Chapter 8
Silvano reported the full incident.
Lucia begged him not to.
Not for herself.
For Ethan.
“He's already lost both parents.”
Silvano stood in his office with the report in front of him.
“And that means we hide what happened to him?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
Lucia struggled.
“He loves me.”
Silvano’s expression softened only slightly.
“I know.”
That was what made the decision difficult.
Lucia was not a stranger Ethan could simply forget.
She attended school plays.
She knew his favorite cereal.
She had sat beside him after nightmares about his parents.
She had also placed him in a locked SUV to manufacture evidence.
Silvano submitted the report.
All of it.
Including his own assault on Marco and Lucia.
His attorney reminded him that striking them could produce separate consequences.
Silvano signed anyway.
Once the matter left the family, he could no longer decide what disappeared.
Lucia’s guardianship petition was withdrawn.
Not because Silvano demanded it.
Her own attorney refused to proceed once he learned how she had attempted to create supporting evidence.
Lucia moved back to Pasadena.
Ethan was not allowed unsupervised contact with her while the investigation continued.
He blamed Silvano.
“You said she loves me.”
“She does.”
“Then why can't I see her?”
Silvano struggled.
“Because loving somebody doesn't always make their choices safe.”
Ethan turned away.
That evening he refused dinner.
The next morning he refused to speak to Silvano before school.
May you like
Silvano had protected his nephew.
The immediate result was that Ethan trusted him less.
