CHAPTER 4 The Doctor Who Was Already Dead
Dr. Adrian Wells was not in his office.
He was not in the cafeteria.
He was not in the psychiatric wing.
Security checked every exit.
No one matching his description had left the hospital.
Detective Brooks ordered the building placed under controlled lockdown.
Isabella remained in the conference room, demanding her attorney.
Marcus made three calls.
By the end of the third, his company’s legal team was on the way.
Khloe remained under observation.
Every few minutes, another tightening sensation moved through her abdomen.
The doctor assured her they were monitoring it.
Khloe no longer found reassurance in careful words.
Samuel entered with Detective Brooks.
“Dr. Wells’s badge was used to access the suite control system,” Brooks said.
“Where is he?” Khloe asked.
“We don’t know.”
Marcus frowned.
“You said he entered the hospital.”
“His badge entered the hospital,” Samuel corrected.
Marcus looked at him.
“What’s the difference?”
Samuel’s face was grave.
“Dr. Wells died eleven months ago.”
The room went silent.
Khloe stared at him.
“What?”
“Heart attack,” Samuel said. “He was found in his home.”
Marcus shook his head.
“That’s impossible.”
“The hospital failed to deactivate his old credential.”
Detective Brooks added, “Someone has been using it.”
Khloe felt cold despite the blankets.
“Who knew the badge still worked?”
“We’re checking access logs,” Samuel said.
Marcus turned away.
“This is bigger than Isabella.”
“Yes,” Samuel replied.
Khloe looked at Marcus.
“Whoever forged the psychiatric report used a dead doctor’s name.”
“And now his access badge,” Marcus said.
Detective Brooks nodded.
“That suggests planning, access, and knowledge of both your personal life and hospital systems.”
Marcus’s phone rang again.
It was his security chief, Daniel Reeve.
Marcus answered on speaker.
“Talk.”
“We found Vanessa Cole.”
“Where?”
“At her apartment.”
“Bring her here.”
There was a pause.
“We can’t.”
Marcus’s expression hardened.
“Why?”
“She’s missing.”
Khloe closed her eyes.
Marcus swore.
“When was she last seen?”
“Yesterday afternoon. Her building’s surveillance shows her leaving with one suitcase.”
“Flight records?”
“None under her name.”
“Bank activity?”
“Her accounts were emptied two days ago.”
Samuel looked at Brooks.
“She ran before the attack.”
Brooks wrote something down.
“Or someone made it look like she did.”
Marcus stepped into the hallway to continue the call.
Khloe watched him through the glass panel.
Powerful.
Controlled.
Terrified.
She had married Marcus because he made the world seem less dangerous.
Now she understood that his world had brought danger directly to her door.
Samuel moved closer to the bed.
“How much pain?”
Khloe looked at him.
“Enough.”
“Tell me the truth.”
She lowered her voice.
“It’s getting worse.”
Samuel immediately called the obstetrician.
Within minutes, the monitor showed irregular contractions.
Marcus returned as the doctor examined Khloe.
“What’s happening?”
“We may be seeing early uterine activity caused by trauma.”
“Early labor?”
“Possibly.”
Khloe’s heart pounded.
“No.”
The doctor looked at her.
“We’re giving medication to reduce the contractions.”
“The baby isn’t ready.”
“I know.”
Marcus took her hand.
This time, she did not pull away.
Fear was stronger than anger.
The nurse adjusted the IV.
Khloe watched the clear fluid drip through the tube.
One drop.
Then another.
The contractions gradually softened.
The doctor remained cautious.
“We need to move her to the maternal intensive care unit.”
Marcus nodded.
“Do it.”
As the nurses prepared the bed, Samuel’s phone buzzed.
He read the message.
Then read it again.
“What?” Marcus asked.
Samuel looked toward Detective Brooks.
“The technician found something in the camera hub.”
“What kind of something?”
“A second storage chip.”
Elaine, who had just entered, froze.
“You mean backup footage?”
“Not exactly.”
Samuel showed them the image on his phone.
A tiny black memory card had been hidden behind the security panel.
“Someone installed it to record locally.”
Khloe’s eyes widened.
“So the camera did capture what happened?”
“Maybe.”
Marcus stepped closer.
“Where is the card?”
“With digital forensics.”
“Can they read it?”
“They’re trying.”
Khloe exhaled.
For the first time since the attack, hope entered the room.
Then Samuel continued.
“There is another issue.”
“What?”
“The card was not installed by hospital security.”
Marcus looked at him.
“Then who put it there?”
Samuel’s gaze shifted toward Elaine.
Elaine’s face drained of color.
“I did.”
Everyone turned toward her.
Marcus’s expression hardened instantly.
“You?”
Elaine lifted both hands.
“I can explain.”
“Then explain quickly.”
Elaine swallowed.
“Three days ago, I received an anonymous email.”
“What did it say?” Brooks asked.
“That something would happen in Suite Twelve during the gala.”
Khloe stared at her.
“You knew?”
“I didn’t know what it meant.”
“So you installed a hidden recorder?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you warn us?”
“I tried.”
Marcus stepped toward her.
“When?”
“I called your office.”
“Who answered?”
Elaine hesitated.
“Vanessa Cole.”
Marcus stopped.
Elaine continued.
“She told me it was a prank and that your team would handle it.”
Khloe felt another chill.
“Did you send her the email?”
“Yes.”
Marcus closed his eyes.
Elaine looked at Khloe.
“I’m sorry.”
Khloe’s voice shook.
“You had a warning that something would happen in the room where I was attacked.”
“I thought security had been informed.”
Samuel looked at Elaine.
“Why did you install the card anyway?”
“Because Vanessa’s response felt wrong.”
Detective Brooks stepped closer.
“Do you still have the email?”
“Yes.”
“What exactly did it say?”
Elaine unlocked her phone and opened the message.
She handed it to Brooks.
The subject line read:
THE HEIR WILL NOT SURVIVE THE GALA.
Khloe stopped breathing.
Marcus took the phone.
His face transformed.
Not shock.
Recognition.
Khloe saw it immediately.
“You’ve seen that phrase before.”
Marcus said nothing.
“Marcus.”
His eyes met hers.
“Six years ago,” he said slowly, “Isabella sent me a letter.”
“What letter?”
May you like
He looked toward the door, as though the past itself might be listening.
“She said if I ever married someone else, no woman would be allowed to give me an heir.”
