Chapter 5: The Man Who Stole His Daughter's Childhood
Victor Hale sat in a private room overlooking the East River.
A glass of whiskey rested on the table.
Across from him, Lily sat on a wooden chair with her small hands folded in her lap.
Her cheeks were wet.
She had stopped crying, but every few seconds she glanced toward the door.
Victor placed a plate of cookies in front of her.
“Eat something.””
Lily shook her head.
“I want my mommy.””
Victor sighed.
“Your mother is safe.””
“I want her.””
“I said she's safe.””
Lily looked at him.
“Are you going to hurt Daddy?””
Victor slowly lowered his glass.
“Why would you call him Daddy?””
Lily frowned.
“Because he said he was.””
Victor laughed softly.
“Lucas Moretti is not the kind of man who becomes a father overnight.””
Lily looked down at the plate.
“My mommy says people can change.””
“Your mother is wrong about many things.””
Lily pushed the cookies away.
“Then I don't like you.””
Victor's smile disappeared.
He leaned forward.
“Listen carefully, little girl. Your father and I used to be friends.””
Lily stared at him.
“Then why did you make him sick?””
Victor didn't answer.
“Why did you hide his medicine?””
“Because your father has something that belongs to me.””
“What?””
“Everything.””
Lily thought about that.
Then she said something that made Victor's expression tighten.
“My daddy doesn't look happy with all that stuff.””
Victor stood.
“Enough questions.””
He walked toward the door.
Before leaving, he looked back.
“Finish your cookies.””
Lily waited until the door closed.
Then she slid down from the chair.
She remembered what her mother had taught her.
If she ever got lost, she should look for a grown-up who could help.
If someone frightened her, she should remember where she was.
And if she couldn't escape, she should pay attention.
So Lily began looking around the room.
There was a window.
A desk.
A telephone.
And a small black camera above the door.
She stared at it.
Then she climbed onto the chair and waved.
“Mr. Camera?””
Nothing happened.
“My daddy has cameras too.””
She looked directly into the lens.
“He knows how to find me.””
At the factory, Lucas stood motionless while Victor's image remained on the phone.
“Your empire,” Victor repeated.
“Transfer control of the Manhattan operations to me. All of them.””
Lucas's eyes narrowed.
“You want me to hand you fifteen years of work?””
“I want what's mine.””
“You were my lieutenant.””
“I was the man who built your empire while you sat in the office pretending to be a king.””
Lucas gave a cold laugh.
“You managed my accounts and organized my meetings.””
“I kept your enemies away.””
“You also tried to kill me.””
Victor smiled.
“Unfortunately, the little girl had other plans.””
Lucas's jaw tightened.
“Let her go.””
“Not yet.””
“What happened fifteen years ago?””
Victor leaned back.
“You really don't remember?””
Lucas didn't answer.
Victor shook his head.
“Of course you don't. You were busy falling in love.””
The screen flickered.
Then Victor held up another photograph.
A young Lucas.
A pregnant Anna.
Standing outside a small apartment building.
Lucas's stomach tightened.
“You knew she was pregnant.””
“I knew before you did.””
Lucas's voice dropped.
“How?””
“Because I was there when Vincent told her to leave.””
Lucas stared at the screen.
“Vincent?””
“Your father's old fixer. He knew you were becoming attached to Anna. He believed she would make you weak.””
Lucas's hands curled.
“Vincent died twelve years ago.””
“Not before he gave me everything.””
Victor placed the photograph down.
“He told Anna you had rejected her. He told you she had disappeared with another man. Two different lies. One very convenient separation.””
Lucas looked at Marco.
Marco's expression had gone pale.
“Why?”” Lucas asked.
Victor's smile widened.
“Because your father wanted an heir who belonged to the family. Not some woman from Harlem and a child who might one day challenge the bloodline.””
Lucas felt something cold settle in his stomach.
His father had been dead for eight years.
But his influence was still reaching through the grave.
“Where is Vincent's file?”” Lucas asked.
Victor shrugged.
“Somewhere safe.””
“Give it to me.””
“Not until you sign the transfer papers.””
Lucas stared at him.
“You want the business and the girl?””
Victor nodded.
“That's the arrangement.””
Lucas took a slow breath.
Then he looked at the man who had stood beside him for twelve years.
“You could have asked me for money.””
Victor laughed.
“Money?””
“You could have asked for a larger share. A territory. A position.””
“I wanted respect.””
“You had my trust.””
Victor's face changed.
For a brief second, something almost human appeared.
Then it disappeared.
“Trust doesn't make you powerful, Lucas. Fear does.””
He ended the call.
Lucas stood in the factory, staring at the blank screen.
Marco approached.
“Boss, we need to move.””
Lucas nodded.
“Get the car.””
“Where are we going?””
“To find Vincent's files.””
Marco hesitated.
“There's something else you should know.””
Lucas turned.
“What?””
“Anna called.””
Lucas immediately took the phone.
“Is Lily with her?””
“No. She's still at the apartment.””
“Put her through.””
Marco connected the call.
Anna's voice came through.
“Lucas?””
“I'm here.””
“Have you found her?””
“Not yet. But I know where Victor is keeping her.””
“Then bring her home.””
“I will.””
Anna was quiet.
Then she whispered:
“There's something I should tell you.””
Lucas stopped walking.
“What?””
“When Lily was born, she was sick. Very sick.””
Lucas's grip tightened.
“What do you mean?””
“She had trouble breathing. The doctors said she needed constant monitoring. We spent weeks in the hospital.””
Lucas looked down at the turquoise inhaler in his hand.
Anna continued.
“I couldn't afford everything. There were days I couldn't pay for the medicine. I sold my wedding ring.
I sold my mother's necklace. I did whatever I could.””
Lucas closed his eyes.
“Anna…”
“I wanted to call you. Every single day. But I was afraid they would find us.””
Lucas looked at the factory ceiling.
“I'm sorry.””
“You don't get to fix fifteen years with two words.””
“I know.””
Then Anna said something else.
“Lily has always been afraid of hospitals. She thinks being sick means people leave her.””
Lucas swallowed.
“I'm bringing her home.””
“Please don't make her another casualty of your war.””
The call ended.
Marco stood beside him.
“Boss?””
Lucas slipped the phone into his pocket.
“Let's go.””
At the mansion, Dr. Harris was waiting in the private medical suite.
Lucas entered with a folder under his arm.
“I need you to examine a child.””
“Lily?””
“Yes.””
Dr. Harris nodded.
“Of course.””
Lucas placed the turquoise inhaler on the desk.
“She has breathing problems. Anna says she was hospitalized as a baby.””
Dr. Harris examined the device.
“Do you know what medication she uses?””
“No.””
“Then we'll need her medical records.””
Lucas looked toward Marco.
“Get them.””
Marco nodded.
Dr. Harris studied Lucas.
“You seem different tonight.””
Lucas gave him a tired look.
“I nearly died tonight.””
“That isn't what I mean.””
Lucas sat down.
For several seconds, he stared at the little inhaler.
Then he said:
“I have a daughter.””
Dr. Harris smiled faintly.
“I gathered that.””
Lucas looked up.
“I didn't know she existed.””
The doctor said nothing.
Lucas rubbed his face.
“She was six years old when she saved me. Six. She walked into a room full of armed men and tried to keep a stranger alive.””
Dr. Harris leaned against the counter.
“Children often show us what adults have forgotten.””
Lucas looked at the inhaler.
“She called me Daddy.””
His voice broke slightly.
“I don't think I've ever heard anything more frightening.””
Dr. Harris raised an eyebrow.
“Frightening?””
Lucas nodded.
“Because now I know what losing something really means.””
Across the city, Victor opened a metal cabinet.
Inside were dozens of folders.
One bore Lucas's name.
Another bore Anna Carter's.
He removed a third folder.
The label read:
*MORETTI FAMILY — CONFIDENTIAL MEDICAL RECORDS.*
He opened it.
Inside was an old hospital report.
A newborn girl's medical history.
And a handwritten note from Vincent.
Victor smiled.
He picked up his phone.
“It's time.””
A voice answered.
“Are you sure?””
“Yes.””
“Lucas will come after us.””
Victor looked toward the room where Lily was being held.
“Lucas is already coming.””
The voice on the other end went quiet.
Then it asked:
“What about the girl?””
Victor closed the folder.
“She stays alive.””
“For how long?””
Victor smiled.
“Until Lucas understands that his daughter isn't the only secret buried in that family.””
He ended the call.
Then he walked back toward Lily's room.
The little girl was standing beside the window.
She turned when he entered.
“Can I call my mommy?””
Victor shook his head.
“Not yet.””
Lily's eyes filled with tears.
“Please.””
Victor crouched in front of her.
“You know, Lily, your father has spent his whole life taking things from people.””
Lily frowned.
“My daddy isn't like that.””
Victor stared at her.
“You barely know him.””
Lily wiped her cheek.
“But he came looking for me.””
Victor's smile faded.
For the first time, the little girl had said something he couldn't easily dismiss.
At 1:16 a.m., Marco entered Lucas's office carrying a brown envelope.
“We found Vincent's personal archive.””
Lucas took it.
“Where?””
“In a storage unit registered under Victor's name.””
Lucas opened the envelope.
Inside was a handwritten letter.
The first sentence made his blood run cold.
*Lucas, if you are reading this, then Anna Carter has finally told you about the child.*
He read the next line.
Then the next.
His face changed.
Marco stepped closer.
“What is it?””
Lucas looked up.
His voice was barely recognizable.
“Marco, my father knew Lily was born.””
May you like
He looked down at the letter again.
“And he ordered someone to make sure she never became part of this family.””
