Chapter 1 - The First Thread
Rachel stood up and walked toward the trauma wing.
Daniel Moretti was standing outside his sister’s room, a phone pressed to his ear.
He ended the call without a word when Rachel approached.
“You’re the one who stopped the monitor.”
His voice was deep, lacking any inflection that might suggest gratitude or anger.
“Yes, sir.”
“Why?”
Rachel held up the printouts.
“Because this machine didn't arrive when it was supposed to.”
Daniel took the papers.
He scanned the circled timestamps.
The receiving log showed 8:15 a.m.
The carrier record claimed departure at 2:10 p.m.
“Someone falsified the routing manifest,” Daniel said, almost to himself.
“And the serial numbers on the machines are slightly off,” Rachel added.
“They look real, but the prefix doesn't match the manufacturer’s database.”
Daniel looked at her for the first time, truly looking.
He noticed the slight tremble in her hands, the ink stain on her cuff, and the fierce, protective intelligence in her eyes.
“You’re very observant, Ms. Morgan.”
“I’m just doing my job.”
Daniel handed the papers back to his men.
“Find out who signed for this delivery at the port.”
He turned back to Rachel.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Rachel turned to leave, anxious to escape the crushing intensity of his presence.
“Ms. Morgan.”
She stopped.
“My sister almost died today because of a faulty piece of equipment that bore my company's name.”
Daniel stepped closer, lowering his voice so only she could hear.
“I need to know exactly how deep this goes inside this hospital.”
Rachel swallowed hard.
“I can’t give you access to our internal systems.”
“I don't need access. I need someone on the inside I can trust.”
“Why me?”
“Because you didn't look away.”
Daniel reached into his pocket and handed her a sleek, black business card.
“Call me if you find anything else.”
Rachel took the card, the embossed gold lettering feeling heavy in her palm.
She walked back to her desk, her heart hammering against her ribs.
When she sat down, Dennis was waiting.
“What did he want?”
“He just wanted to say thank you.”
Dennis scoffed.
“Daniel Moretti doesn't just say thank you. He expects favors.”
“It was nothing, Dennis.”
Rachel opened her email, desperate for a distraction.
There was a new message from a sender she didn't recognize.
The subject line was blank.
She clicked it open.
May you like
A single sentence appeared on the screen.
“Stop looking, or you’ll be the next one in a hospital bed.”
