Chapter 18: “Looking for the Truth”

Tayla’s POV

The piece of paper sat on the kitchen counter all morning.

I must have walked past it twenty times.

Every time I looked at it, my stomach tightened.

Payment authorized by L. Russo.

It wasn't much.

Just a torn piece of a document.

It could mean anything.

It could mean nothing.

But after everything I had found in Damian's office, it was enough to keep me from sleeping.

Noah sat at the breakfast table drawing sharks on a napkin while cereal slowly became soggy in his bowl.

"Mom?"

I looked up.

"Hm?"

"You're doing it again."

"Doing what?"

He pointed his spoon at me.

"Thinking."

Despite everything, I laughed.

The kid was too observant.

"Maybe I have a lot to think about."

"Like Dad?"

The smile disappeared from my face.

Noah immediately noticed.

Children always did.

He looked down at his cereal.

"I miss him."

The words came out quietly.

Not dramatic.

Not tearful.

Just honest.

And somehow that hurt more.

I sat beside him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

"I know."

"When is he coming home?"

I wished I had an answer.

A real answer.

Instead, I kissed the top of his head.

"Soon."

The lie tasted bitter.

After dropping Noah at school, Tayla didn't drive home.

Instead, she parked two streets away and sat in her car.

The sky was overcast.

Gray clouds covered most of Manhattan.

People hurried along the sidewalks with coffee cups in their hands.

Normal lives.

Normal problems.

Meanwhile, her life felt like a puzzle with half the pieces missing.

She reached into her bag and pulled out her phone.

Then she searched for something she never imagined she would search.

Luca Russo business records.

Most of the results were exactly what she expected.

Articles.

Interviews.

Awards.

Charity events.

Photos of Luca smiling beside politicians and business leaders.

The perfect younger brother.

The respected businessman.

The generous public figure.

Nothing suspicious.

Nothing unusual.

Nothing that matched the man Damian had secretly investigated.

She was about to close the browser when something caught her eye.

A small article from three years ago.

Not from a major publication.

Just a local business site.

The headline mentioned a warehouse fire connected to one of Luca's companies.

The article itself wasn't particularly interesting.

No injuries.

No charges.

No investigation.

But one sentence stood out.

Records relating to the facility were reported missing shortly before the fire.

Tayla read the line twice.

Then a third time.

A strange feeling settled in her chest.

Coincidence.

Maybe.

But lately coincidences were becoming harder to believe.

By the time she returned to the penthouse, Luca was already there.

He had a key.

Damian had given him one years ago.

Back when trust wasn't something Tayla questioned.

Luca stood in the kitchen preparing sandwiches for Noah's lunch.

The scene looked so ordinary that Tayla almost felt guilty for being suspicious.

Almost.

"You got back late."

His voice was casual.

She set down her purse.

"Traffic."

"New York traffic or Tayla traffic?"

She smiled despite herself.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you disappear into your own head whenever something is bothering you."

The comment landed a little too close to the truth.

Luca handed her a cup of coffee.

"Want to talk about it?"

For months, she would have said yes immediately.

Now she hesitated.

And Luca noticed.

The slight change in his expression lasted less than a second.

But it was there.

A tiny crack.

A tiny question.

That afternoon, Tayla decided to visit Damian's lawyer.

She hadn't planned it.

The idea came suddenly.

And once it did, she couldn't ignore it.

The lawyer's office overlooked the river.

Nothing fancy.

Nothing like Damian's office.

Just shelves full of files and a desk covered in paperwork.

The lawyer looked surprised when she arrived.

"Mrs. Russo."

"I need to ask you something."

His expression became serious.

"Of course."

She sat down.

Took a breath.

Then spoke.

"Did Damian ever tell you why he was investigating Luca?"

The room became very quiet.

The lawyer leaned back in his chair.

Not speaking immediately.

And that silence told her everything.

He knew.

Maybe not everything.

But enough.

"Mrs. Russo..."

"Please."

Her voice cracked slightly.

"I need the truth."

The lawyer removed his glasses.

For several moments he studied her.

Then he sighed.

"Damian believed someone inside the company was moving money."

Tayla frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"He believed company funds were being redirected through shell corporations."

The words sounded complicated.

Business language.

Legal language.

But one thing was clear.

Money was disappearing.

"And he thought it was Luca?"

The lawyer looked away.

That was answer enough.

When Tayla left the office, rain had started falling.

Not heavy.

Just enough to make the city feel colder.

She sat inside her car without turning the engine on.

Trying to process everything.

The notebook.

The photographs.

The lawyer.

Damian's warnings.

None of it fit together perfectly.

But for the first time, the picture was beginning to take shape.

And she didn't like what she was seeing.

Not at all.

Because every answer seemed to lead back to the same person.

Luca.

The man who brought Noah ice cream.

The man who comforted her when she cried.

The man who had been standing beside her ever since Damian disappeared.

The man she was slowly beginning to fear.

And the worst part?

She still wasn't sure whether Damian was completely innocent.

Which meant she was trapped between two men.

One behind bars.

One inside her home.

And she no longer knew which one was telling the truth.

When her phone rang, she almost didn't answer.

Then she saw Noah's school on the screen.

Her heart immediately jumped.

"Hello?"

The voice on the other end sounded nervous.

"Mrs. Russo, there's someone here asking questions about Noah."

Tayla sat upright instantly.

"What?"

The teacher hesitated.

"He said he's a family friend."

A cold chill ran through her body.

"Who?"

The teacher answered.

And Tayla's blood turned to ice.

"His name is Marcus."

The name meant nothing to her.

But somehow...

She knew it wasn't going to stay that way.