Chapter 7
I held my son against my chest.
He was crying again.
But this time, I was the one holding him.
I was the one who could comfort him.
“I’ve got you,” I whispered into his soft hair. “Daddy’s got you. You’re safe now. Everything’s going to be okay.”
FBI agents swarmed the compound.
They arrested Margaret first, pulling her gently but firmly away from the car.
She was still screaming.
Still reaching for the baby.
Then they cuffed Richard, who was just coming around.
Elena Voss tried to run for the woods.
Two agents tackled her ten feet from the tree line.
The guards dropped their guns and put their hands up.
It was over.
An agent I had talked to on the phone—Agent Miller, no relation—came over to me.
He had a soft smile on his face.
“Told you not to do anything stupid, Mr. Miller.”
“I didn’t do anything stupid. I got my son.”
He laughed.
“Fair enough. We need to take him to a hospital. Just to get him checked out. Make sure he’s okay after all that traveling. And we need to get your statement. Both of you.”
Hannah came through the gate a minute later.
She saw me holding the baby.
Her hand went to her mouth.
Tears poured down her face.
She walked over slowly, like she was afraid he’d disappear if she moved too fast.
“Can I… can I hold him?”
I handed Liam to her.
She held him like he was made of glass.
“Hey, little guy,” she whispered. “I’m your Aunt Hannah. Your mommy sent me to take care of you. And I’m never going to let anything bad happen to you ever again.”
Liam grabbed her finger with his tiny hand.
And held on tight.
We went to the local hospital.
The doctors checked him over.
Said he was perfect.
Healthy.
Hungry.
Just a little tired from all the traveling.
They gave him to me in a private room.
I sat in a chair by the window and fed him a bottle.
Hannah sat beside me, watching.
It was the first time I had really looked at him.
He had Emily’s eyes.
The same shape.
The same color.
And he had my dimple on his left cheek, just like I did.
My son.
After everything.
He was here.
He was mine.
My phone rang.
My father.
“Daniel? The FBI just called. They told me you found him. Is he okay? Are you okay?”
“He’s perfect, Dad. We’re both fine.”
My father cried on the other end.
“Thank God. Thank God. Daniel… there’s something else you need to know. Diane… she found out I went through her safe. She’s gone. Packed a bag. Took the car. I don’t know where she went. The police are looking for her. But Daniel… she’s dangerous. You know that. If she finds out you have the baby… she might try to take him again. Or hurt you. Be careful. Please.”
“I will, Dad. You be careful too. She knows you helped me.”
“I can handle her. Just take care of that little boy. Give him a kiss for his grandpa.”
He hung up.
Hannah looked at me.
“She’s gone?”
“For now. But she’ll come back. She always does. She can’t let go of things she thinks belong to her. And in her twisted mind, she probably thinks she’s the victim here.”
Two days later, we were back in Houston.
The FBI had taken over the case.
Dr. Chen had been arrested.
Maria Gonzalez had been found in Mexico and was testifying against everyone.
Richard and Margaret Hale were in federal custody, facing kidnapping and conspiracy charges.
Elena Voss was looking at thirty years for running her disappearance service.
But Diane was still out there.
No sign of her.
No credit card activity.
No phone calls.
She had vanished.
I moved back into the house Emily and I had bought together.
The one we were going to raise our family in.
Hannah moved in too.
Said she wasn’t going to let me raise a newborn alone.
Said it was what Emily would have wanted.
We turned the guest room into Liam’s nursery.
Painted it blue.
Put up the mobile Emily had ordered before she died.
The one with the little stars and moons.
Every night, I sat in the rocking chair and held Liam.
Told him stories about his mommy.
How beautiful she was.
How kind.
How she had fought so hard for him.
One night, about a week after we got home, I was in the nursery.
Liam was asleep in my arms.
The house was quiet.
Hannah had gone to the store.
I heard a sound downstairs.
The front door opening.
Soft footsteps.
I stood up slowly.
Put Liam in his crib.
Grabbed the baseball bat I kept by the door.
I walked out into the hallway.
The lights were off downstairs.
But I could see a shadow moving in the kitchen.
I crept down the stairs.
Bat raised.
I flipped on the kitchen light.
Diane was standing there.
She looked terrible.
Her hair was a mess.
Her clothes were dirty.
She had lost weight.
But her eyes… her eyes were still the same.
Cold.
May you like
Calculating.
“Hello, Daniel.”
