Chapter 18 - LUCA CHOOSES
Dominic refused to use Luca as evidence after the agency visit.
Bianca’s attorney wanted to.
So did Talia’s supporters.
Dominic shut it down.
“My son is not a demonstration.”
That decision mattered.
Instead, the family consultant created a gradual care plan.
Luca could see Talia twice a week while Dominic determined long-term arrangements.
Bianca had no unsupervised caregiving role until Dominic resolved trust.
Not because she was legally barred.
Because Dominic was the parent and no longer trusted her judgment.
Bianca moved into a hotel suite in Chicago.
She called daily.
Dominic answered half.
The conversations became increasingly raw.
“I admitted I lied about seeing her hurt him.”
“Yes.”
“I admitted gripping his wrist.”
“Yes.”
“What else do you want?”
“The reason you filed the agency complaint after knowing you did not witness abuse.”
“I told you. I believed she was dangerous.”
“Why?”
“She made me feel like I had no place.”
“That isn't danger.”
“To me it was.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
At least she was getting closer to truth.
Bianca continued:
“You don't understand what Talia did.”
“What?”
“She looked at me like she knew I wasn't his mother.”
“She knew you weren't.”
Silence.
“That isn't an insult.”
“It felt like one.”
“Why?”
Bianca broke.
“Because Gianna was dead and still had more of that house than I did.”
Dominic went quiet.
There.
The sentence nobody had allowed.
Gianna’s clothes gone.
Photographs reduced.
But memory everywhere.
Luca’s face.
Dominic’s grief.
Staff stories.
Bianca entered a family organized around absence.
She tried to defeat a dead woman.
Impossible.
Then Talia arrived as living proof that care could create belonging without title.
Also intolerable.
Dominic said:
“You needed everyone else to become smaller so you could feel permanent.”
Bianca cried.
“Maybe.”
It was the most honest word she had given him.
Dominic’s anger softened.
His decision did not.
“You still tried to destroy Talia’s career.”
“I was scared.”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“Fear explains behavior.”
He paused.
“It does not assign the cost to someone else.”
Bianca said nothing.
At the next Luca visit, Dominic stayed in the room.
Talia noticed.
“You don't have to.”
“I know.”
Luca sat between them with blocks.
For ten minutes, neither adult mentioned Bianca.
Then Dominic said:
“I want you back.”
Talia continued stacking.
“No.”
“You didn't let me finish.”
“I know the sentence.”
“As nanny.”
“No.”
“Why?”
She looked at him.
“Because the problem in your house wasn't one woman.”
His face hardened.
“Explain.”
“You had no independent caregiver grievance process.”
“We’re creating one.”
“Household staff could not report family members without going through family-controlled management.”
“Changing.”
“Your fiancée had edit access to my professional logs.”
“Removed.”
“Your name could end my career before anyone verified what happened.”
Dominic said nothing.
Talia continued:
“You’re fixing consequences after I paid for the design.”
The sentence landed.
Dominic nodded.
“What would you require?”
She had thought about it.
“Independent employment agreement through the agency.”
“Yes.”
“Professional logs cannot be edited by family members.”
“Yes.”
“Any complaint involving childcare triggers external review before reference statements go out.”
“Yes.”
“Paid suspension during review unless there’s probable immediate-risk evidence.”
Dominic raised an eyebrow.
“Expensive.”
“So is a false accusation.”
He almost smiled.
“Anything else?”
“Yes.”
“If Bianca returns to the house, I don't.”
Silence.
“That sounds personal.”
“It is.”
Talia did not pretend otherwise.
“I will not work under someone who tried to destroy my career.”
Dominic nodded slowly.
“Fair.”
He was not ready to decide about Bianca.
Talia was.
That difference meant the job remained empty.
And for once, Dominic did not try to solve discomfort by purchasing speed.
May you like
He let the answer stay no.
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