Chapter 7 - The Hostage Exchange
David and I stared at the tiny pink sock dangling from the aunt’s manicured fingers.
It was the exact same sock the baby had been wearing when I first rushed into the nursery.
Without a single word, David opened the heavy door of the limousine and pulled me inside with him.
The luxury car immediately sped away from the police precinct, driving toward the desolate outskirts of the city.
The aunt poured herself a glass of champagne from the minibar, smiling at our misery.
"Where is she?" David demanded, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles were completely white.
"She is currently boarding Mr. Vance's private jet," the aunt replied smoothly, taking a sip of her drink.
"But Vance isn't interested in raising a squalling infant, he only wanted her for her bone marrow."
I felt a violent wave of nausea hit my stomach.
"You're harvesting a newborn?" I whispered in absolute horror.
"Vance has a very rare blood disease, and your mother-in-law's little surrogate project provided the perfect genetic match," she explained carelessly.
David unbuckled his seatbelt, looking perfectly ready to snap his aunt's neck with his bare hands.
"Then why are you here?" David growled, restraining himself only for the sake of his daughter.
"Because my dear sister, your mother, decided she didn't want to share the ten million dollars with me," the aunt sneered.
Her face twisted into a mask of pure, vindictive greed.
"Evelyn locked me out of the offshore accounts this morning and left me to take the fall if the police dig deeper."
The aunt reached into her designer bag and pulled out a heavy, suppressed pistol.
"So, we are going to intercept Vance's plane before it leaves the private airstrip," the aunt ordered.
"You are going to get the baby, and I am going to empty Vance's portable safe."
The limousine turned down a broken gravel road, approaching a secluded, private airfield surrounded by tall pine trees.
A sleek Gulfstream jet sat on the tarmac, its engines already whining with incredible power.
"If you try to cross me, I will shoot you both and tell Vance you ambushed us," the aunt warned, chambering a round.
The car slammed to a halt right at the edge of the chain-link perimeter fence.
David kicked the car door open, sprinting toward the jet before the vehicle had completely stopped.
I ran right behind him, ignoring the sharp pain radiating from my injured collarbone.
We reached the base of the metal boarding stairs just as the cabin door began to close.
David wedged his shoulder into the gap, forcefully prying the heavy door back open with a guttural scream.
We spilled into the luxurious cabin, completely ready to fight Vance to the death.
But the cabin was entirely empty, except for a single black briefcase sitting on a leather seat.
May you like
And written on the briefcase in fresh, dripping red blood were three words.
"Look behind you."
