Chapter 2 - The Sterile Halls of Survival
The siren wailed into the night, cutting through the heavy rain like a knife.
I sat in the back of the ambulance, gripping Mara’s cold, trembling hand. The EMTs were a blur of motion, calling out vitals, starting an IV, and securing her neck.
“Heart rate is dropping,” one medic yelled over the noise of the engine. “We need to push it, driver!”
I stared at my sister's pale face. We had shared everything since the womb. We shared secrets, dreams, and now, we were sharing the most terrifying night of our lives.
When we burst through the doors of the emergency room, the trauma team was waiting. They whisked her away down a blindingly white corridor, leaving me standing alone in the sterile lobby, my hands covered in her blood.
I paced the waiting room, my mind racing. I needed a warrant for that camera. I needed to secure the house.
Twenty minutes later, the sliding glass doors of the ER opened.
Evan walked in. He wasn't alone.
Flanking him was a man in a sharp tailored suit—Arthur Vance, the most expensive, ruthless defense attorney in the city. Beside Vance was Celeste, still looking composed, holding an umbrella that wasn't even wet.
“Where is my wife?” Evan demanded, marching toward the front desk.
I stepped directly into his path. “You don't get to see her.”
Vance, the lawyer, stepped forward with a polite, venomous smile. “Detective Monroe. My client is deeply distressed about his wife's tragic accident. You have no legal right to bar a husband from his spouse in a medical facility.”
“She’s in emergency surgery,” I said coldly. “And this hospital is now an active crime scene investigation.”
Celeste scoffed softly. “You’re hysterical, Lena. You’ve always been jealous of Mara’s lifestyle. Evan provides everything for her. She slipped on a rug.”
“A rug doesn't leave a dent in the drywall, Celeste.”
Before they could push past me, my captain, Marcus Holt, walked into the waiting room. He looked at me, then at Evan. Evan had bought the precinct new tactical gear just last year. I could see the conflict in my captain's eyes.
“Monroe,” Captain Holt said heavily. “Stand down. You are too close to this. You're officially off the case.”
Evan smirked. A tiny, victorious upward tilt of his lips.
May you like
“You can take me off the case, Captain,” I said, unpinning my badge and holding it tightly. “But you can't take away the warrant I just requested for the hidden camera in his bedroom.”
The smirk fell off Evan's face, hitting the floor and shattering.
