Chapter 2 - The Hospital Hunter
The realization that Derek was inside the building sent a sharp spike of pure terror through my veins.
I frantically ripped the intravenous needle out of my arm, ignoring the sudden sting of pain.
"We have to leave this room immediately," I whispered to Elena while grabbing my winter coat.
"If he finds me in here, he will never let me make it to the police station to testify."
Elena quickly peeked through the small glass window of the heavy wooden door.
"There is a service elevator at the end of the hallway that leads directly to the underground parking garage," she suggested.
We slipped out of the room silently, avoiding the gaze of the busy overnight nursing staff.
My bare feet slapped softly against the cold linoleum floor as we sprinted down the sterile corridor.
Just as we reached the heavy metal doors of the service elevator, the digital floor indicator chimed loudly.
The doors slid open to reveal a massive janitorial cart, but the carriage was otherwise entirely empty.
We stepped inside the elevator and Elena quickly pressed the button for the lowest parking level.
"He must have used his corporate connections to track your emergency admission records," Elena deduced.
"He has powerful friends on the hospital board who would gladly leak my location for a bribe," I agreed.
The elevator jolted to a halt in the dark, damp concrete basement of the medical facility.
I clutched my encrypted laptop tightly to my chest as we stepped out into the freezing underground air.
Elena unlocked her sleek black sedan from across the lot, the headlights flashing brightly in the shadows.
"Get in the passenger seat and keep your head down," my attorney ordered with fierce determination.
Before I could even reach for the door handle, a towering figure stepped out from behind a concrete pillar.
Derek was wearing a tailored suit, looking perfectly calm and incredibly dangerous under the flickering fluorescent lights.
"You always were a highly predictable woman," my husband mocked with a cruel, twisting smile.
Elena stepped bravely in front of me, shielding my trembling body from his menacing presence.
"Stay away from her, Derek, or I will scream for the hospital security guards," Elena threatened loudly.
Derek simply laughed, a dark and hollow sound that echoed terrifyingly against the concrete walls.
"The security guards work for me now, Elena," he boasted arrogantly.
He pulled a folded legal document from his breast pocket and waved it in the air like a victory flag.
"I didn't come here to hurt my beloved wife," he lied smoothly.
"I came here to personally deliver this emergency court order signed by Judge Harrison ten minutes ago."
Derek unfolded the paper and held it up to the dim light so we could clearly see the official judicial seal.
"This document legally declares my wife to be mentally incompetent and a severe danger to herself."
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He took a slow, menacing step toward us with a look of absolute triumph in his eyes.
"It grants me full medical and financial conservatorship over her entire life, effective immediately."
