Chapter 14 - The Truth Inside the Old Mansion
By sunset, two federal agents were standing inside my living room.
Agent Rachel Monroe was a sharp-eyed woman in her early forties with a reputation for investigating organized crime financial networks.
Her partner, David Chen, specialized in digital evidence.
Neither treated the video threat as a misunderstanding.
They photographed my telephone, documented the messages, and arranged for forensic copies.
Rachel sat across from me while Julian remained at my side.
"Mrs. Hayes, we need to know whether you've had any contact with former members of the Moretti organization."
"Only Marco," I answered. "And a telephone call from Salvatore yesterday."
"Have you spoken with Vincent?"
"No."
"Do you believe he is involved?"
The question stunned me.
Vincent had left Illinois after his release. According to my attorney, he lived in Oregon and worked with a religious humanitarian community.
He had surrendered his criminal empire.
He had accepted the loss of our marriage.
And for four years, he had stayed away.
"I don't know," I said. "But I don't think he'd threaten me."
Rachel nodded.
"We'll investigate without assuming anyone's guilt."
After the agents left, Marco spread several photographs across our dining table.
They showed the old Moretti mansion.
The federal government had seized the property after Vincent's conviction.
It had remained vacant while the courts handled financial claims.
Last month, however, a development company had purchased it through a court-approved sale.
The company's name made Marco suspicious.
Northstar Heritage Holdings.
"Who owns it?" I asked.
"That's the problem. The paperwork leads through three corporations."
Julian examined the photographs.
"What are you thinking?"
Marco pointed to the former east wing.
"Room 314 was here. If the building hasn't been renovated yet, the cabinet Keller photographed might still be inside."
"We should tell Agent Monroe," Julian said.
"Already did."
Rachel secured a search warrant based on the threatening communications and other evidence investigators had independently developed.
Two days later, she allowed us to meet her near the estate after the initial search.
I had not returned to the mansion since the afternoon I carried Lily's ashes through its iron gates.
Seeing the enormous stone building again made my chest tighten.
Its windows were dark.
The rose gardens had become tangled with weeds.
And the fountain where Lily once floated paper boats was empty.
For one terrible moment, I could almost hear her laughter.
Julian wrapped his arm around me.
"You don't have to go inside."
"I know."
But I needed to see the place without being afraid of it.
Rachel met us at the entrance.
"We located the room," she announced.
My pulse accelerated.
"Was the cabinet there?"
"Yes."
She hesitated.
"But someone had recently attempted to remove its contents."
Inside Room 314, investigators had discovered a steel cabinet bolted into the wall.
Its lock had been damaged.
Behind it, concealed beneath a removable panel, they found a second compartment.
Rachel handed me a photograph of its contents.
Three medical folders.
An external hard drive.
And a small pink hair ribbon.
I recognized the ribbon instantly.
Lily had worn it to her sixth birthday party.
I reached for the wall.
Julian steadied me.
"Why was that there?" I whispered.
Rachel's expression remained careful.
"We don't know yet."
But I could see what she wasn't saying.
Someone had deliberately preserved objects connected to my daughter.
Then Rachel revealed something else.
"The property company's registered agent is an attorney named Jonathan Price."
Marco went rigid.
I looked at him.
"Who is Jonathan Price?"
His face darkened.
"Vincent's former financial adviser."
"Why does that matter?"
"Because Price disappeared with almost twelve million dollars when Vincent surrendered."
Rachel nodded.
"We're investigating his role."
I stared at the empty hallway.
Jonathan Price had once attended Lily's birthday parties.
He had brought expensive presents and called her his little princess.
I remembered him lifting her onto his shoulders while Vincent laughed beside the swimming pool.
Now he appeared to have purchased the house where her medical records were hidden.
And suddenly, the mystery extended beyond Margaret, Evelyn, and Keller.
It reached into the deepest financial secrets of the Moretti family.
My telephone buzzed.
A message had arrived from an unknown number.
Tell Julian to stop reviewing the hospital records. Doctors can have accidents, too.
I showed it to Rachel.
Her eyes hardened.
"Mrs. Hayes, from this moment forward, we treat your husband as a potential target."
Then another message arrived.
This one contained a photograph.
Julian leaving the hospital that morning.
Taken from across the street.
May you like
Someone was watching us.
And they were getting closer.
