Chapter 10 - THE CHILD IN THE TRUST
Alessandro thought Isabella was lying.
Then Marco confirmed it.
A supplemental trust document had been filed three years earlier.
If Alessandro and Luca both died without recognized heirs, a secondary line activated.
The beneficiary was listed only by initials.
S.R.
Age six.
Alessandro stared at the page.
Six.
Marco looked equally confused.
“Boss.”
“Sofia Romano?”
“No.”
Alessandro said it immediately.
“Sofia’s surname is Alvarez.”
Elena entered the room when summoned.
She looked frightened.
Alessandro showed her the initials.
Her face drained.
“No.”
“What?”
Elena shook her head.
“No.”
“What are you not telling me?”
Tears filled her eyes.
“Sofia’s full name is Sofia Rosa Alvarez.”
S.R.
Alessandro’s chest tightened.
“That could be coincidence.”
Elena looked at the floor.
“It isn’t.”
Marco became very still.
Alessandro’s voice dropped.
“Who is her father?”
Elena cried silently.
“Tell me.”
“Your brother.”
Alessandro stared at her.
“Luca?”
Elena nodded.
The room changed.
“How?”
“Seven years ago.”
“Before I worked here.”
“I met Luca at a restaurant.”
“We were together for six months.”
“He ended it before I knew I was pregnant.”
“Does he know?”
“No.”
“Why didn’t you tell him?”
“He was engaged to someone else.”
“And your father?”
“I had no one.”
Alessandro looked at the trust document.
“Why is Sofia in this?”
Elena covered her mouth.
“I don’t know.”
But someone did.
Vittorio.
Alessandro’s father had apparently discovered Sofia before his death.
He had quietly protected his granddaughter without telling Luca.
Why?
The answer appeared in another sealed file.
Vittorio had hired an investigator.
The report contained photographs of Elena with infant Sofia.
DNA testing obtained indirectly showed a family match.
Vittorio knew.
He had planned to tell Luca after confirming Elena was not seeking money.
Then Vittorio became ill.
The disclosure never happened.
But he changed the trust.
That was the missing piece.
Enzo had discovered Sofia’s identity while studying the trust.
He did not simply want to remove Alessandro.
He needed Luca removed.
And after that, Sofia.
The six-year-old had been marked long before she whispered anything about the breakfast.
Her warning had merely accelerated Enzo’s timetable.
Alessandro stood so abruptly the chair fell behind him.
“Where is Luca?”
Marco checked his phone.
His expression changed.
“He left twenty minutes ago.”
“Where?”
“He received a message from Elena’s number.”
Elena stared at him.
“My phone is upstairs.”
Alessandro’s blood went cold.
“What did the message say?”
Marco turned the screen.
May you like
I need to tell you something about Sofia.
Meet me at the old marina alone.
