“No, I told him she might have gone home. He didn’t believe it.”
My hand closes slowly around the edge of the wall, the blood in my body turning cold.
The nurse listens, breathing too fast. “I don’t know what to do,” she whispers.
Then she says, “No. No, I didn’t tell him anything.”
I step into the corridor.
She sees me and freezes. The phone is still at her ear.
For one second neither of us moves. Her face drains of color so quickly it almost looks painful.
I hold out my hand. “Give me the phone.”
She doesn’t.
I take one step closer. “Now.”
Her fingers loosen.
I take the phone from her and put it to my ear.
There’s silence on the other end. Then a man’s voice, calm and unfamiliar, says, “Forget about Sienna.”
I don’t recognize him.
That makes it worse.
“Who is this?” I ask.
A soft laugh comes through the line. “Nobody you know.”
I look at the nurse. She’s crying now, silently, one hand pressed to her mouth.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask.
The man doesn’t hesitate. “Because I want to hurt you.”
Everything in me goes still. “If you touched her?—”
“She’s alive,” he says. “For now.”
I close my eyes for half a second, then open them again. “Where is she?”
“You’ll get the address in a moment. Come alone.”
“No.”
“Then she dies.” His voice stays calm, almost bored, and that calm tells me more than shouting would have. This man has planned enough of this to feel safe.
He continues, “No Yuri. No men. No police. If I see anyone with you, she won’t live long enough for you to apologize.”
My grip tightens around the phone.
Behind me, the nurse makes a small, broken sound.
The man says, “You wanted a family, Viktor. Let’s see what you’re willing to risk to keep it.”
