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Casey’s brows rose. “Why would a grad student generate that level of interest?”
“Because Lina’s father, Joseph Brando, is a New York City assemblyman who’s running for the US House of Representatives. The primaries are next week. The predictions are that he’s a shoo-in to win, both the primary and the general election.”
Awareness dawned in Casey’s eyes. “That’s why the name Brando seemed familiar. I thought it was because I associated it with Marlon Brando. But now, I realize I must have read something about the upcoming elections that mentioned his name. What did the articles say about Lina?”
“The basics, plus a bunch of family stuff that I need to review. There were a few great photos with her father. She’s quoted as saying she’s ready to jump in with both feet to support her father’s campaign. From what I’ve already read, it’s clear that she and her folks are close. I’m going to turn my attention to Joseph. It can’t hurt to be armed with knowledge before we decide to contact him. He’s a powerful man and needs to be approached with care.”
“Absolutely.” Casey nodded. “Anything we learn will ease our way into that conversation. The timing is good. Lina’s parents will be consumed with the upcoming primaries. We’ll call them the following week. I’m hoping by then we’ll have more data at our disposal.”
“Count on it.”
Casey’s cell phone rang again, and once again, she glanced down at the number. “It’s Patrick.” She repeated the process that she had when Emma called, placing her iPhone on the table, speaker button engaged.
“Hi, Patrick. You’ve got me, Claire, and Ryan. Is Marc with you?”
“Yup,” Marc replied. “We’re finished. We booked an earlier flight home.”
“Good. Patrick, how did it go?”
Patrick sighed deeply. “Painfully. The Muranos were floored. Nora Murano sobbed as if her heart would break. I almost broke down and cried with her.”
“The Russos were heartbroken, too,” Claire said.
“Tell us what they knew and what they didn’t know, and whether or not you believe them.” Casey didn’t want to relive the emotions. She wanted to get to the facts. It was the only way they could help their clients.
Patrick relayed a story that was similar to the one Casey and Claire had experienced. Shock and pain. Reluctant sharing of information and admitting how little they actually knew about the details of the adoption—just the sheer joy of having the precious child they’d always wanted. Same rules and conditions as Gia’s parents had been given.
“Were they assigned Minneapolis as their new home?”
“They were,” Patrick replied. “And they were told never to visit Bozeman or Manhattan because—”
“Because the anonymous father lived or worked in those places,” Casey finished for him.
“Exactly.”
“What about Dani’s birth? Was she a preemie?”
“Actually, she was a week late in her arrival.”
“Interesting. Gia was premature.” Casey processed that bit of data. “What about adoption papers?”
Again, Patrick gave them a report that was a mirror image of their own.
“They shared the few documents they did have with me. I took photos.”
“Send them to me.” Ryan jumped in. “Casey and Claire sent me photos of Gia’s papers. I want to compare the two and work with what I’ve got.”
“Will do.”
“How did Dani take it when you called her?” Claire asked softly, in a voice that said she already knew the answer to her question.
“She fell apart. I told her only the basics, but I assured her that her parents loved her deeply and that they were waiting to hear from her. They understood why she was in New York, but they plan to fly here to be part of this. They won’t venture into Manhattan. They’ll fly to Westchester County Airport and go straight to Rye.”
“I can’t blame them for coming,” Casey murmured. “The only thing worse than hearing about this is not being with their daughter to share it. We’re going to have to up security, Patrick. I have a feeling that the Muranos and the Russos are going to want to meet, my guess is at the Russos’ house. Gia and Dani are being watched. This can only up the danger.”
“Already being arranged,” Patrick responded. “One of my guys will be meeting the Muranos at the airport and driving them to Rye. No taxis or Ubers. Too much risk.”
“Smart move. Also, I’m going to need one or two of your guys glued to
