Chapter 1 - The Lobby
Lucas stood frozen as the ambulance doors swung open into the cold Chicago night.
His mother, Margaret, stood perfectly still under the harsh fluorescent lights of the building’s entrance.
Beside her was Richard, his cousin and the family’s lead attorney.
Richard was holding a thick manila folder stamped with the seal of the state court.
Lucas felt a violent surge of anger replace the cold fear in his chest.
He stepped out of the elevator, holding Emma’s trembling hand as the paramedics rolled her stretcher forward.
Margaret did not look at her son.
Her sharp, calculating eyes were locked entirely on Emma’s swollen stomach.
"You have no business being here," Lucas growled, stepping between his mother and the stretcher.
Richard offered his usual, sickeningly polite smile.
"We are here for the baby, Lucas," Richard said smoothly.
He held up the manila folder and tapped the thick paper with his index finger.
"As per the medical proxy you signed last month, Margaret has full medical authority if Emma becomes incapacitated."
Lucas felt the blood drain completely from his face.
"I never signed a proxy," Lucas snarled, stepping closer to his cousin.
"The notary seal says otherwise," Richard replied without blinking.
A paramedic looked back and forth between the wealthy men, clearly unsure of who to obey.
Margaret finally stepped forward, her expensive perfume filling the cold air.
"Take her to Chicago General," Margaret ordered the paramedic, ignoring Lucas entirely.
"Dr. Vance is waiting in the private wing to induce labor."
Emma let out a terrified sob and gripped Lucas’s jacket so hard her knuckles turned white.
"They want to take him out early," Emma cried frantically.
Lucas realized with absolute horror that his family had engineered this entire medical emergency.
He pushed Richard aside violently and climbed into the back of the ambulance.
"Drive to Lakeshore Hospital right now," Lucas roared at the driver.
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But Richard simply pulled out his phone and made a single phone call.
The ambulance driver looked at a message on his dashboard screen, turned off the engine, and stepped out of the vehicle.
