Chapter 13
Giovanni signed.
No announcement.
No speech.
Just his name beneath Helena’s.
The victims’ trust activated.
Several family members called it weakness.
One called it betrayal.
Giovanni listened.
Then ended the call.
Emilio arrived later that evening.
No tropical shirt now.
Dark suit.
No tie.
His eyes were bloodshot.
He stood rather than sit.
“You signed it.”
“Yes.”
“That trust strips money from the estate.”
“Yes.”
“Money that would have gone to us.”
Giovanni looked at him.
“That appears to have been your mother’s intention.”
Emilio’s hands curled.
“So she gets to punish us from the grave?”
Giovanni let the silence stretch.
Emilio’s breathing became louder.
Finally Giovanni said:
“You still think every consequence is punishment.”
Emilio looked away.
“Maybe because that’s how you raised us.”
The sentence landed.
Giovanni did not reject it.
He slowly removed his signet ring.
Set it on the desk.
Then looked at his son.
“I taught you fear.”
Emilio’s eyes returned.
“I taught you that failure had to be hidden until you could fix it before I saw.”
Emilio’s jaw tightened.
Giovanni continued.
“That does not excuse what you did.”
“No.”
“But it explains why you did not come to me.”
Emilio’s eyes filled.
For the first time since the funeral, his anger weakened.
“I thought if I told you Seabrook was failing, you'd take it.”
“I might have.”
“That’s the problem.”
Giovanni nodded.
“Yes.”
Emilio looked startled by the agreement.
Then his voice broke.
“I didn't think Mom was dying.”
Giovanni stared at him.
“I know.”
That hurt Emilio more than accusation.
Giovanni continued.
“You have to live with that uncertainty.”
Emilio sat down for the first time.
His shoulders folded.
Then he whispered:
“Clarissa left.”
Giovanni’s eyes narrowed.
“She left you?”
Emilio nodded.
“She says I blamed her for everything once the investigation started.”
Giovanni said nothing.
The alliance built around secrecy had collapsed as soon as both people needed someone else to carry the blame.
Then Emilio added:
“She took the Seabrook backup files.”
May you like
Giovanni looked up.
Clarissa had disappeared with records that could still reshape the entire investigation.
