woman entered.
Thirtyish.
Dark hair.
Nurse's scrubs.
She ordered tea.
At 2:47 she passed Luca's booth.
For less than a second, her hand touched the table.
Then she kept walking.
Luca looked down.
Hannah zoomed closer.
A folded slip of paper had appeared beside his coffee.
Luca read it.
His face changed.
He immediately checked the windows.
Hannah had missed the entire exchange.
Who was the nurse?
She checked the receipt archive.
Table nine.
Tea.
Paid by card.
M. Alvarez.
Hannah copied the name.
The next afternoon, she drove to St. Agnes Women's Clinic.
The receptionist frowned.
“I'm sorry, we can't give employee information.”
“I'm looking for Maria Alvarez.”
The receptionist's expression changed.
“Why?”
“I'm an old friend.”
Bad lie.
The woman knew it.
“She doesn't work here anymore.”
“Since when?”
“Two weeks.”
“Did she quit?”
“I really can't—”
A man stepped from an office.
Middle-aged.
Gray suit.
Hospital administrator type.
“Can I help you?”
Hannah forced a smile.
“Wrong Maria.”
She left.
In the parking garage, she noticed a black sedan.
Not Luca's.
Another.
She walked faster.
Her phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
STOP ASKING QUESTIONS.
Hannah stopped.
A second message appeared.
THE BABY ISN'T SAFE IF YOU KEEP LOOKING.
Her blood went cold.
She called Luca's business headquarters.
The receptionist refused to connect her.
She tried Moretti Construction.
Same result.
Finally, Hannah said, “Tell Mr. Moretti that Adrian Vale came into Millie's Diner and mentioned Elena.”
Silence.
“Hold.”
Thirty seconds later, a man's voice answered.
Not Luca.
“Who is this?”
“Hannah Brooks.”
“Where are you?”
“Who are you?”
“Where are you?”
She looked around the parking garage.
“St. Agnes.”
A curse.
“Get in your car.”
“I'm already—”
“Do not drive.”
Footsteps echoed behind her.
Hannah turned.
The gray-suited administrator was walking toward her.
Two security guards followed.
The voice on the phone became sharp.
“Hannah, listen to me. Walk toward the street. Now.”
She moved.
The administrator called after her.
“Ms. Brooks.”
She didn't stop.
“Hannah.”
He knew her name.
She ran.
The guards followed.
A black SUV swung into the exit lane.
For one horrifying second Hannah thought it belonged to Adrian.
The passenger door opened.
Luca Moretti leaned across the seat.
“Get in.”
Hannah jumped inside.
The SUV accelerated.
One of the guards struck the rear panel as they passed.
Luca stared out the back window.
“Were you followed here?”
“I don't know.”
“What were you thinking?”
“I was trying to find Maria Alvarez.”
His face drained.
“You know Maria?”
“I saw her on diner security footage.”
Luca looked toward the driver.
“Change route.”
The vehicle turned hard.
Hannah held the door.
“Who is she?”
Luca didn't answer.
“Who is Adrian Vale?”
Still nothing.
“Why did they mention Elena?”
His jaw tightened.
Hannah exploded.
“They threatened the baby.”
That worked.
Luca turned toward her.
“What?”
“They texted me. They said Sofia isn't safe if I keep looking.”
Luca's entire expression transformed.
“Show me.”
She handed him the phone.
He read the message.
His fingers tightened so hard around the device that Hannah thought the glass might crack.
“Marco.”
The driver nodded.
“Already calling.”
Luca returned the phone.
“Where is Sofia?”
Hannah asked.
“Somewhere safe.”
“Are you sure?”
His eyes met hers.
The confidence wasn't there.
That frightened her more than anything.
The SUV entered an underground garage beneath a private building.
Armed men appeared.
Luca guided Hannah into an elevator.
“I'm going to tell you something,” he said.
“And afterward, you walk away.”
“That's not usually how secrets work.”
“This one does.”
The elevator opened into a penthouse.
A woman in her sixties stood holding Sofia.
Luca immediately took the baby.
Sofia made a small sound.
His shoulders loosened.
Only then did he speak.
“Elena didn't die in that accident.”
Hannah stared.
“Where is she?”
“I don't know.”
“What?”
“She disappeared because someone inside my organization betrayed me.”
“Adrian?”
“No.”
“Then who?”
Luca looked toward the windows.
“Adrian works for the man who did.”
Hannah thought about the clinic.
Maria.
The notes.
The receipts.
“What does this have to do with Sofia?”
“Everything.”
He handed Hannah a photograph.
Elena stood outside St. Agnes.
Behind her was Maria Alvarez.
And beside Maria stood a man Hannah recognized.
The gray-suited administrator.
Luca pointed to him.
“Dr. Samuel Kessler.”
“The man who followed me.”
“He wasn't following you.”
Luca looked at Sofia.
“He was making sure you never found out what happened the night my daughter was born.”
Hannah's mouth went dry.
“What happened?”
Luca opened his mouth.
Then every light in the penthouse went dark.
The security alarms began screaming.
A man's voice came through Luca's earpiece.
“Boss, they breached the garage.”
May you like
Luca shoved Sofia into Hannah's arms.
And someone began pounding on the penthouse door.
