Chapter 4 - The Empty Room
I drove my truck at eighty miles an hour down the dark, twisting country roads.
The address Vanessa gave me was for a massive, isolated estate surrounded by tall iron fences.
It looked more like a high-security prison than a medical clinic.
I parked my truck behind a thick cluster of trees to avoid the security cameras.
I grabbed a heavy steel tire iron from my backseat and approached the perimeter.
The heavy gate was slightly open, which made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
I slipped inside the courtyard and pressed my back against the cold stone wall.
There were no guards outside, and the front doors were completely unlocked.
I stepped into the dim, sterile hallway, gripping the tire iron tightly in my sweaty hands.
The reception desk was completely abandoned.
A single computer monitor cast a pale blue light across the scattered medical files on the floor.
I rushed down the hallway, checking the room numbers against the note Vanessa had given me.
Room 4B was at the very end of the corridor, cloaked in heavy shadows.
I pushed the heavy door open and immediately reached for the light switch.
The fluorescent bulbs flickered to life, revealing a completely empty hospital bed.
The leather restraints hanging off the side of the bed were torn apart.
My heart sank into my stomach as I stepped further into the cold room.
There was a fresh, smeared bloody handprint on the white tiled wall near the window.
A broken syringe lay violently crushed on the floor beneath the handprint.
They had already moved her, and she had clearly fought back with everything she had.
I fell to my knees in absolute despair, realizing I was entirely too late.
Then, I heard the unmistakable click of a gun hammer being pulled back.
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I froze completely as the cold metal barrel pressed firmly against the back of my skull.
"Drop the metal bar and put your hands behind your head," a deep voice commanded from the shadows.
