Chapter 30
Elora
"Leo's with me."
The voice on the other end had been run through a distortion filter, scraping against my ear like a rusted blade.
I gripped the phone. My fingertips went ice cold.
"What did you say?"
"Don't play dumb, Elora." The person gave a low laugh. "Your son's right here with me. He's being good. Just keeps asking for his mama."
I shot up from the worktable. My knee slammed into the corner, sending a glass beaker rolling off the edge. It shattered into vicious shards across the floor.
No. Impossible. Lucien had been watching him like a hawk lately. With his resources, there was no way Leo could've been taken.
I forced myself to stay calm. "Put Leo on. What did he draw at preschool last week?"
Three seconds of silence. Then Leo's voice came through, holding back tears. "Mommy... I drew... you and me and our snowman..."
It was Leo. That snowman—we'd built it together in the yard last week. Only the two of us knew about it.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. A voice message from Mary. I didn't open it. No time for anyone else's words. I had to find Leo. That message stayed trapped in the corner of my screen, a tiny unread blue dot, locked away in the dark.
The distorted voice came back. "Cash. One million. Come alone. Forty minutes. Address incoming."
"If I find out you brought anyone, the first thing you'll hear is your son screaming."
The call ended. A text popped up. —Old Mining Road, Black Pine Ridge abandoned lookout.
I grabbed the black duffel bag from under the counter, stuffed in the store's emergency cash from the safe and Leo's six months of living expenses, then swept the bills from the drawer into the bag—barely two hundred thousand total.
As I peeled out onto Main Street, I instinctively glanced at Rocco's usual spot. Empty. Lucien never let Rocco leave that position for more than ten minutes unless something had gone wrong. I dialed Lucien's number. One ring, then it cut off. Called again—out of service area.
The abandoned lookout sat on the north side of Black Pine Ridge, an old mining observation post. After the mine shut down, all that remained was a rotting wooden platform and a few buildings sealed with rusted sheet metal.
The closer I got, the weaker the signal. I parked by a broken guardrail and grabbed the duffel. Dead silence everywhere.
"Leo!"
My voice crashed against the mountainside and echoed back empty. No answer. I walked forward, my shoes crunching through a thin layer of snow.
"I brought the money!" I raised my voice. "You want money, I've got it! Give me my son!"
A crow launched itself from the lookout tower, black wings cutting across the gray-white sky.
My heart sank. Something was wrong. If they really had Leo, why wasn't anyone here to collect?
I turned back toward the car. Sharp pain exploded at the base of my skull.
The trees stretched into elongated shadows. The mountain road tilted. Even the snow beneath my feet seemed to flow in slow motion.
"Who—"
Footsteps behind me. Two men. Maybe three.
I reached for my phone, but my fingers wouldn't obey. Someone clamped down on my shoulder. I drove my elbow back with everything I had. Their grip loosened slightly. I ran. Made it a few steps before my knees slammed into the ground.
"Leo..." I pressed my hands into the snow, nails digging into frozen mud. "Give Leo back to me..."
A pair of black boots stopped in my line of sight.
"She's tougher than the file said."
"Cut the chatter. Move her."
When I woke up, my mouth was full of bitterness.
My eyes flew open. Overhead surgical lights glared down, stabbing into my vision. After a moment of blur, I made out a gray-white ceiling, exposed pipes, and rows of metal equipment cabinets lining the walls.
My wrists were locked to either side of the operating table. My ankles too, strapped down with thick leather restraints.
More straps crossed my chest, abdomen, and thighs. The leather bit into my skin so tight I could barely breathe.
I tried to struggle. The metal table gave a hollow clang. Hot pain shot through my wrists.
"Let me go!"
My voice came out hoarse. No response.
I thrashed against my restraints, but my limbs were weak as overcooked noodles. Even lifting my head took monumental effort.
I forced myself to remember everything before I passed out.
They'd lied. Leo was never in their hands.
"Leo..." I gasped, tears streaming down without warning. "What did you do to him?"
The sound of a cane striking the floor echoed from outside. Slow. Deliberate. Like death deliberately matching my heartbeat as it approached.
The heavy iron door swung inward. A man in a charcoal suit stepped inside.
Gray hair. Aged face. Left hand gripping a black snake-headed cane. The metal serpent's mouth gaped open, red gemstones embedded in its eyes, throwing off an unsettling cold light as they caught the glare.
I stared at him. Recognized that face.
"Carlo..."
My chest heaved. Carlo stopped beside the operating table, tilting his head down to look at me.
"Long time, Elora."
"Where's Leo?"
"Don't be in such a hurry." Carlo smiled faintly. "Let's talk about something else first."
"I asked you where Leo is!"
Carlo raised his cane, the snake's head tapping lightly under my chin.
"Relax. He's safe. For now."
"For now?"
"As long as you cooperate, he'll stay that way."
I glared at him. "You lured me here just to kidnap Leo?"
"Leo?" Carlo laughed. "No, sweetheart. I just need to borrow something from you."
"What?"
Carlo didn't answer right away. He simply extended one finger and jabbed it hard against my chest. I didn't understand, but I knew I couldn't just lie here and wait to die.
"Let me go! You monster!" I spat through clenched teeth. "Lucien won't let you get away with this!"
The smile drained from Carlo's face.
"You know what I hate most about you?" Carlo's eyes turned bloodshot as he leaned in, cold hatred seeping from those cloudy pupils.
"Serena has loved him since they were children. You know how much she's suffered for him? How many medications she's taken? How many treatments she's endured? And you? You're just some outsider who barged in and stole him away with nothing but a pretty face and a body."
"Love?" I scoffed. "She got Natalie hurt. Forced me to run. You two turned other people's lives into toys. That's what you call love?"
Carlo raised the cane and brought it down hard on my shoulder. Pain exploded along the bone. I sucked in a sharp breath.
"Shut up." His eyes flashed with viciousness. He stopped talking and waved at someone behind him.
A man in a white coat wheeled in a metal cart. Rows of sealed syringes, several transparent vials, and a medical report clipped to a hard board.
I stared at that report. My chest seized.
"What is that?"
Carlo picked up the report, flipping through it methodically. "Serena's condition has deteriorated. She needs a new heart."
"What does that have to do with me?"
Carlo held the report in front of my face, pointing to the compatibility results.
"We searched for so long without finding a suitable donor. Just when I thought God was taking my daughter away, the test results landed on my desk."
His smile made my blood run cold.
"You and Serena. Almost a perfect match."
I stared at him, mind blank. When I finally processed it, I shook my head violently.
"No. That's impossible! You're insane!"
"It's the world that's insane." Carlo set the report back on the cart. "People without value only exist as spare parts."
"Let me go! You can't do this! This is murder!" I thrashed wildly. The straps cut into my skin. My wrists scraped raw. Warm blood ran down my arms.
The man in the white coat stood there expressionless. Carlo looked at me like I was a circus act.
"No cameras in here connected to the outside. Scream all you want. No one's coming."
He turned to the man.
"Prep the anesthetic."
The man walked to the cart, pulled on gloves, and picked up a clear syringe. Pale yellow liquid inside, gleaming cold under the lights.
"No!" I begged, sobbed. "Carlo, please! Let me go! Leo's just a baby! I'm all he has! You can't leave me here! He'll be scared! He'll think I abandoned him!"
"Elora, you should feel honored." Carlo's expression was flat. "Your heart will let Serena live. And your death will make Lucien suffer for the rest of his life."
"Carlo, please—"
"Begin."
The man raised the syringe. The needle moved slowly toward my skin.
I thought of Leo. The way he curled up when he slept. His mouth covered in frosting when he ate apple pie. That thing he said every night before bed—Mommy, stay with me tomorrow too.
Then I thought of Lucien. We'd only just cleared up the misunderstanding. I hadn't told him Leo was his son.
I couldn't die. Not like this.
But no matter how hard I fought, the needle pierced my skin.
My vision started to swim. I clung to Leo and Lucien's names with the last shreds of consciousness, watching the light blur and fade.
Darkness crashed down, dragging away the last bit of fight I had left.