Chapter 26 - MARCUS’S LAST LETTER
Marcus died before me.
Stroke at sixty-seven.
Not punishment.
Biology.
By then he had lived nearly twenty years outside Corsini business.
Felix? No, wrong story. No children established. Keep simple.
His executor sent me one sealed letter.
Written years earlier.
Raffaele,
I spent prison believing the worst thing I did was hide ownership. It wasn’t.
Then:
The worst thing was learning Elena was sick and deciding that meant time might solve the problem for me.
I stopped.
He continued:
I never wanted her to die. I did benefit from believing I could wait her out.
There.
A brutal distinction.
Then:
When she died, I felt grief and relief in the same week. I have been ashamed of the relief ever since.
Human.
Then:
Celeste loved you. She also loved me in the way frightened younger siblings sometimes confuse with duty.
Then:
None of that belongs to Lucy.
Good.
I gave the letter to Lucy after asking if she wanted it.
She read.
Then shredded her copy.
May you like
Original remained with estate records? It belonged to me. I destroyed it too.
Not every confession needs an archive.
