Chapter 6 - The Empty Bed
The sterile sheets of the hospital bed were pulled back neatly, showing no signs of a struggle.
Officer Natalie stood frozen in the center of the room, her heart pounding against her ribs.
She rushed to the open window and looked down at the alleyway three stories below.
There was nothing down there except a few discarded medical wrappers blowing in the wind.
The nurse rushed into the room, holding a small plastic cup and looking around in panic.
"Where is she?" Natalie demanded, grabbing the nurse by the shoulders.
"I... I don't know," the nurse stammered, terrified. "I left to get her scheduled evening dose just five minutes ago."
Natalie cursed loudly and pulled out her police radio to broadcast an immediate code amber alert.
Before she could press the transmit button, her personal cell phone rang in her pocket.
She pulled it out and saw a blocked, private number flashing across the bright screen.
She answered immediately, pressing the phone tightly against her ear.
"If you ever want to see the little girl alive again, Officer, stop digging into the credit union heist," a distorted voice warned.
"Who is this?" Natalie shouted, furious. "Where is Ashley?"
"She is with her father," the voice replied smoothly. "And if you bring the local police into this, both of them die."
The call disconnected with a sharp click, leaving only a dead dial tone humming in her ear.
Natalie realized that following department protocol would only result in the murder of an innocent father and child.
She needed an ally who was entirely outside the corrupt jurisdiction of the local police.
She remembered an old mentor of hers, a retired FBI special agent named Marcus Vance—no relation to the corrupt detective.
Marcus lived two towns over and had spent his entire career taking down local political and police syndicates.
She sprinted out of the hospital, jumped into her cruiser, and sped toward Marcus's secluded cabin.
The rain began to pour heavily once again, turning the winding mountain roads into slick, dangerous tracks.
When she finally pulled up to the cabin, the lights inside were blazing brightly.
She ran up the wooden steps and banged urgently on the heavy oak front door.
The door swung open, and Marcus stood there holding a steaming mug of coffee and a shotgun.
"Natalie?" Marcus said, surprised. "What on earth are you doing out here in this storm?"
"Marcus, I need your help," Natalie panted, rushing inside. "A massive criminal syndicate has framed an innocent man and kidnapped a sick little child."
Marcus listened intently as Natalie explained every single detail, from the 911 call to the explosion at the river.
When she finished, Marcus walked over to his desk, unlocked a heavy metal drawer, and pulled out a thick file.
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He tossed the file onto the wooden table in front of her, revealing that Detective Vance and the local mayor were on the syndicate's payroll.
"They didn't just frame Andrew Miller," Marcus revealed grimly. "They picked him because he discovered they were laundering money through the credit union."
