Chapter 7 - The Orphan's Clue
By noon, the estate was locked down under maximum military security. Elena had been safely transported back to the estate's private medical wing, surrounded by six armed guards.
Sophie sat on the floor of the grand living room, holding a box of crayons, drawing a picture on a large sheet of white paper.
Vincent walked in, carrying a small cup of tea. He sat on the floor beside her—a fifty-three-year-old mafia boss sitting cross-legged on a silk oriental rug.
"What are you drawing, sweetheart?" Vincent asked softly.
Sophie looked up, a faint smile touching her lips. "It's a picture of my daddy. Before he went to heaven."
Vincent looked at the crayon drawing. It showed a tall man, a small girl, and a strange wooden house with a red roof standing near water. Beside the wooden house was a big tree with blue birds in it.
"Is that your home?" Vincent asked.
"No," Sophie shook her head, pointing her small finger at the wooden house. "That's Daddy's special place. Where he took me fishing on weekends. He said it was his 'secret sanctuary' where no bad guys could ever find us."
Vincent’s eyes narrowed sharply. He looked closer at the drawing. "Where is this wooden house, Sophie? Do you remember?"
Sophie put her finger to her chin, thinking hard. "It has a funny name... Lake... Lake Geneva? No... Lake Caddy! It has big wooden swans near the dock!"
Vincent snapped his head up toward Tony, who was standing by the door.
"Lake Cadott," Tony breathed, realizing it instantly. "Carlos Martinez owned a small hunting cabin up in Wisconsin, two hours north of the border! The police searched his main house in the city, but nobody ever checked out-of-state property records!"
"The ledger," Vincent realized. "Carlos didn't hide it in Chicago. He hid it where Victor Vane’s thugs would never look."
Vincent stood up, patting Sophie’s head gently. "You're a brilliant girl, Sophie."
"Did I help?" she asked proudly.
May you like
"You just handed me the weapon to destroy our enemies," Vincent said.
He turned to Tony and Frank. "Prep the chopper. Frank, you stay here with fifty men to guard Elena and Sophie. Tony, you and six men come with me to Wisconsin. If Victor Vane finds out about that cabin before we do, he gets that drive and buries his crimes forever."
