When I Vanished, the Don Went Mad
In 1978 Chicago, Evelyn Hart—a woman with supernatural abilities—was rescued from pursuers by Adrian Moretti, the heir to the Moretti family; the two quickly fell in love. To stay by his side as his wife, she turned down the secret government "Oracle Project" and accepted medication to suppress her powers. Later, when the Moretti family doctor diagnosed two successive pregnancies as involving severe fetal deformities, she tearfully terminated both, blaming her own anomalous physiology. During an ambush on the family, she took a bullet meant for Adrian; while he survived, he suffered a spinal injury that left him wheelchair-bound. A subsequent surgery for a third "deformed fetus" rendered her permanently infertile. Faced with family humiliation, Adrian publicly banished the subordinate who had insulted her, placed the Moretti family ring on her finger, kissed her, and declared her the only *Donna* he recognized. Evelyn became convinced that he was willing to forgo an heir for her sake.She cared for the paralyzed Adrian for nearly fifty years, managing the family affairs and looking after Elena—the widow of Adrian’s late brother—and their "nephew," Nick. It was only after Adrian’s de
