Chapter 34 The truth in the cross
Flora
Isabella stood in the doorway, gun in hand, looking like an avenging angel.
Dr. Russo lay on the floor, gasping. Blood pooled beneath her.
"Isabella?" Rafael's voice was shocked. "How did you…"
"Escape? Please." Isabella stepped over Dr. Russo's body. "Did you really think a basic holding cell could keep me? I let them catch me. I needed to know who was pulling the strings."
They had kidnapped her?
"And?" Marco asked from his chair.
"And I found out enough." Isabella looked at Dr. Russo with disgust. "This bitch has been playing both sides. Feeding information to multiple parties. Making deals. Getting rich off everyone's misery."
Dr. Russo coughed. Blood bubbled from her lips. "You... you shot me..."
"I did." Isabella crouched down. "And I'd do it again. You helped kill Eva. My friend. My sister in everything but blood."
"Fuck... you..." Dr. Russo's eyes were glazing over.
"Who's the Architect?" Isabella pressed the gun to Dr. Russo's forehead. "Tell me now and I'll make it quick."
Dr. Russo laughed. "You're all... so stupid... so blind..."
"Who?!"
"Closer... than you think..." Dr. Russo's breath rattled.
Her eyes went blank. She was dead.
Isabella stood up, her expression grim. "Damn it. She was our best lead."
"She said the Architect is close," I said.
"That narrows it down to about a hundred people," Rafael said bitterly.
Isabella turned to look at me. "Lucia. Eva's twin."
"I prefer Flora."
"Flora then." Isabella's eyes softened.
"I know." Isabella walked over and, to my surprise, hugged me. "I'm sorry. For all of this. You didn't ask to be created. To be part of this nightmare."
I hugged her back, tears streaming down my face. "Why did they make me?"
"Insurance," Isabella whispered. "Eva was supposed to keep Rafael in line. But Eva had her own mind. Her own dreams. So they created you. A replacement who didn't know any better."
"But I do know better now."
"Yes, you do." Isabella pulled back. "And that makes you dangerous to them."
Rafael cleared his throat. "Isabella, why did you really escape? What did you find out?"
Isabella's face turned serious. "I found out that Dr. Russo was just a middleman. The Architect has been using multiple people. Creating layers of deception. No one knows who they really are."
"Except maybe Father Matthews," Marco said.
"What?" Isabella's eyes widened.
"He's dead," Rafael said quietly. "Killed in the explosion tonight."
Isabella's face crumbled. "No. Oh God, no. Not Father Matthews. Hebwas Eva's confessor." Then, her eyes widened . "The confessional records!"
"They were deleted," I said.
"Then we need to find the backup," Isabella said urgently.
"What backup?"
"Father Matthews was old-fashioned. He didn't trust technology. He kept physical records. Hidden in the church." Isabella was already moving towards the door. "We need to get there before the Architect destroys them too."
"Wait," Marco called out. "It could be a trap."
"Everything is a trap at this point," Isabella shot back. "But those records could tell us who the Architect is. It's worth the risk."
Rafael looked at me. "What do you think?"
I thought about everything that had happened.
"I think we're running out of options," I said. "And I'm tired of running."
"Then we go." Rafael pulled out his phone. "I'll call a team…"
"No." Isabella shook her head. "No teams. Just us. If the Architect has people everywhere like Dr. Russo said, we can't trust anyone."
"She's right," Marco said. He tried to stand again and this time succeeded, though he swayed. "Boss, you need to go. I'll stay here and coordinate damage control."
"You can barely stand."
"I can manage." Marco gripped Rafael's shoulder. "Go. End this nightmare."
Rafael hesitated, then nodded. "Okay. But if anything happens…"
"I'll call reinforcements. Now go."
We moved quickly through the house. The fire was mostly contained now, but smoke still filled the air. Staff and guards were everywhere, but Rafael led us through back passages I didn't even know existed. Isabella followed behind him.
We emerged in a garage I'd never seen. Isabella headed for a black SUV.
"Get in."
Rafael took the driver's seat. Isabella climbed in front. I got in the back.
As we pulled out, I looked back at the burning estate. At the life I'd briefly had there.
"You okay?" Rafael asked, catching my eye in the rearview mirror.
"I don't know what I am anymore."
"You're Flora," he said firmly. "You're you. That's all that matters."
I nodded.
The drive to San Marco Cathedral was tense and silent except for Isabella's occasional directions.
The church rose up before us, dark and imposing against the night sky. Gothic spires reached towards the stars. Stone gargoyles watched our approach.
"There," Isabella pointed. "Park in the back. There's an entrance through the sacristy."
Rafael parked and we all got out. The night air was cold. I shivered.
Rafael noticed and put his jacket around my shoulders. "Here."
"Thanks." I blushed.
Isabella was already at the door, working on the lock. "Father Matthews gave me a key years ago. But I think..." The door clicked open. "Yes. It still works."
We slipped inside. The church was dark except for votive candles flickering near the altar. Shadows danced on the walls.
"This way," Isabella whispered. She led us through the nave, past rows of pews, towards a small door behind the altar.
"Father Matthews's office?" Rafael asked.
"No. His personal quarters. That's where he'd keep the real records. The ones he didn't want anyone finding."
The door was locked. Rafael kicked it open.
Inside was a simple room. A bed, a desk and a small bookshelf. Nothing suspicious.
"Search everything," Isabella ordered.
We tore through the room. I checked the bookshelf, pulling out books, looking for hidden compartments.
Rafael searched the desk. Isabella checked under the mattress.
"Nothing," Rafael said after ten minutes. "There's nothing here."
"There has to be," Isabella insisted. "Father Matthews wouldn't have destroyed the records. He was too meticulous."
I stood in the center of the room, thinking. Father Matthews was a priest. Where would a priest hide something important?
My eyes fell on a crucifix hanging on the wall.
"There," I said, pointing.
"A crucifix?" Rafael sounded doubtful.
"Eva's diary," I said. "She wrote about Father Matthews once. Said he always told her the truth was in the cross."
I walked over and carefully took the crucifix down.
Behind it was a small safe built into the wall.
"Oh my God," Isabella breathed.
"Can you open it?" Rafael asked.
"I can try." Isabella knelt in front of the safe. She pressed her ear against it and started turning the dial.
"How do you know how to crack a safe?"
"I dated a criminal once," Isabella said absently. "Long story. Don't ask."
The safe clicked open.
And inside was a leather journal and a small USB drive.