Chapter 7 — The Man Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
The car stopped three blocks from St. Mary's Church.
Gabriel killed the engine.
For several seconds, neither he nor Chloe moved.
Rain tapped against the windshield.
The photograph remained between them.
Chloe stared at the young woman in the picture.
Her mother.
She looked almost unrecognizable.
Younger.
Softer.
Hopeful.
And standing beside her was Salvatore Costello.
Alive.
Smiling.
One hand resting against her mother's shoulder.
The other holding what appeared to be a small hospital envelope.
Chloe's fingers trembled.
“That can't be my father.”
Gabriel looked at her.
“It isn't.”
“But he was.”
“Who?”
“My father.”
Gabriel remained silent.
“The man who raised me,” Chloe continued. “The man who taught me to ride a bicycle. The man who waited outside Leo's school every afternoon. The man who sat beside my bed when I had pneumonia.”
Her voice broke.
“That was my father.”
Gabriel nodded.
“I didn't say he wasn't.”
Chloe looked at him.
“You said he wasn't my biological father.”
“Yes.”
She looked back at the photograph.
“Then why did nobody tell me?”
Gabriel's jaw tightened.
“Because someone wanted you to believe a lie.”
“Who?”
“Maybe your mother.”
“Maybe?”
“Maybe Salvatore.”
“Maybe Clara.”
Gabriel looked at her.
“Maybe all three.”
Chloe closed her eyes.
The thought made her sick.
For thirty-one years, she had believed her family was ordinary.
Not perfect.
Not wealthy.
Not powerful.
But real.
Her father had been a mechanic.
Her mother had worked at a grocery store.
Leo had been born deaf.
They had struggled.
They had fought.
They had loved each other.
That was the story.
Simple.
Safe.
Now Gabriel had turned it into something else.
A story involving the Costello family.
A mafia empire.
A hidden daughter.
A dead brother.
A supposedly dead man.
And a mother who apparently had a secret relationship with the most dangerous man in the city.
Chloe opened her eyes.
“Did my mother love him?”
Gabriel didn't answer.
She turned toward him.
“Did she love Salvatore?”
“I don't know.”
“You know everything about your family.”
“Not everything.”
“But you know him.”
Gabriel looked toward the church.
“I knew the man people feared.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means I never knew the man your mother met.”
Chloe stared at him.
“Then why do you recognize him?”
Gabriel took a breath.
“Because that's my uncle.”
“I know.”
“No.”
He looked at her.
“You don't understand.”
His voice dropped.
“That's not just Salvatore.”
“What do you mean?”
“That photograph was taken in front of St. Joseph's Hospital.”
Chloe frowned.
“How do you know?”
“Because my father owned the building across the street.”
She looked at the picture again.
The brick structure behind them.
The faded hospital sign.
The black car.
The date handwritten on the corner.
October 17.
Gabriel stared at it.
“My father died October 18.”
Chloe froze.
“One day later.”
“Yes.”
“And my mother was there?”
“Yes.”
“With Salvatore.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
Chloe whispered:
“What happened that night?”
Gabriel looked at her.
“My father was shot.”
She stared.
“Your father wasn't killed by Salvatore?”
“No.”
“Then who killed him?”
Gabriel's eyes darkened.
“That's the question I've spent fifteen years trying to answer.”
The rain became heavier.
Then Gabriel's phone vibrated.
He looked at the screen.
A message.
YOU HAVE TEN MINUTES.
Then another.
COME INSIDE ALONE.
Gabriel stared at it.
Chloe saw his expression.
“What?”
He turned the screen toward her.
She read the messages.
Then looked toward the church.
“We're close.”
“Yes.”
“You're not going alone.”
“I didn't say I was.”
She studied him.
“You're scared.”
Gabriel almost smiled.
“No.”
“You are.”
“I've been shot before.”
“That isn't what I'm talking about.”
He looked at her.
Chloe pointed toward the photograph.
“Whatever happened fifteen years ago is connected to tonight.”
Gabriel didn't disagree.
“And Clara knows it.”
“Yes.”
“And Salvatore knows it.”
“Yes.”
“And my mother knows something.”
“Yes.”
Chloe opened the passenger door.
“Then let's stop sitting here.”
Gabriel got out.
St. Mary's Church had been abandoned for almost twelve years.
The front doors were chained.
The stained-glass windows were broken.
Weeds grew through cracks in the stone steps.
But there was a light inside.
One yellow bulb.
Flickering.
Waiting.
Gabriel approached the door.
Chloe followed.
He stopped.
“Stay behind me.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Gabriel.”
“What?”
“You promised.”
He sighed.
“Fine.”
He cut the chain.
The door opened with a long metallic groan.
Cold air rushed toward them.
The church smelled of wet wood and dust.
Their footsteps echoed through the empty nave.
At the altar stood a woman.
Clara.
She wore a dark coat.
Her hair was pulled back.
Her hands were folded calmly in front of her.
She looked exactly like the woman Chloe had seen a hundred times at charity events.
Elegant.
Controlled.
Untouchable.
But tonight she looked different.
Not powerful.
Tired.
Very tired.
Her eyes went directly to Chloe.
Then to Gabriel.
“Close the door.”
Gabriel didn't move.
Clara smiled faintly.
“If I wanted you dead, Gabriel, you wouldn't have made it through the parking lot.”
Gabriel's expression didn't change.
“Then why am I here?”
Clara looked at Chloe.
“Because she deserves the truth.”
Chloe stepped forward.
“Are you my sister?”
Clara's face changed.
Only slightly.
But Chloe noticed.
A tiny tightening around the eyes.
A breath held too long.
Then Clara said:
“Yes.”
The word echoed through the church.
Chloe stared at her.
“How?”
Clara swallowed.
“Our mother was pregnant with me when she met Salvatore.”
“That's not what I asked.”
“I know.”
“Are you my sister?”
“Yes.”
“Biologically?”
“Yes.”
Chloe's eyes filled.
“How?”
Clara looked at her.
“Your mother had me when she was seventeen.”
Chloe shook her head.
“My mother was married.”
“Later.”
“To my father?”
“No.”
Chloe's voice became quieter.
“Then who was she married to?”
Clara looked toward Gabriel.
“His father.”
Gabriel went completely still.
Chloe stared.
“What?”
Clara continued.
“Your mother married Gabriel's father.”
Gabriel stepped forward.
“My father?”
Clara nodded.
“Before your mother married the man you called Dad.”
Chloe's mind raced.
“That makes no sense.”
“It will.”
“Why would she marry him?”
“Because Salvatore disappeared.”
“Then why did she have me?”
Clara looked at her.
“Because you weren't supposed to exist.”
Silence.
Chloe's face went pale.
“What?”
Clara's voice softened.
“Your mother was pregnant with you when Salvatore came back.”
Gabriel stared at Clara.
“You're saying Chloe is Salvatore's daughter?”
Clara nodded.
“Yes.”
Chloe stopped breathing.
Gabriel looked at her.
Clara continued.
“Leo was not Salvatore's son.”
Chloe shook her head.
“No.”
“Leo was your mother's child with the man who raised you.”
Chloe stared.
“Then I'm—”
“Salvatore's daughter.”
The words hit harder than anything else that night.
Chloe took a step backward.
Gabriel moved instinctively.
She raised a hand.
“Don't.”
He stopped.
She stared at Clara.
“You're saying my entire life was built around a lie.”
“Yes.”
“My father wasn't my father.”
“Biologically, no.”
“My mother married another man.”
“Yes.”
“And Salvatore was my real father.”
“Yes.”
Chloe's voice became barely audible.
“Then why did he never come for me?”
Clara looked down.
“Because he didn't want you.”
Chloe flinched.
Gabriel's eyes hardened.
Clara continued.
“He wanted control.”
“Control over what?”
“The Costello empire.”
She took a breath.
“Salvatore believed your mother knew something about Gabriel's father. Something that could destroy him.”
Gabriel stared.
“What?”
Clara looked at him.
“Your father discovered Salvatore had been stealing from the family.”
Gabriel's face changed.
“He knew.”
“Yes.”
“And my mother?”
“She knew too.”
“What did she know?”
“That Salvatore had ordered payments to disappear.”
Gabriel's eyes narrowed.
“Payments to whom?”
Clara looked at Chloe.
“To Bennett Logistics.”
Chloe's stomach turned.
Leo.
Again.
Always Leo.
Clara continued.
“Your brother found the same records years later.”
Chloe whispered:
“And that's why he died.”
Clara nodded.
“Yes.”
Gabriel stepped forward.
“You knew Leo was investigating.”
“Yes.”
“You knew Salvatore was hunting him.”
“Yes.”
“You watched him die.”
Clara's face tightened.
“No.”
Gabriel's voice became colder.
“Then tell us what happened.”
Clara looked at Chloe.
“I tried to save him.”
Chloe's eyes narrowed.
“You?”
“Yes.”
“You were working for Salvatore.”
“I was.”
“Then why save Leo?”
“Because he was my brother too.”
Chloe froze.
Clara's eyes filled with tears.
“He didn't know at first.”
“Know what?”
“That I was his sister.”
Chloe stared.
“When did he find out?”
“Three months before he died.”
“And he still trusted you?”
“He wanted to.”
“Did you betray him?”
Clara looked down.
“Yes.”
The answer was immediate.
No excuse.
No denial.
Chloe's face hardened.
“How?”
“I gave Salvatore one piece of information.”
“What?”
“Where Leo was going.”
Gabriel's expression turned murderous.
“You sent him there.”
Clara shook her head.
“I didn't know Salvatore's men would be waiting.”
“You should have known.”
“I did.”
Silence.
Clara looked at Chloe.
“And I've regretted it every day since.”
Chloe's voice trembled.
“You don't get to regret it.”
“I know.”
“You don't get to call him your brother.”
“I know.”
“You don't get to stand here and say you tried to save him.”
“I know.”
Chloe stepped closer.
“Then why are you here?”
Clara looked at her.
“Because Salvatore is coming.”
Gabriel immediately reached inside his coat.
“How long?”
Clara checked her watch.
“Seven minutes.”
Gabriel looked toward the windows.
“Where?”
“He's bringing six men.”
“Why?”
“To take you.”
“Me?”
Clara nodded.
“He doesn't care about Gabriel anymore.”
Chloe's heart raced.
“Then what does he want?”
Clara looked at her.
“You.”
Gabriel stepped between them.
“No.”
Clara gave him a sad smile.
“He wants his daughter.”
Gabriel's eyes became cold.
“He's not taking her.”
Clara nodded.
“I know.”
Then she reached into her coat.
Gabriel immediately drew his gun.
“Don't.”
Clara froze.
“Slowly.”
She pulled out a small object.
Not a weapon.
A cassette recorder.
She placed it on the altar.
“This is why I brought you here.”
Gabriel didn't lower the gun.
“What is it?”
“Your father's final recording.”
Gabriel stared.
“My father never made a recording.”
“Yes, he did.”
“Where did you get it?”
“Salvatore gave it to me.”
“Why?”
“Because he wanted me to destroy it.”
Clara pressed a button.
Static filled the church.
Then a man's voice emerged.
Old.
Tired.
Frightened.
Gabriel recognized it immediately.
His father.
“If you're hearing this…”
Gabriel stopped breathing.
“…then Salvatore has already lied to you.”
Chloe looked at Gabriel.
The recording continued.
“I need you to understand one thing.”
A pause.
“I did not die because of the money.”
Static.
“I died because I found out who Chloe's mother really was.”
Chloe's face went white.
Gabriel looked at her.
The voice continued.
“She is not who you think she is.”
The tape crackled.
“She was never simply Salvatore's lover.”
Clara's face became tense.
Gabriel stepped toward the recorder.
His father's voice returned.
“She was an informant.”
Chloe whispered:
“No…”
The church doors suddenly slammed shut.
Clara looked toward the entrance.
Gabriel raised his gun.
A man's voice came from the darkness.
“Good.”
Everyone turned.
A slow clap echoed through the church.
One.
Two.
Three.
Then Salvatore Costello stepped into the light.
Older than Gabriel remembered.
Gray hair.
Black suit.
A silver cane.
But his eyes were exactly the same.
Cold.
Calm.
Deadly.
Gabriel stared at him.
For fifteen years, he had believed his uncle was dead.
For fifteen years, he had imagined the man responsible for destroying his family as a corpse beneath the ground.
Now Salvatore stood twenty feet away.
Alive.
Smiling.
He looked at Gabriel.
Then at Clara.
Then at Chloe.
His gaze stopped on Chloe.
And something unexpected appeared in his expression.
Not anger.
Not hatred.
Recognition.
He whispered:
“My daughter.”
Chloe froze.
Salvatore smiled.
“You have your mother's eyes.”
Gabriel stepped in front of Chloe.
Salvatore laughed softly.
“Still protecting people who aren't yours, Gabriel.”
Gabriel raised his weapon.
“You're not leaving this church alive.”
Salvatore tilted his head.
“That's what your father said.”
Gabriel's finger tightened around the trigger.
Salvatore looked past him at Chloe.
“Ask your mother what happened the night she betrayed me.”
Chloe's voice shook.
“She didn't betray you.”
Salvatore smiled.
“That's where you're wrong.”
He lifted his cane.
A tiny red light appeared at the end.
A laser.
It settled directly on Chloe's chest.
Gabriel moved instantly.
A gunshot exploded through the church.
The stained-glass window behind them shattered.
Chloe screamed.
Gabriel grabbed her and pulled her to the floor.
Clara dove behind a stone pillar.
Vincent's voice suddenly came through Gabriel's earpiece.
“Gabriel!”
Gabriel grabbed it.
“I'm here.”
“Don't shoot Salvatore.”
“Why?”
Vincent's voice was urgent.
“Because he's not the one holding the weapon.”
Gabriel froze.
“What?”
Vincent continued:
“Look at Clara.”
Gabriel turned.
Clara was standing slowly behind the pillar.
Her hands were empty.
But her face had changed.
She wasn't looking at Salvatore.
She was looking at Chloe.
And in her eyes was pure terror.
Then Clara whispered:
“Gabriel…”
He stared at her.
“Your father wasn't killed by Salvatore.”
She swallowed.
“He was killed by someone standing in this church.”
Gabriel looked around.
Salvatore smiled.
Clara's voice broke.
“And that person…”
She pointed toward the darkness behind Gabriel.
“…is already behind you.”
Gabriel turned.
And saw a familiar face.
Vincent.
Standing in the church doorway.
Gun raised.
May you like
But the man who had been beside him for years was not aiming at Salvatore.
He was aiming directly at Gabriel.
