Chapter 10 - THE RECITAL
Dominic had missed three of Lila’s recitals before Isabella died.
He missed none afterward.
This one mattered because Lila had nearly refused to go.
“What if people stare?”
“Some might.”
“Because of Veronica?”
“Maybe.”
“I don’t want them.”
Dominic crouched.
“You don’t control where people look.”
She frowned.
“What do I control?”
“Whether you play.”
Lila thought.
Then:
“I’m playing.”
Good.
The recital hall was small.
No bodyguards inside except Michael seated discreetly in the back.
Dominic sat in the third row.
Laura came.
Ethan too.
Unexpected.
Lila saw him before going onstage.
“You came.”
He shrugged.
“Laura made me.”
Laura whispered:
“Liar.”
Ethan smiled.
Lila played a piece by memory.
Missed one note.
Recovered.
Finished.
Dominic stood too quickly applauding.
She glared from stage.
Embarrassing father.
Success.
Afterward a woman approached.
Sixties.
Elegant.
Dominic recognized her slowly.
Margaret Vale.
Veronica’s mother.
That complicated the evening.
Michael moved closer.
Margaret raised both hands.
“I came alone.”
Dominic looked at Lila.
“Take her with Laura.”
Lila started to protest.
Then saw his face.
She went.
Margaret watched them leave.
“She looks like Isabella.”
Dominic’s expression hardened.
“What do you want?”
“To apologize.”
“For your daughter?”
“For myself.”
He frowned.
Margaret continued.
“I knew she was researching Gabriel’s child.”
Dominic stared.
“When?”
“Six months ago.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“She said it was for the marriage.”
“How?”
“She told me your father’s trust could destroy everything if another male child appeared.”
“And you believed her.”
“Yes.”
“Did you know she tested Lila secretly?”
“No.”
“Did you know she targeted Ethan?”
“Not the lies.”
Dominic studied her.
Margaret’s eyes filled.
“I taught Veronica that security comes from controlling the room.”
There it was.
Another parent recognizing inheritance too late.
“She grew up watching me manage her father, money, appearances.”
Dominic said nothing.
“I’m not blaming myself for what she did.”
Good.
“But I recognize what she learned.”
Dominic nodded.
“What do you want from me?”
“Nothing.”
Margaret handed him an envelope.
“Something she left at my house.”
Inside:
A photograph.
Gabriel with a woman Dominic now knew was Claire Mercer.
Pregnant.
Gabriel smiling.
On the back:
IF DOMINIC FINDS OUT BEFORE I’M READY, EVERYTHING CHANGES.
Not Gabriel’s handwriting.
Veronica’s.
Dominic stared.
“When did she write this?”
“I don’t know.”
Margaret continued.
“She had a locked box.”
“More?”
“I gave it to counsel.”
Good.
No secret handoff.
Dominic respected that.
The box contained copies of Salvatore’s codicil.
Notes.
And one recorded conversation between Veronica and Thomas Greer.
Greer had not appeared in this story before.
He was a family trust adviser.
Seventy.
Retired.
Dominic knew him.
The recording:
Greer:
If Ethan is acknowledged, the old male-line clause gives him future governance standing.
Veronica:
Ahead of Lila?
Greer:
Potentially.
Veronica:
Then Dominic will panic.
Greer:
Only if you frame it correctly.
Dominic went cold.
Veronica had help from someone who understood the old trust intimately.
Greer continued:
Dominic has spent eight years building his identity around protecting that girl.
Threaten her place and he’ll rewrite everything overnight.
Veronica:
And if I’m beside him when he does?
Greer:
Then you make sure the new structure needs you.
There it was.
Not just Veronica.
An adviser engineered fear.
Why?
The recording continued.
Veronica:
What do you get?
Greer laughed.
Consulting.
Dominic almost smiled.
Of course.
Old men and fees.
Thomas Greer had billed the Bellini trusts millions over decades.
A full restructuring would mean more.
He had monetized outdated governance.
Not necessarily illegal.
Deeply conflicted.
Grace would enjoy this.
Dominic looked toward the recital hall where Lila laughed with Ethan.
May you like
An old man had viewed their existence as billable instability.
Dominic had had enough.
