Chapter 8 - THE HOUSE OUTSIDE MILLBROOK
The video ended before Ethan could see who entered the room.
Detective Ruiz called for backup.
Ethan wanted to go with them, but Ruiz warned him to stay behind.
“If Victoria sees police, she may move the children.”
“Then let me go in first.”
“You’re the father. You’re also the one person she expects to lose control.”
Ethan hated that she was right.
They drove toward Millbrook in unmarked vehicles.
The old train station had been closed for years. The building stood near a line of abandoned warehouses and empty fields.
A second location appeared when Ruiz tracked the video metadata.
A farmhouse two miles away.
The property belonged to Mark, Victoria’s brother.
Ethan stared at the dark windows.
“That’s where she took Lily.”
Ruiz nodded.
They surrounded the house.
Inside, a baby cried.
Ethan heard it through the wall and nearly broke formation.
Ruiz caught his shoulder.
“Wait.”
A man stepped onto the porch.
Mark.
He held a gun at his side.
“You should have stayed home, Ethan.”
“Where are the children?”
Mark smiled.
“You’re late.”
The farmhouse lights suddenly went out.
A loud engine started behind the house.
Ruiz shouted, “Move!”
A van tore through the back fence.
Ethan ran after it, but the vehicle disappeared into the trees.
Police entered the farmhouse.
They found no children.
Only a crib, a stack of dirty blankets, and a camera pointed toward the room.
On the table lay another message.
You came with police. Now Lily pays for it.
Ethan stared at the words.
Then he saw a tiny pink ribbon caught on the edge of the crib.
It belonged to the stuffed rabbit Lily always carried.
He picked it up with shaking fingers.
Detective Ruiz inspected the floor.
“There are tire tracks heading north.”
Ethan looked toward the road.
“Where?”
“Toward the train station.”
They rushed there.
A freight train was already moving through the crossing.
Behind it, a black SUV waited on the other side.
Victoria stood beside the vehicle.
In her arms was the newborn.
And in the back seat, Lily pressed both hands against the glass.
Ethan shouted her name.
May you like
Victoria raised a document above her head.
Then she dropped it into the moving train’s path.
