Chapter 8 - CELINA'S FINAL OFFER
Luciano refused to meet Celina alone.
He forwarded the message to his lawyer and arranged a meeting at a secure office with independent witnesses present.
Celina arrived wearing dark glasses and carrying a thick folder.
She looked exhausted.
“Adrian has lost control of the situation,” she said.
“You helped him create it.”
“I know.”
Luciano waited.
Celina opened the folder.
Inside were emails, draft agreements, and financial records showing Adrian had promised to pay her if she secured temporary control over the estate's administration.
The proposed payment was substantial.
Luciano felt his stomach turn.
“You were going to use my daughter's inheritance to enrich yourself.”
“I was desperate.”
“You had a home. You had a future. You had every opportunity to build a life with us.”
“Ellie would never have accepted me.”
“She was six. She needed kindness, not a competition.”
Celina looked down.
For once, she didn't argue.
She admitted that Adrian had convinced her the trust could be restructured once she became temporary administrator. He promised she could repay her debts and establish financial security.
When she hesitated, he reminded her how much Luciano traveled and how easily he could be portrayed as unable to manage the estate.
“And the residential facility?” Luciano asked.
“I thought it would be temporary.”
“You signed a forged authorization.”
“I know.”
“You used a false medical assessment.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I know.”
Luciano felt no satisfaction in hearing her admit it.
He wanted to understand how a person could look at a frightened child and see an obstacle.
“Why did you tell Ellie she was going to an orphanage?”
Celina's face crumpled.
“Because I wanted her to stop fighting me.”
“She wasn't fighting you. She was trying to stay home.”
Celina covered her face.
The room fell silent.
Finally, she pushed the folder across the table.
“These records can help prove Adrian was directing the plan. I'll cooperate with the investigation.”
Luciano didn't touch the folder.
“You'll give the evidence to the authorities. They will determine what happened.”
She nodded.
Before leaving, she paused at the door.
“There's something else. Adrian has a copy of the original guardianship petition. He plans to submit it with a claim that you're emotionally unstable.”
Luciano's expression hardened.
“On what evidence?”
Celina looked at him.
“He says he'll use the public cancellation of the wedding and your reaction to the forged documents.”
Luciano understood.
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Adrian was preparing to turn the father's attempt to protect his daughter into evidence against him.
And if the court believed the allegations, Ellie could be placed at the center of a legal battle she was too young to understand.
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