Chapter 1 - The Breach
The rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor was the only sound keeping me sane.
Lena was stable, but her tiny body was fighting a massive infection.
I gently pulled the thermal blanket over her fragile, bruised shoulders.
Emmy sat huddled in the corner chair, her knees pulled tightly to her chest.
She refused to let go of a torn, filthy teddy bear we had found in the trauma bay.
Detective Miller stepped into the sterile room, his expression darker than the winter night outside.
"We have a perimeter set up around the hospital," he said softly.
"You really think he would come here?" I asked, checking Lena's IV line.
"Predators don't like losing their prey, Dr. Rowan," he replied.
A sudden chill swept through the warm pediatric ward.
I looked at Emmy, whose eyes were suddenly wide with sheer terror.
She was staring intensely at the reflection in the observation window.
The glass mirrored the desolate hallway just outside our door.
"He's here," she whispered, her voice trembling uncontrollably.
Before I could turn around, the entire hospital plunged into absolute darkness.
The heavy silence was shattered by the sound of shattering glass from the lobby.
Emergency generators groaned, casting a sickly red glow down the corridors.
"Lock the door and do not make a sound," Miller ordered, drawing his gun.
He slipped out into the hallway, leaving us alone in the crimson shadows.
I grabbed a scalpel from the medical tray, my heart pounding against my ribs.
Footsteps echoed softly on the linoleum floor, moving slowly toward our room.
Emmy clamped her hands over her mouth to muffle her own sobbing.
The doorknob began to turn, squeaking against the lock.
May you like
A deep, raspy voice whispered through the crack beneath the door.
"I told you never to leave the basement, little bird."
