Vincent's Perfect Story
Chapter 06 - Vincent's Perfect Story
Vincent Caruso had spent his whole life standing in Gabriel's shadow. Gabriel was the heir everyone praised, the son who won scholarships and spoke about reform. Vincent was the charming younger brother who learned to make money quickly, sometimes without asking too many questions.
After Gabriel's death, Vincent took over much of the freight business. Angelo, overwhelmed by grief and international disputes, had allowed it. It seemed practical at the time.
Now, sitting across from his father in a conference room with two attorneys present, Vincent wore an expression of injured innocence.
"You can't seriously believe I wanted to hurt my nephew."
Angelo placed a photograph on the table. Matteo in the snow, captured by a vehicle camera.
Vincent looked away.
"Celia was handling him. I didn't know he'd been outside that long."
"You saw him."
"I saw him running around. He'd been difficult all day."
"He is five years old."
Vincent folded his arms. "You never had to handle his tantrums. You were never here."
The accusation was cruel partly because it was true. Angelo had been absent. But absence did not turn a locked door and a freezing driveway into discipline.
"I should have been here," Angelo said. "And you should have opened that door."
Vincent's attorney interrupted, advising his client not to answer further questions while investigators reviewed the evidence.
Angelo nodded. "Then we are finished."
As Vincent stood, he glanced at the folder containing Gabriel's extracted files. "Where did you get those?"
Angelo felt a chill.
"Why?"
"Because people can edit recordings. Gabriel was under enormous pressure."
"You haven't listened to them."
Vincent's face stiffened. He'd revealed knowledge of the recordings before Angelo had mentioned their contents.
After the meeting, Rafael advised against confronting Vincent again. The evidence should be preserved and sent through investigators; family arguments could compromise the case.
Angelo agreed, though every instinct in his body screamed for revenge.
That afternoon Celia's attorney informed him she was willing to describe what happened outside the mansion if Vincent agreed not to punish her financially. Angelo refused to negotiate privately over the child's suffering, but he made sure the attorney knew how to contact the appropriate authorities.
In the hospital, Matteo asked for a toy airplane and a window seat. He was warming well and responding to care, but his fear remained visible. Whenever somebody raised a voice in the corridor, he ducked his head.
A specialist advised Angelo to maintain routines and avoid promising that everything was fixed. Recovery would not follow a single conversation or a single arrest.
Angelo returned to the room and found Matteo carefully placing the old wooden plane inside a shoebox.
"Why are you hiding it?" he asked.
Matteo looked up. "Because Aunt Celia says the bad things happen when people tell secrets."
Angelo sat beside him. "Bad things happened because adults made harmful choices. Telling the truth helps us keep you safe."
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Matteo thought about that for a long time.
Then he handed his grandfather the box.
