Chapter 4 - The Empty Nursery
I sprinted out of the police precinct and drove my car recklessly toward the hospital.
I completely ignored every speed limit and red light in the city.
When I finally reached the pediatric floor, I ran straight to the neonatal intensive care unit.
Noah's small plastic crib was completely empty.
The warm blankets were tossed aside, and the medical monitors were completely turned off.
A stern woman in a gray business suit stood near the empty crib holding a clipboard.
"Are you Ethan Miller?" the woman asked without a single ounce of empathy.
I demanded to know where she had taken my newborn son.
"I am a social worker with the state, and Noah has been placed in emergency protective custody," she stated coldly.
She explained that because my family was under active criminal investigation, I was deemed an unfit parent.
"You cannot do this, my wife is lying unconscious in the next wing!" I yelled furiously.
The social worker simply handed me a generic business card and told me to contact her legal department.
I felt my entire world collapsing into a million broken pieces.
I rushed down the hallway to Emily's room, desperately needing to see her face.
When I pushed open her door, a man in a perfectly tailored suit was standing over her bed.
He turned to face me, his cold blue eyes locking onto mine with terrifying intensity.
"You must be the pathetic warehouse worker who married my daughter," the man sneered.
I realized instantly that this man was Arthur Vance.
"Where is my mother, and what did you pay her to do?" I demanded, clenching my fists.
Arthur chuckled and adjusted his expensive silk tie.
"Your mother was very cheap to buy, but she served her purpose perfectly."
He explained that he had orchestrated the entire poisoning to prove I could not protect my family.
"By tomorrow morning, my expensive lawyers will grant me full, permanent custody of my grandson."
I lunged forward to attack him, but two massive bodyguards stepped out from the bathroom.
They violently shoved me against the wall, knocking the wind completely out of my lungs.
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Arthur leaned in close to my face and whispered a chilling warning.
"If you ever try to find the boy, I will have your mother kill Emily next time."
