THE EMPTY HOSPITAL BED

Marco raised his gun, but before he could fire, one of Richard’s men slammed the butt of a rifle into Marco’s temple. He crumpled to the floor, unconscious.

I screamed, stepping backward, shielding Lucy behind my legs.

Richard Bellini closed the door casually, as if he were arriving for tea. He wore a tailored suit, but his eyes were frantic, deeply shadowed.

“Don’t make this difficult, Emma,” Richard said, walking slowly into the living room. “I just want the girl.”

“You can’t have her,” I said, grabbing a heavy brass candlestick from the mantle. It was a pathetic weapon against three guns, but I wasn’t going to let him touch her.

“You misunderstand,” Richard said, stopping five feet away. “I’m not here to hurt her. I’m here to fix my daughter’s mess before Luca burns our entire syndicate to the ground.”

He looked at Lucy. His expression softened in a way that made my skin crawl.

“You look just like her,” he whispered.

“Like who?” I demanded.

“Like Anna.” Richard dragged a hand over his face. “Ten years ago, my daughter got drunk. She crashed her car into Anna’s. Anna went into premature labor. My daughter was unharmed, but terrified of going to prison.”

“So you bought the doctors,” I said bitterly. “You stole one of her babies to keep her quiet.”

Richard laughed, a dry, humorless sound. “Stole a baby? Is that what Luca thinks?”

He reached into his breast pocket. I tightened my grip on the candlestick, but he only pulled out a heavy, men’s watch. The crystal was cracked. The leather strap was stained dark brown. Blood.

“This was Luca’s father’s watch,” Richard said. “Luca gave it to Anna when they fell in love. I took it from Anna’s apartment two days ago.”

“Why?”

“Because Anna didn’t have twins, Emma,” Richard said quietly.

I stared at him, my mind unable to process the words. “The hospital records... the photograph...”

“The photograph was altered. The records were faked,” Richard stepped closer. “Anna had one child that night. Lucy.”

“Then why were you at the delivery room?” I yelled.

“To switch the blood tests!” Richard snapped. “To prove my daughter wasn’t drunk! But when I got there, I realized Anna knew too much. I told Anna if she ever spoke to Luca again, I would kill her. I forced her into hiding.”

“Then why kidnap her tonight?”

Richard looked genuinely confused. “Kidnap her? I didn’t kidnap Anna. I’ve been looking for her since Tuesday. She ran.”

My blood ran cold. If Richard didn’t take Anna from the hospital tonight... who did?

A slow, terrifying realization crept over me.

“Vanessa,” I whispered.

Richard’s phone buzzed. He answered it on speaker.

Vanessa’s voice filled the room, cold and utterly devoid of humanity.