Chapter 3 - The Broken Window
Sarah shoved me toward the emergency exit at the back of the closet.
She told me to run and never come back to this hospital.
I burst through the metal door and sprinted down the concrete fire stairs.
I could hear heavy boots chasing me from two floors above.
I pushed through the ground floor exit and ran frantically to my parked car.
I locked the doors just as a tall man in a black suit slammed his fists against my window.
I stepped on the gas pedal and sped out of the hospital parking lot.
My mind was racing with absolute terror and confusion.
Why would my husband give our biological son to a complete stranger?
I drove to a quiet park and pulled out the burner phone I had stolen from Daniel.
I connected the phone to my laptop and ran a basic location tracking search.
The phone’s GPS history showed frequent visits to a dilapidated apartment complex on the east side of town.
I knew that had to be where Elena Ramos was hiding.
I drove across the city and parked three blocks away from the rundown building.
The neighborhood was filled with broken streetlights and boarded windows.
I found apartment number four and knocked softly on the peeling wooden door.
There was no answer, but I could hear a baby crying weakly inside.
I noticed the door lock was completely shattered, so I pushed it open.
The apartment was a total mess of overturned furniture and scattered clothes.
A woman was sitting on the floor in the corner, clutching a baby wrapped in a blue blanket.
She had dark bruises forming on her pale face and she looked absolutely terrified.
I held up my hands and softly told her that I was Daniel’s wife.
Elena’s eyes went wide and she pulled a silver switchblade from her pocket.
She pointed the sharp blade directly at my chest.
She screamed that my husband was a monster who had ruined her life.
I told her I just wanted to see the baby in her arms.
Elena hesitated and slowly pulled back the blue blanket.
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I looked down and saw a beautiful baby boy with my exact eye color.
Before I could even touch his tiny hand, a brick smashed violently through the front window.
