Chapter 16 - THE FOUNDATION CHANGED ITS NAME
The report went public.
Predictably:
Headlines.
Old-family scandal.
Luxury assets.
Mafia ties.
Recovered wartime art.
People used every dramatic phrase possible.
Some accurate.
Some ridiculous.
I stopped reading after day two.
---
We returned five works.
Three claims remained disputed and went into independent review.
Four lacked enough evidence for restitution but received full provenance disclosures.
No secret destruction.
No rushed sales.
Transparency.
Slow.
Expensive.
Worth it.
---
Then I changed the foundation’s name.
It had originally been:
Vieira-Moretti Foundation for Cultural Restoration.
Useful.
Prestigious.
Heavy.
I renamed it:
The Lucia Project for Provenance and Restitution.
Elio stared at the paperwork.
“You named it after our child?”
“Not exactly.”
“It literally says Lucia.”
Fair.
---
He became serious.
“Why?”
“Because I want the work pointed forward.”
Not toward our fathers.
Not toward us.
Toward whoever came next.
---
When we told Lucia, she frowned.
“Do I own it?”
“No.”
“Then why my name?”
“Because you asked a good question.”
“What question?”
“If something was stolen, why not give it back?”
She nodded.
“That is a good question.”
May you like
Humility remained under development.
---
