Chapter 8

The red warning light above the operating room finally clicked off. The heavy automatic doors slid open.

Heidi walked into the hallway. She pulled off her blood-spattered surgical mask, revealing her pale, exhausted face.

Christian immediately stepped forward. The Page family executives behind him held their breath.

Heidi looked at Christian's tense jawline. "The surgery was a complete success. He is stable."

A collective sigh of relief echoed down the corridor. Executives hugged each other.

The hard lines around Christian's eyes softened. He looked at Heidi with a complex mix of deep gratitude and intense awe.

He stepped closer and held out his right hand. "The Page family owes you a debt we cannot repay, Doctor."

Heidi looked down at his large, calloused hand. Her mind flashed to the hospital room four years ago. The hand that signed her death away.

She kept her hands shoved deep inside her white coat pockets.

"It's a transaction, Mr. Page," she said coldly. "Pay my invoice."

Christian's hand hung in the air. He slowly lowered it. He wasn't angry. He was completely captivated by her ice-cold demeanor.

At that exact moment, a strange vibration buzzed against Heidi's thigh.

It wasn't a normal phone call. It was coming from the encrypted device in her right pocket.

Buzz-buzz-buzz. Buuuzz-buuuzz-buuuzz. Buzz-buzz-buzz.

Three short. Three long. Three short. SOS.

Heidi's heart stopped dead in her chest. It was the emergency beacon she had built for Caleb.

She immediately turned her back to Christian. She pulled the device out. The screen flashed a string of code. Her brain translated it in half a second.

WE ARE TAKEN.

A violent chill shot up Heidi's spine. Her pupils contracted to pinpricks. Her fingernails dug so hard into the metal casing of the phone that her skin tore.

Christian's eyes narrowed. He saw the muscles in her back instantly lock up. He saw the sudden, ragged shift in her breathing.

He took a step toward her. "Doctor? Is there a problem? I have resources-"

Heidi sucked in a sharp breath. She violently shoved the terror of a mother deep down into her gut. When she turned around, her face was a blank wall of ice.

"No," she lied smoothly. "Just an emergency consult at another hospital."

Before Christian could say another word, Heidi ripped off her white coat. She threw it at a passing nurse and broke into a run toward the elevators.

The second the elevator doors closed, her legs shook. She pulled out her phone and dialed her brother Iain's encrypted line.

"Activate the Sky Eye system," Heidi hissed, her voice trembling with pure murder. "Track Caleb's signal. Now."

Ten seconds later, Iain's voice came through. "Queens. Abandoned industrial park."

Heidi sprinted out of the hospital lobby. She ripped open the door to her Range Rover and slammed her foot on the gas. The heavy SUV roared down the Manhattan streets, blowing through three red lights.

Back in the hospital corridor, Christian stared at the closed elevator doors. His eyes were dark and calculating.

She was lying. The look in her eyes wasn't about a medical consult. It was the look of a cornered, violent animal.

Christian turned to his assistant. "Pull the hospital security feeds. Track her car. I want to know exactly where she is going."

The chase was on.