Chapter 7 - The Midnight Drive
Roman felt a sickening wave of pure rage wash over his entire body.
He hung up the phone and looked at Claire, who was staring at him with terrified eyes.
"They have men at Lily's hospital," Roman told her gently, refusing to hide the truth.
Claire let out a choked sob, her legs completely giving out beneath her.
Roman caught her and carried her directly to the heavily armored SUV parked in the back of the garage.
"We are going to get her back, Claire, I swear it on my life," he promised fiercely.
He strapped her into the passenger seat and turned the heavy ignition, the massive engine roaring to life.
He engaged the four-wheel drive and smashed the vehicle straight through the wooden garage doors.
They tore onto the main highway, battling the relentless, blinding snowstorm blowing off the Atlantic.
The drive to Connecticut usually took two hours, but Roman pushed the heavy armored vehicle to its absolute limits.
The silence inside the cabin was heavy, broken only by the aggressive sweeping of the windshield wipers.
"Why are you risking everything to help me?" Claire finally asked, her voice shaking with fear.
Roman gripped the leather steering wheel tightly, his knuckles turning stark white.
"Because for the first time in my miserable life, I found someone worth protecting," he admitted softly.
Claire looked at his handsome, hardened profile, a warm flush creeping into her freezing cheeks despite the terror.
They finally arrived at the Harbor Ridge Rehabilitation Center just as the storm reached its violent peak.
The massive, multi-story medical facility was completely dark, swallowed entirely by the blackout.
Roman pulled his weapon and kicked the heavy glass front doors open.
They found the overnight nursing staff tied up securely in the lobby, terrified but physically unharmed.
Roman cut their bonds and demanded to know which room belonged to Lily Bennett.
"Room 412, on the top floor," the head nurse cried hysterically.
Roman and Claire sprinted up the dark stairwell, their flashlights cutting through the eerie blackness.
They burst into room 412, weapons drawn and ready for a brutal fight.
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The hospital bed was completely empty, the sheets torn away and thrown on the floor.
Sitting calmly in the corner chair, holding a silver handgun, was Vivian.
