Chapter 10
The dark, winding roads leading away from the wealthy suburb were practically empty. The dashboard lights cast a faint, greenish glow across the Father's face as he drove, his hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white. The heater hummed quietly, blowing warm air into the cabin, and in the backseat, the steady rhythm of Rosie's breathing told him she had finally drifted into an exhausted sleep.
He glanced at the digital clock on the dash. 9:42 PM.
His mind was racing, calculating the next moves with cold precision. He needed to go to the emergency room first. He needed medical professionals to photograph and document the bruising on her cheek and the fingerprints on her arm. The police would need official medical records to expedite the arrest warrants. He imagined the look on his father's face when the squad cars rolled up to the iron gates of the estate. It brought him a dark, fleeting sense of satisfaction.
He merged onto the interstate, the hum of the tires against the asphalt providing a monotonous, grounding soundtrack. He was ten miles away from the nearest hospital. The adrenaline was beginning to fade, replaced by a deep, aching exhaustion in his bones.
Suddenly, the silence in the car was shattered by a sharp, vibrating buzz.
The Father flinched, his eyes darting to the center console where he had tossed his phone. The screen lit up in the darkness. It wasn't a call. It was a text message.
He hesitated, his instinct screaming at him to ignore it, to throw the phone out the window. But the screen illuminated a name that made his blood run cold. It wasn't Bethany. It wasn't his mother or father.
It was his ex-wife. Rosie’s mother. The woman who had abandoned them three years ago, signing away full custody before moving out of state. She hadn't spoken to him in years.
Keeping one hand on the wheel, he picked up the phone. His thumb hovered over the screen, and he swiped to open the message.
The text read: "Bethany just called me. She told me what you did. She wired the money. I'm filing an emergency injunction for custody tomorrow morning. You aren't keeping her, you crazy bastard."
The Father stared at the glowing letters, the words burning into his retinas. The trap hadn't sprung shut on them. They were springing a new one on him. Bethany wasn't waiting for the police; she was using the family's endless wealth to buy the one person who could legally take Rosie away from him.
The Father looked in the rearview mirror at his sleeping daughter.
May you like
"They think they can buy you," he whispered into the dark car, his voice trembling with a terrifying resolve. "They have no idea what I'm willing to do."
He gripped the steering wheel, his jaw locking into stone, and pressed his foot down hard on the accelerator into the endless night.
