Chapter 4 - THE DESPERATE REACTION
But a cornered rat does not always run. Sometimes, it bites.
That night, I stayed at Marcus’s house. He had a spare room, and more importantly, he had a state-of-the-art security system. I couldn't risk staying at the motel anymore.
Around 2:00 AM, my phone rang. It was an unknown number.
I answered it, a sense of dread pooling in my stomach. "Rachel here."
"Rachel... help me."
It was Emily. Her voice was cracked, choked with tears, and she sounded terrified. In the background, I could hear a baby screaming hysterically.
"Emily? Where are you?" I demanded, sitting up in bed.
"Daniel... he took them," she sobbed. "He took Noah and Nora. He found out about the frozen trust fund. He went crazy, Rachel. He realized he wasn't going to get the money. He grabbed the keys, packed the babies into his truck, and drove off. He said if he's going down, he's taking your kids with him."
My blood ran cold. "Where did he go, Emily? Think!"
"I don't know! He was talking about the cabin... our uncle's old place near the state line. He said he was going to sell them. He said there are people who will pay half a million dollars for healthy white infants under the table. Rachel, please! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Don't let him hurt them!"
The call went dead.
I jumped out of bed, my adrenaline spiking. I didn't call the police first. In rural North Carolina, near the state line, local sheriff response times could take forty-five minutes. I knew exactly where that cabin was. It was deep in the Uwharrie National Forest, an isolated, heavily wooded area with no cell service.
I threw on tactical gear, a dark hoodie, and grabbed my service pistol from its locked case.
As I rushed down the stairs, Marcus met me in the hallway, already dressed in black. "I heard the screaming. I'm coming with you."
"Marcus, it’s dangerous. Daniel is unstable."
"He's my former partner, and I let him slide for too long," Marcus said, his eyes fierce. "We're going in my truck. I have the winch and the off-road tires. We'll get there faster."
We tore through the dark, winding roads of North Carolina, the headlights cutting through the thick, creeping fog. My hand rested on my stomach. Please, God, keep them safe. All three of them.
The drive took forty-five excruciating minutes.
When we finally turned onto the dirt path leading to the cabin, we saw the taillights of Daniel’s truck. It was parked crookedly near the porch. The cabin windows were dark.
"No lights," Marcus whispered, turning off our engine and rolling to a stop. "We go in quiet."
We slipped out of the truck. The air was thick with the scent of damp pine and rotting leaves. The forest was dead silent, save for the distant, muffled cry of a baby.
We crept up to the porch. The front door was slightly ajar.
I drew my weapon, my heart hammering against my ribs, but my hands remained perfectly steady. I kicked the door open.
"Daniel!" I shouted, aiming my weapon into the darkness. "It's over! Step away from the children!"
A flashlight beam suddenly blinded me.
"Stay back, Rachel!" Daniel’s voice yelled from the corner of the room.
As my eyes adjusted, I saw him. He was standing near the fireplace, holding a lighter in one hand and a heavy, plastic gas canister in the other. He had poured gasoline all over the wooden floorboards.
And in a single plastic laundry basket on the table beside him were Noah and Nora, crying softly.
"You think you’re so smart," Daniel hissed, his face twisted in madness. "You and Marcus. You ruined me! I have nothing left! No business, no house, no money! If I'm going to prison, I’m burning this whole world down first!"
"Daniel, put the lighter down," Marcus said, keeping his voice level and calm. "You don't want to do this. Those are babies. They are innocent."
"Innocent?" Daniel laughed, a high-pitched, psychotic sound. "They're her embryos! They're her perfect little genetic creations! She didn't want them when we were married, and now she wants to play hero?"
"Daniel, look at me," I said, taking a slow step forward, keeping my weapon trained on his chest. "You think I didn't want a family? I wanted you. I loved you. But you turned our love into a transaction."
"Stop!" he screamed, flicking the lighter. A small, orange flame danced in the darkness, reflecting in his hollow eyes. "One more step and I drop it! We all go up together!"
But Daniel had made one critical mistake. He was a civilian. He didn't know how to read a room under tactical pressure.
He was looking at me. He wasn't looking at Marcus.
In a split second, Marcus lunged forward, tackling Daniel to the ground.
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The gas canister tumbled, spilling fuel across the floor. The lighter flew from Daniel’s hand, sparking as it hit the stone hearth.
A sudden, violent WHOOSH echoed through the cabin as a wall of fire erupted between us and the table.
