Chapter 12 - The Name Hidden in the Contract
“Warren Bishop.”
Tessa stared at the phone.
Chloe’s father.
Roman reached for his coat.
Tessa stopped him.
“We don’t know why he’s there.”
“Marcus said—”
“Marcus has lied before.”
Roman forced himself to stop.
“Fine.”
They went together.
Warren sat in Tessa’s office.
Alone.
An old ledger rested before him.
“I assume Marcus finally talked,” he said.
Tessa remained standing.
“Are you Salvatore’s last operative?”
Warren laughed bitterly.
“No.”
“Then why are you here?”
“To tell you who is.”
He opened the ledger.
The name shocked both of them.
Eleanor Hayes.
Tessa stepped back.
“No.”
Warren looked miserable.
“Your mother worked with Salvatore after your father died.”
Roman said, “Careful.”
Tessa raised her hand.
“Let him speak.”
Warren explained.
After Tessa’s father was killed, Eleanor had been trapped.
Salvatore threatened Tessa.
So Eleanor fed him information.
Mostly harmless.
Sometimes not.
For years.
“She became his source to keep you alive.”
Tessa whispered, “That still made her his source.”
“Yes.”
Eleanor entered behind them.
“I was.”
Tessa turned.
Her mother did not deny it.
“I told myself every compromise was temporary,” Eleanor said. “Then another followed.”
Tessa’s eyes filled.
“Did people die because of information you gave him?”
Eleanor’s silence answered.
Roman looked away.
There could be no easy forgiveness for that.
Eleanor surrendered herself to federal authorities that afternoon.
Tessa did not stop her.
Before leaving, Eleanor held her daughter’s hands.
“I don’t expect forgiveness.”
“I don’t know if I can give it.”
“I know.”
“But I’ll come see you.”
Eleanor began crying.
That was the first honest promise between them.
Weeks later, Roman found Tessa on the rooftop of Castell Logistics.
“You okay?”
“No.”
He stood beside her.
No advice.
No solution.
Tessa leaned her head against his shoulder.
“I spent my whole life thinking truth would make everything simple.”
“It rarely does.”
“My mother loved me.”
“Yes.”
“She also did terrible things.”
“Yes.”
“I can love her without pretending those things didn’t happen.”
Roman looked at her.
“Yes.”
Tessa smiled sadly.
“You’ve been learning.”
“I have an aggressive teacher.”
She laughed.
Roman took something from his pocket.
Not a ring.
A key.
“What’s that?”
“The old Castell mansion.”
“No.”
He smiled.
“Let me finish.”
“Dangerous start.”
“I’m donating it.”
“To whom?”
“A foundation for families harmed by the old organization.”
Tessa stared at him.
“That house belonged to your family for seventy years.”
“That’s exactly why.”
He placed the key in her palm.
“I want you to help design what comes next.”
She closed her fingers around it.
Roman kissed her.
Not desperately.
Not possessively.
Just softly.
Tessa kissed him back.
Then Roman’s phone rang.
Chloe.
He answered.
Her voice was panicked.
“Roman, turn on the news.”
They hurried downstairs.
A reporter stood outside federal court.
Behind her, chaos.
Salvatore Castell was supposed to appear for arraignment that morning.
He never reached the courtroom.
The transport vehicle had been found abandoned.
Two guards were injured.
Salvatore was gone.
Then Tessa received a photograph.
Her apartment door.
Taken seconds earlier.
May you like
Under it was one sentence:
I’M WAITING INSIDE.
