Chapter 10
Still, something in his expression told me the answer did not satisfy him.
“And you took over?”
“I inherited part of the company. My uncle took control of the rest.”
“Your uncle?”
“Dominic Moretti.”
The name sounded familiar.
Not from the news.
From somewhere closer.
I searched my memory.
“Ryan had a client named Dominic.”
Vincent’s face went still.
“When?”
“Years ago. Before Lily was born. He used to take calls late at night and say Dominic was difficult.”
“Did he ever give a last name?”
“No.”
“Did you meet him?”
“I don’t think so.”
A memory surfaced.
A restaurant in Milwaukee. Ryan had left the table midway through dinner to speak with a silver-haired man near the bar.
When he returned, he said it was an old client.
The man had worn a green stone ring.
“Wait,” I said. “I may have seen him once.”
Vincent listened as I described the restaurant and the ring.
When I finished, his expression had hardened.
“My uncle wears an emerald signet ring.”
A chill moved through me.
“What does that mean?”
“It means Ryan’s connection to Belladonna may not have started with Daniel.”
“Why would your uncle pay him?”
“I don’t know.”
“But you suspect something.”
Vincent looked toward Lily’s crib.
“My uncle believed Belladonna should remain within the family. Daniel’s investigation threatened that. When Daniel disappeared, Dominic claimed he had run away with company money.”
“Did you believe him?”
May you like
“No.”
“Why not?”
