\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you tell me where it hurts?\u201d She indicated the center of her abdomen.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid your father give you any medicine today?\u201d Olivia hesitated for a moment. Then she glanced over at Emma. Emma gave a single nod. Olivia whispered, \u201cHe said it was for my headaches.\u201d A sudden chill settled deep inside Daniel\u2019s chest. \u201cDid you actually have a headache?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d \u201cWhat did he tell you it was?\u201d Olivia swallowed hard. \u201cHe called it the blue medicine.\u201d Daniel cast a quick look toward the sealed syringe. Blue medicine.<\/i> The pharmacy log immediately came to mind. That prescription had been dispensed at 3:42 p.m.\u2014just thirty-five minutes prior to the girls walking into the station. Outside, Michael pounded the flat of his hand against the glass. \u201cOfficer Reed! My daughters need to come home!\u201d Daniel rose to his feet. \u201cStay right here with your sister,\u201d he instructed Emma. Emma clutched tightly at his sleeve. \u201cDon\u2019t let him take us back.\u201d Looking straight into her eyes, Daniel promised, \u201cI won\u2019t.\u201d Another set of headlights swept across the lot. The ambulance had arrived. Michael stepped away from the door as two paramedics made their way over. Daniel unlocked the outer vestibule while keeping the interior security door firmly latched. \u201cOfficer?\u201d one of the paramedics inquired. \u201cTwo children,\u201d Daniel stated. \u201cOne presenting with abdominal distress and abnormal drowsiness. Possible exposure to an unknown medication. We have a syringe secured as evidence.\u201d The paramedic\u2019s demeanor shifted instantly. \u201cSuspected ingestion?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cAny idea what substance?\u201d \u201cNot yet.\u201d Michael forced his way forward. \u201cI can explain everything that’s happening here.\u201d Daniel raised a hand. \u201cStep back.\u201d Michael stared at him incredulously. \u201cYou are making a massive mistake.\u201d \u201cPerhaps,\u201d Daniel replied. \u201cRight now, my priority is making sure these children are safe.\u201d Michael\u2019s expression hardened. In that instant, the mask of the frantic, worried father vanished completely. There was zero panic left in his gaze. Only cold calculation. His eyes darted through the glass toward Emma. Then toward Olivia. Then straight to the evidence envelope resting on the desk. His gaze locked onto it. Daniel caught it. Michael had spotted the syringe. Whatever outcome he had anticipated for this afternoon, he certainly hadn\u2019t planned on that syringe winding up inside a police station. The paramedics stepped inside. They immediately commenced their assessment of Olivia. Blood pressure. Pulse. Oxygen saturation. Pupil response. Inquiries. Olivia managed to answer a few. Others she simply couldn’t. When a paramedic asked what she had ingested, Olivia murmured: \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d \u201cWas it a pill?\u201d She shook her head. \u201cLiquid?\u201d Another subtle nod. \u201cWhat color was it?\u201d Olivia squeezed her eyes shut. \u201cBlue.\u201d Abruptly, Emma spoke up. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t blue.\u201d All eyes turned to her. Emma\u2019s face had drained of color. \u201cIt was clear.\u201d Daniel crouched down beside her. \u201cHow can you be sure, Emma?\u201d \u201cBecause I watched him.\u201d \u201cWhen?\u201d \u201cRight before Daddy gave it to her.\u201d The room fell dead silent. Daniel softened his tone. \u201cTell me everything you saw.\u201d Emma twisted her fingers together anxiously. \u201cThere was a bottle.\u201d \u201cWhat kind of bottle?\u201d \u201cA small one.\u201d \u201cWas there a label on it?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cWhat did the label say?\u201d Emma stared fixedly toward the locked doors. \u201cI couldn\u2019t read all of it.\u201d \u201cWhat parts were you able to read?\u201d She breathed out two words. \u201cMom\u2019s name.\u201d Daniel stopped breathing for a fraction of a second. \u201cYour mother\u2019s name?\u201d Emma nodded. Michael had originally informed dispatch that the girls\u2019 mother had been out of the country for half a year. Daniel had accepted that detail since it was part of the initial missing-child log. Now, however, doubt crept in. \u201cWhat is your mother\u2019s name?\u201d Emma glanced at Olivia. Olivia opened her eyes. Then, in a barely audible voice, she answered: \u201cSarah.\u201d Daniel turned back toward his computer terminal. The pharmacy profile remained active on the screen. He ran the prescription search once more. Michael Carter was listed as the attending prescriber. Yet, directly beneath the prescription details sat another data field. Patient.<\/i> He had completely overlooked it initially. Daniel clicked on it. The page refreshed. Patient: Sarah Carter.<\/i> Date of birth: Deceased.<\/i> Daniel stared in disbelief. For several long seconds, every sound in the station seemed to vanish entirely. The drumming rain. The hum of the fluorescent lights. The rattling box fan. Michael\u2019s muffled shouting outside. Everything receded into a distant blur. \u201cOfficer?\u201d Daniel snapped his gaze to the paramedic. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d \u201cYou need to look at this monitor right now.\u201d Olivia\u2019s heart rate had shifted. The medical monitor began emitting a faster, sharper tone. The paramedic looked up at Daniel with urgency. \u201cWe have to move. We\u2019re taking her now.\u201d Daniel gave a sharp nod. As they lifted Olivia onto the stretcher, Emma started to cry. Not loudly. Not hysterically. Just silent tears tracking down her cheeks while she kept a tight grip on her sister\u2019s hand. \u201cCan I go with her?\u201d \u201cYes, sweetheart,\u201d the paramedic replied. Emma climbed up onto the bench seat beside Olivia. Daniel followed them out toward the exit doors. Suddenly, Michael yelled from beyond the glass partition. \u201cEmma!\u201d The little girl froze in her tracks. Michael\u2019s tone shifted into a soothing register. \u201cSweetheart, come here to Daddy.\u201d Emma stared right through the glass at him. For a split second, Daniel feared she might head toward the door. Instead, she squeezed Olivia\u2019s hand tighter. Then she muttered something so softly that only Daniel could catch it. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t know she survived.\u201d Daniel whirled around. \u201cWhat did you say?\u201d Emma looked up at him, her face soaked with tears. \u201cMom.\u201d Daniel\u2019s stomach plummeted. \u201cWhat about your mother?\u201d Emma\u2019s lips quivered. \u201cShe isn\u2019t dead.\u201d Behind them, the ambulance doors slammed shut with a heavy thud. And from the opposite side of the station glass, Michael Carter smiled. Not because his daughters were safe and sound. Because he had just read the words on their lips. And in that flash, Daniel realized Michael had deliberately been waiting for someone inside to voice that truth. The ambulance pulled away into the night. Daniel stood out in the rain beneath the station overhang. Michael stayed put by the secured door. Neither man uttered a word. Then Michael raised his smartphone. He turned the screen toward Daniel to display an image. A photograph. Two small girls standing next to a dark-haired woman. Emma and Olivia. Accompanied by their mother, Sarah. Daniel scrutinized the photograph closely. The woman wore the exact same necklace seen in the pharmacy ID photo linked to the prescription file. Yet, this picture had clearly been captured earlier that very afternoon. Not six months ago. That afternoon.<\/i> Daniel met Michael\u2019s gaze through the glass. \u201cYou told us Sarah was dead.\u201d Michael dropped the phone slightly. \u201cI never claimed that.\u201d \u201cYes, you explicitly did.\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d Michael countered with chilling calm. \u201cI said she had disappeared.\u201d The hair stood up on the back of Daniel\u2019s arms. Michael leaned closer to the glass. \u201cAnd if you truly want to find out where she is, Officer Reed\u2026\u201d He paused deliberately. \u201c…try asking your own department.\u201d At that exact moment, Michael\u2019s phone began to ring. He glanced down at the display. His expression flickered. For the first time all evening, Daniel saw a flash of genuine fear cross the man’s face. Michael answered the call. He listened. He offered no response. Then, slowly, he raised his eyes to look through the glass at Daniel. \u201cShe\u2019s awake,\u201d he whispered. Daniel\u2019s gut tightened. \u201cWho is?\u201d Michael terminated the connection. \u201cTheir mother.\u201d Without warning, every single light in the station cut out. For three seconds, pitch blackness enveloped the room. Then the emergency backup lighting flickered to life. Red. dim. Unsteady. Officer Daniel Reed stood frozen behind the service counter, listening to the relentless rain battering the glass. Michael Carter was no longer standing by the front door. Daniel bolted outside. The black SUV was already accelerating away. \u201cCarter!\u201d The vehicle surged forward through the downpour and whipped around the corner, vanishing from sight. Daniel raced back inside and grabbed the desk radio. \u201cDispatch, this is Reed. I need an urgent vehicle lookout for a black SUV registered to Michael Carter, heading east away from the station. The suspect may be actively fleeing.\u201d Only static answered him. Then absolute silence. Daniel stared down at the radio handset. \u201cDispatch?\u201d Still nothing. He tried hailing them again. Complete dead air. The entire facility had grown unnaturally quiet. The computer monitors were pitch black. The landline phone was dead. Even the humming box fan had ground to a halt. Daniel hurried over to the breaker box. The main circuit breaker had been thrown off. Not tripped by an overload. Manually switched off. Someone had deliberately sabotaged the power. He shoved the switch back into place. The overhead fluorescent tubes flickered back on sequentially. The computers booted up. Every desk phone began ringing in unison. Daniel jumped slightly. He snatched up the receiver. \u201cReed.\u201d A woman\u2019s voice spoke on the line. \u201cOfficer Reed?\u201d \u201cYes, speaking.\u201d \u201cMy name is Sarah Carter.\u201d Daniel momentarily lost his voice. The voice pressed on. \u201cWhere are my daughters?\u201d Daniel gripped the receiver tighter. \u201cSarah, where are you right now?\u201d A heavy silence hung on the line. Then she whispered: \u201cThat doesn’t matter.\u201d \u201cIt matters a great deal to me.\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d she insisted. \u201cWhat\u2019s critical is that you ensure Michael doesn’t get to them.\u201d Daniel\u2019s eyes drifted toward the evidence envelope on the desk. \u201cYour daughters are being transported to the hospital.\u201d A shaky, ragged breath came across the wire. \u201cIs Olivia…?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cIs she conscious?\u201d \u201cShe was.\u201d Sarah let out a sound like someone fighting back tears. \u201cThen we are running out of time.\u201d Daniel straightened up. \u201cTime for what?\u201d \u201cYou located the syringe.\u201d It wasn’t framed as a question. Daniel glanced over at the envelope. \u201cYes, I did.\u201d \u201cThen he knows you have it.\u201d \u201cKnows what?\u201d Sarah skirted the question. \u201cSarah?\u201d Her voice dropped to a near-whisper. \u201cPay close attention to me. Michael isn\u2019t the only one who knows the truth of what happened.\u201d A cold shiver ran down Daniel\u2019s spine. \u201cWho else knows?\u201d \u201cMy father.\u201d \u201cYour father?\u201d \u201cHe is employed by this very department.\u201d Daniel froze. His gaze drifted slowly toward the framed memorabilia on the wood-paneled wall. Past former police chiefs. Retired commanders. Commendations. Names. Then the memory of the initial call log hit him. Michael had placed the original missing-child call, true. Yet, the responding officer hadn\u2019t been dispatched through routine channels. The assignment order had come straight down from a supervisor. Daniel pulled up the digital incident file on his screen. Right there in black and white. Authorization code: C-17.<\/i> Supervisor: Captain Harold Voss.<\/i> Daniel\u2019s stomach dropped into freefall. Captain Voss was the veteran who had taught him, fifteen years ago, never to dismiss a terrified child. He was also the very man who had signed off on Daniel’s recent promotion paperwork. \u201cSarah,\u201d Daniel said cautiously, \u201care you trying to tell me someone inside this precinct is assisting Michael?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d \u201cThen what are you saying?\u201d \u201cI\u2019m telling you someone inside this department helped him pull this off before.\u201d Daniel checked the wall clock. 4:29 p.m.<\/i> Scarcely twelve minutes had elapsed since the two girls first stepped through the front doors. It felt like an entire lifetime had passed. \u201cWhere are you hiding?\u201d \u201cI can\u2019t tell you that.\u201d \u201cYou called my station.\u201d \u201cBecause I needed to confirm whether my girls reached someone they could safely trust.\u201d \u201cYou could have just called the hospital directly.\u201d \u201cI don\u2019t know who in the system I can trust anymore.\u201d Daniel closed his eyes in frustration. \u201cSarah, your daughters told me you were dead.\u201d \u201cI\u2019m aware.\u201d \u201cWhy let them believe that?\u201d \u201cBecause Michael needed them convinced of it.\u201d Daniel lowered his voice. \u201cWhy would a father want his own children to think their mother passed away?\u201d Sarah remained quiet for several beats. Then she revealed: \u201cBecause they witnessed me.\u201d \u201cWitnessed you doing what?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d Her voice fractured. \u201cThey saw what he did to me.\u201d Daniel\u2019s grip on the phone tightened until his knuckles turned white. \u201cSarah, what did Michael do to you?\u201d The line went entirely dead silent. Followed by a faint, distant noise. A door latching shut. Sarah whispered: \u201cHe\u2019s here.\u201d Daniel sprang to his feet. \u201cWhere are you?\u201d \u201cHe found me.\u201d \u201cSarah, call emergency services immediately.\u201d \u201cI already did.\u201d \u201cYou called the station?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d Through the earpiece, Daniel heard heavy footsteps approaching on her end. Slow. Heavy. Closing in fast. \u201cSarah?\u201d Her breathing grew frantic. \u201cOfficer Reed, if you have any hope of saving my daughters, do not arrest Michael.\u201d Daniel frowned deeply. \u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d \u201cNot yet.\u201d \u201cWhy on earth not?\u201d \u201cBecause he will talk.\u201d \u201cThat\u2019s precisely what we want him to do.\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d Sarah\u2019s voice faded to a fragile whisper. \u201cHe\u2019ll tell you where the others are.\u201d The line went completely dead. Daniel stared blankly at the receiver in his hand. Others.<\/i> Not just one child. Others.<\/i> He instantly dialed the hospital mainline. A nurse picked up. \u201cThis is Officer Reed checking in on Olivia Carter.\u201d \u201cShe\u2019s currently undergoing treatment.\u201d \u201cIs she conscious yet?\u201d \u201cNot at the moment, Officer.\u201d \u201cDo you have any preliminary read on what she ingested?\u201d The nurse hesitated. \u201cWe are still waiting on the toxicology panel.\u201d \u201cIs her sister staying with her?\u201d \u201cYes, she is.\u201d \u201cPut me through to the attending physician right away.\u201d The nurse transferred the call. Daniel waited anxiously. A man\u2019s voice came on the line. \u201cOfficer?\u201d \u201cYes, Doctor. How is Olivia holding up?\u201d \u201cShe\u2019s stable for the time being.\u201d Daniel let out a long breath. \u201cBut there is an alarming detail you need to be aware of.\u201d \u201cWhat is it?\u201d \u201cThe substance in her system isn’t acting like a standard pharmaceutical medication.\u201d Daniel\u2019s expression hardened. \u201cExplain what that means.\u201d \u201cWe ran initial gastric panels and found traces of an additive.\u201d \u201cWhat kind of additive?\u201d \u201cI can’t fully confirm the compound yet, but\u2014\u201d \u201cDoctor, please.\u201d A heavy pause hung in the air. \u201cIt\u2019s a heavy-grade sedative.\u201d Daniel\u2019s jaw clenched tight. \u201cHow potent are we talking?\u201d \u201cMore than enough to be lethal for a child of her age and weight.\u201d Daniel looked back toward Emma. The little girl was standing by herself near the window. \u201cIs Olivia going to pull through?\u201d \u201cWe are doing everything humanly possible.\u201d Daniel closed his eyes tightly. Then, a soft voice broke the quiet near his elbow. \u201cOfficer Reed?\u201d He turned around. Emma was holding out a small, crumpled piece of paper. \u201cWhere did you get that?\u201d \u201cOlivia slipped it to me.\u201d \u201cWhen did she give it to you?\u201d \u201cBefore we ever came to the station.\u201d Daniel approached her slowly. \u201cMay I see it?\u201d Emma handed it over. The paper had been folded over upon itself four times. Daniel unfolded it carefully. Inside was a crude child\u2019s crayon drawing. A small house. Two young girls. A woman. And a tall man standing directly behind them. The man had been drawn with completely blacked-out eyes where his face should have been. Scrawled underneath the illustration in unsteady handwriting were six chilling words: DADDY SAYS WE ARE NOT FIRST.<\/i> Daniel stared down at the sentence, immobilized. \u201cWhat does this mean, Emma?\u201d She shook her head slowly. \u201cHe told us we weren’t allowed to ask.\u201d \u201cWho told you that?\u201d \u201cDaddy.\u201d \u201cWhat else did he say about it?\u201d Emma glanced toward the dark, dead television screen in the corner. \u201cHe said there were other little girls before us.\u201d Daniel\u2019s blood turned to ice in his veins. \u201cOther girls?\u201d Emma nodded gravely. \u201cHe said they wouldn’t listen to him.\u201d \u201cWhat happened to them, Emma?\u201d She cast her eyes down at the floor. \u201cThey went to sleep.\u201d Daniel dropped to one knee beside her. \u201cAnd they never woke up?\u201d Emma shook her head negatively. \u201cNo.\u201d She swallowed hard. \u201cThey woke up somewhere else instead.\u201d At that moment, Daniel\u2019s phone buzzed in his pocket. A text message from an unknown number. He unlocked the screen and opened it. An attached photograph. It was a snapshot from inside a hospital room. Olivia lying motionless beneath a crisp white blanket. Emma standing right beside the bed. Daniel snapped his head up, looking around the room with sudden alarm. Someone had snapped that picture after they arrived at the hospital. Right after, a second message flashed onto the screen: YOU SHOULD HAVE LEFT THE DOOR UNLOCKED.<\/i> Daniel\u2019s heart hammered against his ribs. He snapped his gaze toward the station entrance. The deadbolt was still fully engaged. Then, the emergency lights flickered erratically once more. Emma gripped his hand hard. \u201cOfficer Reed?\u201d \u201cYes?\u201d She pointed a trembling finger behind him. Toward the door of the old, disused evidence room. The heavy wooden door was slowly, silently drifting open. Daniel\u2019s hand flew instinctively to his service weapon. Before he could draw it, a figure emerged from the deep shadows of the room. She was completely soaked from the rain. Her dark hair was plastered against her pale face. She looked utterly exhausted. Terrified. And hauntingly familiar. Daniel had seen that exact face before. In the photograph on Michael’s phone. Sarah Carter. She raised both hands palms-upward in a defensive gesture. \u201cPlease don’t shoot,\u201d she whispered. Daniel stared at her, stunned. \u201cYou\u2019re supposed to be dead.\u201d Sarah\u2019s eyes brimmed with sudden tears. \u201cI know.\u201d Then her gaze shifted past him to Emma. The little girl let out a sob and sprinted straight toward her. \u201cMommy!\u201d Sarah dropped instantly to her knees. Emma threw her arms around her neck, burying her face. For a moment, neither of them spoke a word. Daniel watched the emotional embrace unfold. Then Sarah gently pulled back, cupping Emma\u2019s tear-streaked face in her hands. \u201cWhere is Olivia?\u201d \u201cAt the hospital,\u201d Daniel answered. Sarah closed her eyes in a wave of relief. \u201cThank God.\u201d Daniel stepped closer, his detective instincts kicking back in. \u201cSarah, we need answers right now.\u201d \u201cI know you do.\u201d \u201cWho are the other girls mentioned in the drawing?\u201d Sarah looked straight up at him. Her expression shifted into something grim. \u201cOfficer Reed…\u201d \u201cWhat is it?\u201d \u201cThose other little girls aren\u2019t Michael\u2019s daughters.\u201d Daniel waited, holding his breath. Sarah whispered the final piece of the puzzle: \u201cThey are his witnesses.\u201d Without warning, the main station entrance door unlocked itself with a sharp, mechanical click. Daniel spun around. The deadbolt slid smoothly back into its housing on its own. From out in the dark rain came the sound of deliberate footsteps approaching. Sarah grabbed Emma\u2019s hand tightly. And right then, a familiar, authoritative voice called out from beyond the threshold as the door pushed open. Captain Harold Voss. \u201cDaniel.\u201d A brief pause. \u201cStep away from that woman right now.\u201d Daniel didn’t budge an inch. Sarah\u2019s face went completely bloodless. She whispered: \u201cThat\u2019s him.\u201d<\/i> Daniel looked down at her. \u201cWho?\u201d Sarah stared fixedly at the doorway. \u201cThe man Michael was always terrified of.\u201d The doorknob began to turn. For three seconds, the station was completely dark. Then the emergency lights flickered on. Red. Dim. Unsteady. Daniel Reed stood motionless behind the counter, listening to the rain strike the windows. Michael Carter was gone from the glass door. Daniel rushed outside. The SUV was already pulling away. \u201cCarter!\u201d The vehicle accelerated through the rain and disappeared around the corner. Daniel ran back inside and grabbed the radio. \u201cDispatch, this is Reed. I need an immediate vehicle alert for a black SUV, Carter, Michael, heading east from the station. Suspect may be attempting to flee.\u201d Static answered him. Then nothing. Daniel looked at the radio. \u201cDispatch?\u201d Still nothing. He tried again. Nothing. The entire station had gone strangely quiet. The computer screens were black. The desk phone was dead. Even the box fan had stopped. Daniel walked to the electrical panel. The main breaker had been switched off. Not tripped. Switched off. Someone had deliberately cut the power. He turned it back on. The fluorescent lights returned one row at a time. The computers restarted. The phones rang simultaneously. Daniel nearly jumped. He picked up the desk phone. \u201cReed.\u201d A woman\u2019s voice answered. \u201cOfficer Reed?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cMy name is Sarah Carter.\u201d Daniel couldn\u2019t speak. The voice continued. \u201cWhere are my daughters?\u201d Daniel gripped the receiver. \u201cSarah, where are you?\u201d Silence. Then she whispered: \u201cThat\u2019s not important.\u201d \u201cIt is to me.\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat matters is that you don\u2019t let Michael find them.\u201d Daniel\u2019s eyes moved toward the evidence envelope. \u201cYour daughters are being taken to the hospital.\u201d A shaky breath came through the line. \u201cOlivia?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cIs she conscious?\u201d \u201cShe was.\u201d Sarah made a sound like someone trying not to cry. \u201cThen there isn\u2019t much time.\u201d Daniel stood straighter. \u201cTime for what?\u201d \u201cYou found the syringe.\u201d It wasn\u2019t a question. Daniel looked toward the envelope. \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cThen he knows.\u201d \u201cKnows what?\u201d Sarah didn\u2019t answer. \u201cSarah?\u201d Her voice became quieter. \u201cListen carefully. Michael isn\u2019t the only person who knows what happened.\u201d Daniel felt a chill run through him. \u201cWho else?\u201d \u201cMy father.\u201d \u201cYour father?\u201d \u201cHe works for the department.\u201d Daniel stopped. His eyes moved slowly toward the framed photographs on the wall. Past police chiefs. Retired commanders. Awards. Names. Then he remembered the call log. The original missing-child report had been filed by Michael. But the responding officer had not been assigned by dispatch. The assignment had come directly from a supervisor. Daniel opened the incident record. There it was. Authorization code: C-17. Supervisor: Captain Harold Voss. Daniel\u2019s stomach tightened. Captain Voss had been the person who taught him, fifteen years earlier, never to ignore a frightened child. He had also been the officer who signed Daniel\u2019s promotion papers. \u201cSarah,\u201d Daniel said carefully, \u201care you telling me someone inside this station is helping Michael?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d \u201cThen what are you telling me?\u201d \u201cI\u2019m telling you someone inside this department helped him before.\u201d Daniel looked at the clock. 4:29 p.m. Only twelve minutes had passed since the girls walked through the door. It felt like twelve hours. \u201cWhere are you?\u201d \u201cI can\u2019t tell you.\u201d \u201cYou called me.\u201d \u201cBecause I needed to know whether the girls reached someone they could trust.\u201d \u201cYou could have called the hospital.\u201d \u201cI don\u2019t know who I can trust.\u201d Daniel closed his eyes. \u201cSarah, your daughters said you were dead.\u201d \u201cI know.\u201d \u201cWhy?\u201d \u201cBecause Michael needed them to believe it.\u201d Daniel\u2019s voice dropped. \u201cWhy would he want his own children to think their mother was dead?\u201d Sarah was silent for several seconds. Then she said: \u201cBecause they saw me.\u201d \u201cSaw you doing what?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d Her voice broke. \u201cThey saw what he did to me.\u201d Daniel\u2019s hand tightened around the phone. \u201cSarah, what did Michael do?\u201d The line went silent. Then came a faint sound. A door closing. Sarah whispered: \u201cHe\u2019s here.\u201d Daniel stood instantly. \u201cWhere?\u201d \u201cHe found me.\u201d \u201cSarah, call emergency services.\u201d \u201cI did.\u201d \u201cYou called us?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d Daniel heard footsteps on her end. Slow. Heavy. Getting closer. \u201cSarah?\u201d Her breathing became rapid. \u201cOfficer Reed, if you want to save my daughters, don\u2019t arrest Michael.\u201d Daniel frowned. \u201cWhat?\u201d \u201cNot yet.\u201d \u201cWhy?\u201d \u201cBecause he\u2019ll talk.\u201d \u201cThat\u2019s what we want.\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d Sarah\u2019s voice became almost inaudible. \u201cHe\u2019ll tell you where the others are.\u201d The line went dead. Daniel stared at the receiver. Others. Not one. Others. He immediately called the hospital. A nurse answered. \u201cThis is Officer Reed. I\u2019m calling about Olivia Carter.\u201d \u201cShe\u2019s in treatment.\u201d \u201cIs she conscious?\u201d \u201cNot currently.\u201d \u201cAny idea what she swallowed?\u201d The nurse hesitated. \u201cWe\u2019re waiting on toxicology.\u201d \u201cIs her sister with her?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cPut me through to the physician.\u201d The nurse transferred the call. Daniel waited. Then a man\u2019s voice came through. \u201cOfficer?\u201d \u201cYes. How is Olivia?\u201d \u201cStable for the moment.\u201d Daniel exhaled. \u201cBut there is something you need to know.\u201d \u201cWhat?\u201d \u201cThe substance isn\u2019t behaving like a normal medication.\u201d Daniel\u2019s expression hardened. \u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d \u201cWe found traces of something in her stomach.\u201d \u201cWhat?\u201d \u201cI can\u2019t confirm it yet.\u201d \u201cDoctor, please.\u201d A pause. \u201cIt\u2019s a sedative.\u201d Daniel\u2019s jaw tightened. \u201cHow strong?\u201d \u201cStrong enough that the amount could have been dangerous for a child.\u201d Daniel looked toward Emma. She was standing alone near the window. \u201cIs Olivia going to survive?\u201d \u201cWe\u2019re doing everything we can.\u201d Daniel closed his eyes. Then he heard another voice. Small. Shaking. \u201cOfficer Reed?\u201d He turned. Emma was holding something. A folded piece of paper. \u201cWhere did you get that?\u201d \u201cOlivia gave it to me.\u201d \u201cWhen?\u201d \u201cBefore we came here.\u201d Daniel approached slowly. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d Emma handed it to him. The paper had been folded four times. Daniel opened it. Inside was a child\u2019s drawing. A house. Two girls. A woman. And a man standing behind them. The man had been drawn with no eyes. Underneath the picture, in uneven handwriting, were six words: DADDY SAYS WE ARE NOT FIRST. Daniel stared at the sentence. \u201cWhat does this mean?\u201d Emma shook her head. \u201cHe told us not to ask.\u201d \u201cWho did?\u201d \u201cDaddy.\u201d \u201cWhat did he say?\u201d Emma looked toward the dead television in the corner. \u201cHe said there were other girls before us.\u201d Daniel\u2019s blood ran cold. \u201cOther girls?\u201d Emma nodded. \u201cHe said they didn\u2019t listen.\u201d \u201cWhat happened to them?\u201d Emma looked down. \u201cThey went to sleep.\u201d Daniel crouched beside her. \u201cAnd never woke up?\u201d Emma shook her head. \u201cNo.\u201d She swallowed. \u201cThey woke up somewhere else.\u201d Daniel\u2019s phone vibrated. A message. Unknown number. He opened it. There was a photograph. A hospital room. Olivia lying unconscious beneath a white blanket. Emma standing beside her. Daniel looked up sharply. Someone had photographed them after the ambulance arrived. Then another message appeared. YOU SHOULD HAVE LEFT THE DOOR UNLOCKED. Daniel\u2019s heart pounded. He looked toward the station entrance. The deadbolt was still engaged. Then the lights flickered again. Emma grabbed his hand. \u201cOfficer Reed?\u201d \u201cYes?\u201d She pointed behind him. At the old evidence room. The door was slowly opening. Daniel reached for his weapon. But before he could move, a woman stepped out of the darkness. She was soaked from the rain. Her hair was plastered against her face. She looked exhausted. Terrified. And very familiar. Daniel had seen her face before. In the photograph. Sarah Carter. She raised both hands. \u201cPlease,\u201d she whispered. Daniel stared at her. \u201cYou\u2019re supposed to be dead.\u201d Sarah\u2019s eyes filled with tears. \u201cI know.\u201d Then she looked at Emma. And the little girl ran toward her. \u201cMommy.\u201d Sarah dropped to her knees. Emma threw her arms around her. For a moment, neither of them spoke. Daniel watched them embrace. Then Sarah pulled away and held Emma\u2019s face between her hands. \u201cWhere is Olivia?\u201d \u201cThe hospital.\u201d Sarah closed her eyes. \u201cThank God.\u201d Daniel stepped closer. \u201cSarah, we need answers.\u201d \u201cI know.\u201d \u201cWho are the other girls?\u201d Sarah looked at him. Her expression changed. \u201cOfficer Reed\u2026\u201d \u201cWhat?\u201d \u201cThe other girls aren\u2019t Michael\u2019s daughters.\u201d Daniel waited. Sarah whispered: \u201cThey\u2019re witnesses.\u201d Then the station door unlocked by itself. A single click. Daniel turned. The deadbolt slid back. From somewhere outside came the sound of footsteps. Sarah grabbed Emma\u2019s hand. And this time, Daniel heard a familiar voice coming through the door. Captain Voss. \u201cDaniel.\u201d A pause. \u201cStep away from the woman.\u201d Daniel didn\u2019t move. Sarah\u2019s face went white. Then she whispered: \u201cThat\u2019s him.\u201d Daniel looked at her. \u201cWho?\u201d Sarah stared at the door. \u201cThe man Michael was afraid of.\u201d The handle began to turn. The door handle turned. Daniel Reed raised his hand. \u201cStay back.\u201d Sarah pulled Emma behind her. Captain Harold Voss stepped into the station. His uniform was soaked from the rain, but his expression was calm. Too calm. He looked at Daniel. Then Sarah. Then Emma. For several seconds, nobody spoke. Finally, Voss sighed. \u201cDaniel, you don\u2019t understand what you\u2019re walking into.\u201d Daniel kept his hand near his holster. \u201cThen explain it.\u201d Voss looked at Sarah. \u201cYou were supposed to stay hidden.\u201d Sarah\u2019s voice trembled. \u201cI stayed hidden for six years.\u201d \u201cBecause I protected you.\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d Sarah said. \u201cYou protected Michael.\u201d Voss\u2019s expression hardened. Daniel stepped between them. \u201cCaptain, I need you to put your hands where I can see them.\u201d Voss slowly raised his hands. \u201cListen to me before you make a mistake.\u201d Daniel shook his head. \u201cI\u2019ve made enough mistakes today.\u201d Voss looked toward the evidence envelope. \u201cYou found the syringe.\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cAnd the pharmacy record.\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cYes.\u201d \u201cCan you tell me where it hurts?\u201d She indicated the center of her abdomen. \u201cDid your father give you any medicine today?\u201d Olivia hesitated for a moment. Then she glanced over at Emma. Emma gave a single nod. Olivia whispered, \u201cHe said it was for my headaches.\u201d A sudden chill settled deep inside Daniel\u2019s…<\/p>\n