Chapter 6
Damien did not shout when he learned Vincent was gone.
That scared me more.
He stood by the hospital window, staring down at the street, while his sons slept behind glass.
His hands were in his pockets.
His shoulders were still.
Only his reflection gave him away.
His eyes looked hollow.
“I trusted him with my children,” he said.
Rosa sat beside the twins’ bassinets, one hand over her mouth.
Sofia had taken over calling family, canceling meetings, locking accounts. Her voice was sharp and shaking as she spoke to men twice her age and made them obey.
I stayed near the door.
I still did not know why I was there.
Then one twin whimpered.
Damien turned at once.
So did I.
The nurse checked him, smiled, and said he was fine.
Just waking.
I realized my feet had moved before my mind did.
I was already beside the bassinet, tapping two fingers softly against the rail.
One-two-three.
The baby blinked.
His tiny body settled.
Damien watched me.
“You do that like breathing.”
“I had to learn.”
“For work?”
“For my mother.”
He said nothing.
“She panicked when her body started failing,” I said. “Music helped. Rhythm helped. Sometimes all I could give her was a beat to hold onto.”
Damien looked down.
“I gave Isabella guards, houses, money. None of it saved her.”
“Maybe she needed you to listen.”
The words were too honest.
I regretted them instantly.
But Damien did not get angry.
He closed his eyes.
“She told me Marco was moving money. She told me she feared someone had accessed her medical files during pregnancy.”
My chest tightened.
“The twins?”
“She was pregnant when she died.”
I went cold.
“She died before they were born?”
“No,” he said. “She delivered early. Emergency C-section. She died six days later in what they called a delayed crash complication.”
Rosa made a broken sound.
Damien looked at the babies.
“My sons never knew their mother.”
I thought of Isabella asking questions.
I thought of Marco’s program.
I thought of a memo labeled twins.
“What if her death was not from the crash?” I whispered.
Damien’s face turned to stone.
Agent Weiss entered before he answered.
“We found Vincent’s car.”
“Where?”
“Near the river. Empty. Blood in the trunk.”
Rosa crossed herself.
Sofia stopped talking on the phone.
Agent Weiss looked at me.
“And we recovered a burner from the glove compartment. It had messages from Marco.”
Damien’s voice was quiet.
“Orders?”
“Payments. Instructions. And one message from last week.”
She read from her notes.
If Damien refuses the foundation transfer, use the twins. Make him weak.
Rosa began to cry.
Damien gripped the edge of the bassinet.
I touched his arm without thinking.
He looked at my hand.
I pulled back.
“I’m sorry.”
“No,” he said. “Don’t be.”
That was when Marco’s lawyer arrived.
Not Marco.
His lawyer.
With a petition.
He was demanding Damien be investigated for Bianca’s death, witness intimidation, and tampering with medical evidence.
It was bold.
Too bold.
Agent Weiss read the papers and smiled without warmth.
“He’s scared.”
Damien looked at her.
“Or buying time.”
My stomach dropped.
“For what?”
My phone rang.
Unknown.
Agent Weiss answered on speaker.
A distorted voice filled the room.
“Miss Hart.”
Marco.
I knew him even through the filter.
Damien stepped closer.
I shook my head at him.
Let me.
“What do you want?” I asked.
“The same thing I wanted years ago. For you to stop confusing survival with courage.”
“You poisoned babies.”
“I exposed weakness.”
Damien’s face darkened.
Marco continued.
“Damien has until midnight to sign the foundation assets to the Bellini Trust. If he does, the twins live peaceful lives. If not, the lab results will show their mother died from the same compound found in their bottles.”
Rosa cried out.
Damien froze.
I whispered, “You killed Isabella.”
Marco laughed softly.
“I corrected a mistake.”
Agent Weiss signaled for trace.
Marco’s voice lowered.
“And Ellie?”
My skin crawled.
“You should have stayed fired.”
The call ended.
Agent Weiss looked at the trace team.
They shook their heads.
Damien turned to me.
“You were right from the start.”
May you like
I looked at the sleeping twins.
“No. Isabella was.”
