Chapter 2 - THE WOMAN WHO HELD MY SON
I had never felt fear the way I felt it that night.
Not when I nearly lost my first company.
Not when an investor threatened to destroy my reputation.
Not even when my father died.
This was different.
Someone had held my newborn son without my wife's permission.
And the woman I'd spent nine days betraying my marriage with appeared to be involved.
"Mrs. Pearl," I whispered, "tell me everything."
She lowered herself into the chair opposite my desk.
"Three days after Owen was born, a woman came to the hospital claiming she was a private nurse hired by you."
I stared.
"I never hired anyone."
"I know that now."
Mrs. Pearl folded her hands.
"She told the staff Mrs. Keaton needed extra help after her complications."
"What happened?"
"At first, nothing seemed unusual. Corinne was exhausted. The woman was polite. She knew your name, your address, and details about the nursery."
My stomach tightened.
"Then?"
"Corinne woke up and found the woman preparing to take Owen out of the room."
I stood abruptly.
"Take him where?"
"She claimed he needed another examination."
"Did he?"
"No."
I felt the room tilt.
Mrs. Pearl continued.
"Corinne asked for the pediatrician. The woman became nervous and left."
"What did the hospital do?"
"Security reviewed the incident. By the time they tried to locate her, she was gone."
I stared at the photograph.
The woman holding Owen wore dark blue scrubs.
A laminated identification badge hung from her pocket.
But the name was partly hidden.
"Why didn't Corinne call the police?"
"She did."
I closed my eyes.
Of course she did.
While I was drinking champagne beside a swimming pool, my wife had been reporting a possible attempt to take our child.
Mrs. Pearl's voice softened.
"She also called you."
I sat down.
Eleven missed calls.
Eleven chances to answer.
Eleven chances to be a husband.
A father.
A decent human being.
And every one of them had disappeared from my phone.
I looked at Mrs. Pearl.
"Where are they?"
"I promised not to tell you."
"Please."
She shook her head.
"Mr. Keaton, Mrs. Keaton didn't leave because she wanted to punish you."
"Then why?"
"Because she was frightened."
I stared at the photograph again.
Something bothered me.
The nurse's face looked familiar.
I'd seen her somewhere.
At a restaurant?
At a company party?
Then I remembered.
Six months earlier, Victor Hale had introduced me to a woman during a private investor meeting.
His sister.
Dr. Melissa Hale.
She worked in medical administration.
I looked closer.
The same dark hair.
The same sharp features.
The same small scar near her chin.
I grabbed my phone.
Mrs. Pearl stood.
"Who are you calling?"
"My attorney."
I forwarded the documents to my lawyer and asked him to help preserve the evidence and contact the investigating officers.
Then I opened an old photograph from Victor's birthday dinner.
Melissa stood beside him.
And Tessa stood beside Melissa.
All three smiling.
I felt sick.
This wasn't a coincidence.
It was a connection.
A deliberate one.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
It contained a photograph of Corinne pushing Owen's stroller along a quiet residential sidewalk.
The picture appeared to have been taken that afternoon.
May you like
Beneath it was a sentence.
YOUR WIFE IS SMART, GRANT. BUT SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHO HELPED HER ESCAPE.
