“Xander.” Hadley opened her eyes, blazing with resolve.

“Notify hospital security as well. Have them and your men lock down every exit in the hospital. Then, check all vehicles coming in and out at this time.”

Eric couldn’t have simply vanished.

If someone had taken him, they would need a vehicle.

“Understood!” Xander hurried off to carry out her orders at once.

“Theodore!” Hadley called.

“Here!” Theodore responded promptly.

“Come with me to security. I need to review the surveillance footage starting an hour ago.”

“Right away.” Theodore nodded sharply and stepped forward to lead the way.

“This way, Miss Pearson.”

Hadley kept close behind Theodore as they entered the security office.

Only after firm persuasion did the staff agree to let her examine the surveillance tapes.

But nothing unfolded as smoothly as she hoped.

“Miss Pearson,” the chief of security said with regret, “as you know, a power outage struck earlier. The whole VIP wing was shut down.”

The elevator cameras had still not resumed function. When Hadley leaned forward to review the recordings, the screens for those floors showed nothing but a blur of static.

Her eyes closed for a moment, the color draining from her cheeks.

Still, she steadied herself and asked quickly, “What about the exits? Have those feeds been checked?”

“I’ll bring them up right away.”

“Excellent.” Hadley gave a firm nod, though her brow tightened with worry.

One thing was certain—none of this happened by chance.

? ? .

From the timing alone, Eric couldn’t have been moved very far. His captors would still be forced to slip out through the hospital. Unless… he was still being concealed somewhere inside these walls.

“Theodore!” Her head snapped toward him.

“What is it?”

“Get the police involved!” Hadley burst out.

“Listen—” she rushed to say.

“We’re stretched too thin, and we need all the help we can get.”

Neither the hospital guards nor the Scott family’s men could cover every corner.

“And besides, there’s a real chance Eric is still hidden somewhere in this very building!” Hadley said.

“Got it!” Theodore agreed with a sharp nod.

“I’ll reach out to the police right away!”

“Alright!”

In the meantime, Hadley remained at the monitors, determined to keep combing through the recordings.

However, the outcome stayed unchanged—no glimpse of Eric and nothing unusual on any screen.

Not long after, Xander appeared.

.

.

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