Chapter 6 - The Brother's Keeper
Downstairs in the master suite, I couldn't sit still.
Even with the bandages tight against my back and the lingering throbbing in my knees, the thought of Leo sitting alone in that hospital room made my blood run cold. I had pulled my phone from my apron pocket—the screen cracked, the casing stained with wine—and dialed the pediatric ICU desk.
"Saint Jude Children's Hospital, Pediatric ICU," the nurse answered.
"Hi, this is Amara Johnson," I said quickly, my voice trembling. "I'm calling to check on Leo Johnson in room 412. Is his vitals stable?"
There was a long, strange pause on the other end of the line.
"Miss Johnson?" the nurse’s voice dropped to a low, anxious whisper. "Where are you right now?"
"I'm... I'm out on an assignment. What's wrong? Is Leo okay?!"
"Miss Johnson, two men in dark suits arrived twenty minutes ago claiming to be representatives of your estate. They presented paperwork requesting Leo’s immediate transfer to a county facility in Newark. Dr. Vance, the attending surgeon, said the transfer order came directly from the hospital board!"
My heart stopped. The phone nearly slipped from my fingers. "No! No, do not let them touch him! He can't be moved! His heart valve is failing!"
"I’m trying to delay them, but they have legal authorization—"
The door to my suite flew open.
Daniel walked in, his face dark, his fists clenched at his sides. He took one look at my terrified face and knew immediately that I already knew.
"They're at the hospital," I sobbed, dropping the phone onto the bed. "Daniel... Victoria... she's taking Leo!"
Daniel moved instantly. He crossed the room, grabbing a heavy black leather coat from the closet and wrapping it around my shoulders. "They aren't taking anyone. Vance, Miller—get the cars!"
Two tall, muscular men dressed in dark tactical suits stepped out from the shadows of the hallway—the Hastings family’s elite private security detail.
"We have three minutes before Victoria’s men try to move him," Daniel said, his voice cold and precise as he double-checked a heavy silver pocket watch. "Cruz, override the traffic light system along Highway 15. I want a green wave all the way to Saint Jude's."
"Understood, boss," a voice echoed through Daniel's earpiece.
Eleanor stepped out into the hallway, her face set in lines of iron determination. She handed Daniel a small, heavy silver key attached to a velvet ribbon. "Take my personal transport. And Daniel... bring my great-grandson home."
We took the private elevator down to the underground garage, where a sleek, armored black SUV was idling, its engine rumbling like a sleeping beast. Daniel slid into the driver's seat, pulled me into the passenger side, and slammed his foot on the accelerator.
The heavy SUV roared out of the subterranean garage, tearing through the iron gates of the estate and launching onto the rain-slicked highway at over a hundred miles per hour.
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I gripped the dashboard, my heart hammering against my ribs. "Daniel... why is Victoria doing this? Why does she hate me so much?"
Daniel kept his eyes locked on the road, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. "Because Victoria’s family isn't just broke, Lily... they're desperate. And twenty years ago, her father was the one who arranged your kidnapping."
