Chapter 13
Sarah’ s hands shook as she dialed the hospital.
‘Dr. Ramirez, please.”
She had to get Lily out. Now.
Lily was stable enough for a brief discharge before the scheduled
transplant. She’ d checked that yesterday, in her previous life.
“Dr. Ramirez, this is Sarah Miller, Lily’ s mother. I … I need to take Lily
for a second opinion. I’m withdrawing her for a few hours.”
A brief argument, some carefully constructed lies about a specialist in
another city.
Reluctantly, the hospital agreed.
She raced to Lily’ s side, her heart pounding.
“Mommy? Where are we going?” Lily asked, her eyes wide.
“Mommy’s taking you on an adventure, sweetie,” Sarah said, trying to
keep her voice light, cheerful.
She bundled Lily up and practically ran out of the hospital.
At the bus station, she bought two one-way tickets to a small, remote
town she vaguely remembered from a travel brochure.
A place where no one would know them.
A place where Ethan Hayes couldn’t find them.
Ethan’ s mind was a whirlwind.
He called Sarah’ s phone.
Straight to voicemail. Her phone was off. Just like before.
He raced to the children’s hospital.
The nurses at the pediatric ward looked surprised to see him.
“Mr. Hayes? Are you looking for Lily Miller?”
“Yes! Where is she? Where is Sarah?”
“Oh, Mrs. Miller checked Lily out about an hour ago. Said something
about a second opinion.”
Gone.
Sarah was gone.
With Lily.
He drove to the penthouse, his tires screeching.
He burst into Sarah’ s small staff room.
Empty.
Her few belongings, gone.
On the floor, half-hidden under the narrow bed, lay a single, crumpled
photograph.
A photo of him and Sarah.
From their college days.
Laughing. Happy.
Before everything.
She must have dropped it in her haste.
He sank onto the bed, the photo clutched in his hand.
She was running from him.
Of course, she was running from him.
After everything he had done to her, why wouldn’t she?
The pain was a physical ache in his chest, sharp and suffocating.
He had to find her.
He pulled out his phone, his fingers flying across the screen.
He called his security chief, a man named Marcus, known for his
efficiency and discretion.
“Marcus. Sarah Miller. And her daughter, Lily. Find them. Now.”
His voice was raw, urgent.
“High priority. Highest priority. Spare no expense.”
A frantic, city-wide search began.
His resources were vast. His reach, extensive.
News of a massive reward for information on their whereabouts spread
like wildfire through the city’s undercurrents.
Every private investigator, every informant, every desperate soul looking
for a payday, was now looking for Sarah and Lily.
Olivia, still fuming in her own hospital room, recovering from her
“minor ailment” and Ethan’ s abrupt departure, saw the news alerts
pinging on her phone.
“CEO Ethan Hayes offers substantial reward for information on missing
woman, Sarah Miller, and child.”
Sarah Miller.
That name again.
And a child?
Ethan’ s child?
A wave of jealous rage, hot and consuming, washed over Olivia.
She threw her phone across the room. It shattered against the wall.
“Sarah!” she screamed. “It’s always Sarah!”