Chapter 5 – The Discovery
944 Words
~ Adrian ~
It was past midnight, and the house was quiet.
The Hale mansion felt larger than it used to. When Isla was here, the place was always active–music, conversation, movement. Now it was silent, except for the echo of footsteps or the hum of the heating system. I hadn’t used the bedroom in months. I slept on the couch in my study instead. It was easier to work until exhaustion than to lie in a room that still smelled like her.
The monitors on my desk displayed the latest reports from my investigators. Another lead in France had failed. Another sighting in Spain turned out to be nothing. People told me to stop but I didn’t, I knew she was alive.
There was a knock at the door. “Come in,” I said.
Marco entered. He wasn’t in uniform, just in a dark coat, damp from the rain. His expression told me this wasn’t another dead lead.
He placed a file on the desk. “I think we found her.”
I looked at him, waiting for more. “Where?”
“A town near the southern coast. Porto di Mare. She’s been using the name Elena Rossi. Opened a new bank account two weeks ago.”
He opened the folder and slid a document toward me. “The handwriting matches Isla’s with ninety-nine percent accuracy. I checked it twice.”
I studied the signature. The name was false, but the handwriting was hers. “How long have you had this?”
“Since yesterday. I wanted to be certain before coming here.”
I nodded once. “Anyone else know?”
“No one. I kept it quiet.”
He paused before adding, “She’s been working part-time at a small art gallery in town. Same alias. She’s been there for months.”
That sounded like her. She’d always gone back to art, no matter what.
“She’s alone?” I asked.
“As far as we can tell. No visitors. No contact outside the area.”
I looked at the papers again. “What about Luca Ferri?”
“Gone,” Marco said. “Vanished around the same time she did. I traced him to Naples, then nothing. If she set up this new identity, he likely helped.”
The fire crackled in the corner. I hadn’t touched the glass of whiskey sitting beside me.
“She wanted to disappear,” Marco said carefully. “If you go after her”
“I’m not asking for your opinion.”
He nodded. “What do you want me to do?”
“Get the jet ready by morning,” I said. “No team. Just you and me. And, Marco, no one hears about this. No one.”
“Understood.”
He turned to leave, but I stopped him. “Find Ferri first. If he helped her, he’ll know where she’ll go if she realizes we’re close.”
“I’ll handle it.”
When he left, the room was quiet again. I sat there looking at her handwriting. Months of silence ended with a single signature.
She had changed her name, created a new life, and made the world believe she was dead. She had even fooled me.
But she should have known by now, I don’t stop until I get answers.
I opened the drawer and took out her wedding ring. It was cold, the metal untouched since the night she disappeared.
“You shouldn’t have run,” I said quietly.
Outside, the rain hit the windows hard.
Tomorrow,
I’d go to Porto di Mare.
This time, she wasn’t leaving again.
- Writer
