Chapter 2 - THE VEIN COLLAPSES

Clara snatched her phone from the cup holder, her hands shaking violently. She answered it, putting it on speaker.

"Hello? Sunnyside?"

"Clara?" It was Brenda, the night nurse at the facility. She sounded terrified. "Clara, thank God. Two police officers just came in. They said there was an emergency involving you, that they needed to secure Leo's room."

"Brenda, listen to me," Clara screamed, the apathy entirely stripped away. "They aren't cops! Do not let them near my brother!"

"I... I tried to tell them visiting hours were over," Brenda stammered, her voice echoing as if she were hiding in a stairwell. "But they just pushed past me. They’re heading to the fourth floor right now, Clara. What do I do?"

"Pull the fire alarm!" Clara yelled. "Brenda, pull it now!"

The line went dead.

Clara threw the phone onto the dashboard, tears blurring her vision. She pressed the accelerator to the floor, weaving recklessly through the empty city streets. Oak Park was still ten minutes away. Ten minutes was an eternity.

Gabriel had ended his call. He was reloading the Glock, checking the chamber with terrifying efficiency. "I have a man on the way. Silas. He’s my oldest friend, the only one I trust. He was already close to Oak Park. He might beat the mercenaries there."

"He's one man against two trained killers," Clara cried, swerving around a garbage truck.

"Silas isn't just a man," Gabriel said darkly. "He raised me. He's the reason Victor didn't kill me in my sleep ten years ago."

The drive was a blur of neon lights and panic. Clara’s mind raced with horrifying images of Leo, completely helpless, tethered to a machine. He couldn't run. He couldn't scream.

When Clara finally skidded the Honda into the parking lot of Sunnyside Care Center, the massive brick building was bathed in the flashing strobe of fire alarms. Evacuation protocols had kicked in. Nurses were wheeling elderly patients in wheelchairs out the front doors into the freezing cold.

Clara threw the car in park and bolted out, not even waiting for Gabriel.

"Clara, wait!" Gabriel shouted, struggling out of the car, clutching his bleeding side.

She didn't listen. She shoved past the bewildered staff and patients at the entrance, sprinting toward the stairwell. The elevators would lock down during a fire alarm. Four flights of stairs. Her lungs burned, her legs ached, but the adrenaline fueled her.

She burst onto the fourth floor. The corridor was empty, the strobe lights flashing red against the white walls.

She sprinted to room 412.

The door was wide open.

Clara fell to her knees in the doorway. The ventilator was beeping wildly, a high-pitched alarm signaling a disconnection. The bed was empty. The sheets were pulled back. The IV poles were knocked over.

"Leo!" Clara screamed, her voice tearing from her throat.

She scrambled to the bed, touching the warm indent on the mattress. Gone. Her brother was gone.

Suddenly, a heavy hand grabbed her shoulder. Clara gasped and spun around, ready to fight.

It was Gabriel. He was breathing heavily, holding his side, his face pale.

"They took him," Clara sobbed, burying her face in her hands. "Victor's men took him. It’s over. I have to turn you in, Gabriel. I'm sorry, I have to give them what they want to get him back."

Gabriel looked at the empty bed, then down at the floor. He knelt, groaning, and picked something up from beneath the bedside table.

He handed it to Clara.

It was a small, hand-drawn picture. A crayon sketch of a superhero with a red cape. Leo had drawn it before his accident. He used to keep it taped to his monitor.

But it wasn't just the drawing.

Wrapped tightly around the drawing was a heavy, silver rosary. The beads were worn smooth from years of use.

Clara looked at Gabriel, confused. "This isn't Leo's."

Gabriel’s eyes hardened. "No. It's Silas's."

Gabriel stood up, his jaw set. "Victor's men didn't take your brother, Clara. Silas got here first. He took Leo to keep him safe."

Clara felt a massive wave of relief wash over her, so powerful her knees buckled. Gabriel caught her arm, keeping her upright.

"But there's a problem," Gabriel said, his voice grim. He pointed to the doorway.