Chapter 8
Luciano made the decision that split the family.
He turned the museum records over to outside counsel and the foundation’s insurer.
Once that happened, the missing artifacts could no longer be treated as a private Venturi disagreement.
Marcus understood immediately.
He arrived at Luciano’s Manhattan office with an attorney.
“You reported it?”
“Yes.”
“You could have handled this inside.”
“That’s what allowed it to continue.”
Marcus leaned across the desk.
“You think those people care about your family?”
“No.”
Luciano remained seated.
“That’s why I trust them more with this particular question.”
Marcus laughed.
“You've changed.”
“No. I’m correcting something.”
The insurer began documenting missing property.
The foundation board hired independent counsel.
The auction house preserved its transaction files.
None of it produced instant consequences.
It produced subpoenas, requests, interviews, and lawyers.
It also produced family panic.
Bernadette called Luciano that night.
“You actually reported Marcus?”
“I reported missing museum property.”
“He’s my husband.”
“I know.”
“He’s Felix’s father.”
“I know.”
Her voice broke.
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
Luciano looked toward Theo sleeping on the sofa beside him.
“For once, stop deciding what is true based on what protects Marcus.”
Bernadette disconnected.
The next morning she went to the museum on her own.
She met Claire and began reconstructing every form she remembered signing.
By evening she had identified nine documents she believed Marcus had altered.
Three more were genuinely hers.
She admitted signing them without reading carefully because Marcus told her they were routine transfers.
That admission exposed her to consequences too.
She signed a written statement anyway.
When Marcus learned, he called her.
Luciano was not present for the conversation.
But Felix heard enough from the hallway to ask his mother afterward:
“Are you and Dad getting divorced?”
May you like
Bernadette could not answer.
The conflict had finally reached the one person she claimed all her choices were meant to protect.
