Chapter 3
The SUV went into secure storage that afternoon.
Silvano hired an independent automotive investigator rather than letting estate mechanics touch it.
Marco had supervised those mechanics for years.
That now mattered.
The vehicle’s data showed something strange.
The doors had been locked at 2:41 p.m.
The engine had never started.
No climate control.
No remote ignition.
Nothing.
Lucia stared at the report.
“That’s impossible.”
Silvano watched her.
“Why?”
“Because Marco showed me his phone.”
“What did he show you?”
“The remote-start screen.”
“Did you hear the engine?”
“No.”
“Feel the air?”
“No.”
Lucia looked away.
She had trusted Marco.
Silvano almost laughed at the irony.
So had he.
The investigator continued.
The SUV had been placed in a service setting used when the vehicle was handed to valets or maintenance crews.
In that setting, several connected features were restricted.
Including the remote-start command Marco claimed he used.
Silvano looked toward Marco, who sat beside his attorney.
“You knew?”
Marco shook his head.
“No.”
“You're my senior driver.”
“It's one vehicle.”
“You manage twelve.”
Marco leaned forward.
“I thought the command went through.”
Silvano remembered Marco’s first words after the rescue.
They’re still alive?
Not:
What happened?
Not:
Are they okay?
He had sounded surprised.
Silvano’s attorney asked the investigator another question.
“When was service mode activated?”
The investigator checked his notes.
“Yesterday at 11:18 p.m.”
Silvano looked at Marco.
The SUV should have been parked inside the estate garage at that hour.
“Who drove it last night?”
May you like
Marco’s expression changed.
The question about two trapped children had just opened another problem.
