The Billionaire Mafia Boss's Fiancee Made a Broke Delivery Driver Kneel in Birthday Cake - Then She Learned Who Avery Carter Used to Be

I had never met Vanessa Whitmore before the first delivery.

At least that was what I believed.

Keene survived, but the hospital moved him into protective custody before we could ask another question.

Dominic drove me back to Lake Forest.

"Why are we going there?" I asked.

"Because Vanessa is still at the estate."

"You didn't throw her out?"

"I wanted her where I could find her."

That sounded like Dominic Moretti.

Vanessa sat in the library with two security guards outside.

No cream dress now. No champagne. Her makeup was gone. She looked younger and much less certain.

I put Dad's photograph on the table.

"Keene says you knew me before."

Vanessa closed her eyes.

"He should have kept his mouth shut."

I nearly crossed the room.

Dominic said, "Careful."

I couldn't tell whether he was warning me or her.

Vanessa opened a drawer and removed an old program from a regional martial arts tournament.

My face was on the cover.

Age sixteen.

Gold medal around my neck.

"I was there," she said.

I stared at her.

"Why?"

"My brother competed. Julian Whitmore."

I remembered Julian.

Tall kid. Good kicker. Terrible temper.

He had lost to me in the semifinal.

Then disappeared from the circuit.

"You were in the stands."

"Yes."

"So what?"

Vanessa looked at Dominic.

"Tell her about Julian."

Dominic's expression hardened.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course you don't. My family made sure of that."

Vanessa turned back to me.

"Three months after that tournament, Julian got sick. Kidney damage. Neurological problems. He spent two years in and out of hospitals."

My stomach tightened.

"Halcyon."

"Our grandfather owned the land before your father's company leased it."

"Your family poisoned your own son?"

"My grandfather covered it up. My mother helped. My father looked away."

Vanessa's eyes filled, but her voice stayed controlled.

"Julian found Thomas Carter before the fire. He wanted to testify."

"Where is he now?"

She looked down.

"Dead."

Dominic moved closer.

"You never told me you had a brother."

"Because my mother erased him from every public family record after he threatened to go federal."

I stared at her.

Seven weeks of insults did not disappear because she had grief.

"Why request me?"

Vanessa finally looked ashamed.

"Because I recognized your name. Then your face. I thought if Thomas had left anything with you, pressure might make you reveal it."

"So you humiliated me."

"Yes."

"You researched my mother."

"Yes."

"You slapped me."

Her jaw tightened.

"Yes."

"And now you want sympathy?"

"No. I want you to understand I was desperate."

"Desperate people can still be cruel."

That landed.

Dominic asked, "Did you send the threat to Linda?"

"No."

"Did you tell Keene Avery had appeared?"

Vanessa looked confused.

"Keene? No."

A security guard knocked and entered.

He carried a small package delivered to the gate.

No return address.

Inside was Julian Whitmore's tournament medal.

Vanessa dropped it.

A folded note came with it.

She opened it with shaking hands.

Only one sentence.

People stopped seeing people before they started hurting them. Maybe that was the real family disease here.

Then Vanessa looked toward the ballroom. "I kept telling myself you were just a means to an answer. That's how I made it easy to be cruel."

"He wanted to be. That's different."

"He was good," I said.

The memory came back: a skinny boy with too much anger, bowing stiffly because our coaches forced us to.

She swallowed. "When I saw you delivering food, I remembered you from that tournament. You beat Julian, then helped him up after he tried to kick you after the bell. He hated you for three days. Then he copied your footwork for a year."

"I know."

"That explains you. It doesn't excuse you."

Vanessa looked at me. "Yes."

"So you learned to attack first."

"You know what the worst part is? When Julian got sick, my mother told me he was weak. Not ill. Weak. She said our family survived because we did not let private damage become public weakness."

Vanessa walked to the minibar and poured water instead of wine. Her hand shook enough to tap the glass against the bottle.

YOUR BROTHER ISN'T DEAD. ASK DOMINIC WHERE HE'S BEEN HIDING HIM.

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