CHAPTER 7: The Gray Car by the Corner
Caleb noticed the gray car before anyone else did.
His body changed. His shoulders hunched. His eyes sharpened. He grabbed the locket from Victoria’s hand and shoved it beneath his hoodie as if it were the only shield he owned.
“We have to go,” he said.
Victoria followed his gaze. “Do you know that car?”
Caleb backed away. “She found me.”
“Who?”
“The woman who checks the shelters. She said if I ever showed the locket to anyone, she’d make sure nobody believed me again.”
The gray car’s passenger window lowered. Victoria could not see the face inside, only a pale hand holding a phone. A camera lens glinted in the gap.
Mateo stepped in front of the children.
Victoria’s fear became fury. “Nathan, hold Caleb’s hand.”
Nathan obeyed without hesitation.
Caleb resisted for one second, then allowed it.
Victoria called her attorney, Amelia Cross, a woman with the patience of a judge and the instincts of a wolf. “Amelia, I need you now. Not in an hour. Now. Send security to the north entrance of Ellison Holdings. Quietly.”
“Are you in danger?” Amelia asked.
“I may have found my missing son.”
There was a silence.
Then Amelia said, “Do not let anyone touch that child. Do not let anyone take that locket. I’m calling a private pediatric unit and a family court judge.”
The gray car pulled away from the curb, circled the block once, then vanished into traffic.
Caleb watched it go with the hollow relief of someone who knew being missed did not mean being safe.
Victoria looked down at his bare feet on the cold sidewalk.
“Caleb,” she said gently, “I want to take you somewhere safe. A doctor first. Food. Clean clothes. No police unless Amelia says it’s the right move. But I need you to trust me for the next ten minutes.”
He stared at her.
“You’re rich,” he said. “Rich people always say safe before they lock doors.”
The truth in his voice nearly broke her.
Nathan squeezed his hand. “My room has two beds.”
Victoria blinked. “It does not.”
Nathan looked up at her. “Then buy one.”
For the first time, Caleb almost smiled.
May you like
Then a message appeared on Victoria’s phone from an unknown number.
Walk away, or Nathan learns what really happened to his father.
