I snatched Charlotte back into my arms and held her tightly against my chest. Then I looked at Vanessa and the little monster she called her son, and if looks could kill, both of them would have been dead already.
Adrian finally seemed to realize how serious the situation was. His expression stiffened as he pulled Ethan James toward him.
"James, apologize to your auntie and your little sister right now."
The boy only cried harder. He kicked his legs wildly and buried his face in Vanessa's clothes.
"Daddy's mean! I don't want him anymore! I hate him!"
His cries mixed with Charlotte's frightened wails until the noise seemed to drill straight into my head.
Adrian looked at me again, and the brief concern on his face quickly disappeared.
"He's just a child, Vivian. Children don't understand how much strength they're using. You're making too big a deal out of this." He frowned at me. "You're an adult. If you can't handle something like this maturely, how are you going to teach your daughter to grow up properly?"
I stared at him in disbelief. Every word that came out of his mouth felt like another crack spreading through my heart.
I shoved him with all my strength and slapped him hard across the face.
"Get out!" I shouted, my whole body shaking. "Take your fake wife and that little monster and get the hell out of my house!"
Adrian's expression darkened immediately.
"Why do you always resort to hitting people?" he snapped. "Why can't you behave like a normal person for once?"
Beside him, Vanessa suddenly raised her hand as though she intended to hit me back, but Adrian caught her wrist before she could move.
"Enough," he said sharply.
He pushed her hand aside and turned back to me. His eyes were filled with that familiar look of disappointment and concern, the same expression I had once mistaken for love.
"Genn," he said quietly, "what's gotten into you?"
I almost laughed.
What had gotten into me?
He had lied to me for years, cheated on me with another woman, and now stood there acting confused because I was angry after watching our daughter nearly choke to death.
How exactly did he expect me to react?
He let out a tired sigh and said to Vanessa, "Let's go outside first. She needs time to calm down."
Then he picked James up and ushered Vanessa out of the room.
The moment the door clicked shut behind them, all the strength left my body.
I slowly slid down the wall until I was sitting on the floor. My hands were still wrapped around Charlotte protectively, but my entire body trembled uncontrollably. Tears poured down my face, hot and bitter, and I couldn't seem to stop them.
Just then, my phone beeped.
I looked down and saw a notification confirming that the equity transfer had been completed.
My chest tightened, but this time the pain was accompanied by something else.
Relief.
Tomorrow.
By this time tomorrow, Charlotte and I would be gone.
I lowered my eyes and looked at my daughter. She had finally quieted down and was sleeping against my chest, her tiny fingers curled into my shirt.
I gently rocked her and kissed her forehead.
"We're almost free, baby," I whispered. "Mommy promises no one will ever hurt you again."
I settled the nanny in for the night, packed everything we would need, and quietly erased every trace of our life in that house. By the time dawn began breaking across the sky, I was sitting in the taxi I had booked in advance with Charlotte asleep in my arms.
"Please take us to the airport," I said.
"Of course, ma'am."
I took out my phone and called the person waiting for us.
"I'm sorry. We got delayed, but we're on our way."
A gentle voice answered from the other end.
"Don't worry about it. Just drive safely."
There was something warm and reassuring in his tone. For the first time in days, I felt a tiny spark of hope.
Then I smelled something strange.
A sharp chemical odor filled the car.
My entire body went cold.
I looked up and met the driver's eyes in the rearview mirror. They were dark and expressionless, and a chill ran down my spine.
I instinctively tightened my hold on Charlotte and pulled her closer.
"It's okay, sweetheart," I whispered repeatedly as panic gripped me. "Mommy's here. I've got you."
I didn't know when I lost consciousness.
When I opened my eyes again, I was lying on rough concrete.
Overgrown weeds surrounded us, and a crumbling factory stood in front of me like something abandoned by the world years ago.
Adrian was standing nearby with his phone in one hand. Charlotte was bundled in his suit jacket, her tiny face scrunched up as though she had been crying.
"The people are here," he said into the phone. "Go ahead with the plan."
He hung up and looked at me.
"Oh, you're awake," he said calmly. "That saves me from having to explain everything twice."
I tried to sit up, but pain shot through my wrists.
I looked down and realized my hands were tied behind my back.
"What is this?" I shouted. "Adrian, what the hell are you doing? Give me my daughter right now!"
He looked at me with unsettling calm.
"James has been kidnapped."
For several seconds, I simply stared at him.
"What do you mean?"
"They were originally after my son," he said evenly. "They grabbed the wrong child at first, and now they've taken James. They said they'll only release him if they see him in person."
A wave of disbelief crashed over me.
I shook my head repeatedly.
"No... no, you're not saying what I think you're saying."
He didn't answer.
My heart nearly stopped.
"You're going to exchange her for him?" My voice rose hysterically. "She's only one month old, Adrian! She has severe anemia because of her condition. Even a mosquito bite could be dangerous for her. Have you completely lost your mind?"
His expression didn't change.
"This is the only way. They said they won't let James go unless they see him. He's only six years old, and this could traumatize him for life."
I lunged toward Charlotte, but he stepped aside easily and kept her out of my reach.
"She's too young to remember any of this, Genn," he said in that same horrifyingly calm voice. "Nothing that happens today will leave any lasting impression on her."
I stared at him as though I no longer knew the man standing in front of me.
At that moment, Vanessa came running toward us. Her hair was disheveled, her makeup had streaked beneath her eyes, and she looked utterly frantic.
"Baby!" she cried. "The kidnappers called again! They said if they don't see James soon, they'll kill him!"
Then she noticed me.
To my shock, she dropped to her knees and began kowtowing repeatedly.
"Vivian, please!" she sobbed. "Just this once! Let Charlotte save James! I'll do anything you ask. Anything!"
I kicked her away.
"Move!" I screamed. "This happened because you couldn't watch your own child. Why should my daughter's life pay for your mistakes?"
Adrian crouched beside me.
"Genn, please." His voice suddenly softened. "James is innocent. Once he's back safely, I promise I'll make everything right for Charlotte too. We can go back to the way things were. We can still be a family."
I laughed bitterly through my tears.
"The way things were?" I repeated. "You want me to trade my daughter's life for your illegitimate son and then go back to pretending we're a happy family with the man who sacrificed her? Adrian, what exactly do you take me for?"
Just then, a frightened cry echoed from inside the warehouse.
"Daddy! I'm scared!"
Adrian's face changed immediately.
Without another word, he picked Charlotte up and started walking toward the building.
I threw myself forward and grabbed his leg with my bound hands.
"Adrian!" I screamed. "If you care so much, then go yourself! Aren't you her father too? Take his place! Exchange yourself for him!"
He shook me off impatiently.
"Enough!" he snapped. "James is a boy. He's the only heir of the Sterling family. Nothing can happen to him."
I looked up at him in horror.
"And Charlotte?" I cried. "Isn't she your daughter too? She's your flesh and blood! How can you do this to her?"
For the first time, he hesitated.
He turned and looked at my tear-streaked face.
"I..." He swallowed hard. "I'm sorry."
Suddenly, I felt a sharp sting in my neck.
I gasped.
My vision instantly blurred.
Adrian's voice sounded far away.
"It's only a sedative. When you wake up, your daughter will be safe."
The last thing I saw was him turning his back on me and walking toward the warehouse, carrying our daughter in his arms as though she were nothing more than a bargaining chip.
