Chapter 5 - The Unlikely Ally
I let the tire iron clatter loudly onto the sterile linoleum floor.
I slowly raised my hands and turned my head just an inch.
The man holding the gun was Detective Miller, the exact same cop who had arrested me at the wedding.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, my voice shaking with adrenaline.
Miller lowered his weapon slightly but kept his finger resting firmly on the trigger.
"I thought your story was completely crazy, but Ryan’s reaction at the precinct bothered me."
"He made too many phone calls to high-priced fixers while you were in the holding cell."
Miller stepped away and holstered his heavy service pistol.
"I followed you from the jail hoping you would lead me to the truth."
"It looks like you were actually telling the truth about your sister."
I pointed desperately at the bloody handprint on the pale wall.
"Ryan had his cleaner move her before I could get here."
"If we do not find out where they took her, he is going to kill her tonight."
Miller pulled out his police radio and tuned it to a secure, encrypted frequency.
"I ran a background check on Ryan's offshore properties while you were locked up."
"He owns a private, heavily guarded mansion on the edge of Lake Ray Hubbard."
"He just filed an emergency flight plan for a private seaplane departing from that exact lake in one hour."
I realized Ryan was planning to take Emily out of the country where we could never find her.
"What about Lily?" I asked, panic rising in my throat.
"He signed her out of the county child protective services an hour ago," Miller replied grimly.
We bolted out of the clinic and jumped into Miller's unmarked police cruiser.
He turned on the sirens and sped recklessly toward the lake house.
When we arrived, the massive mansion was completely dark and eerily silent.
We kicked open the front door and rushed straight up the stairs toward the master bedroom.
I pushed the heavy oak door open and turned on my flashlight to search for Lily.
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The room was completely empty, but a small digital timer was sitting on the nightstand.
The glowing red numbers were counting down from ten seconds.
