Brandon’s fingers curled slowly into a fist.

"They’ve got her guarded like a fortress."

Babydoll nodded calmly. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Levi’s resources are extensive," she said. "He’s not the kind of man who leaves things to chance."

Her gaze swept the hallway again, measuring distances, counting doors, memorizing movement patterns. Security guards rotated past the elevator every few minutes. Nurses moved in and out of the ICU wing. Cameras blinked quietly in the corners.

Too many eyes.

Too many obstacles.

She stepped away from the nurse’s station, her mind already working through possibilities.

"We need a distraction," she said.

Brandon frowned.

"What kind of distraction?"

Babydoll glanced back at him.

"The kind that shuts down a hospital wing."

He stared at her.

"You’re serious."

"I’m always serious."

She took another look down the corridor before turning away.

Wait for me," she said over her shoulder. "I’ll shoot you a text."

Before Brandon could argue, she disappeared into the maze of back corridors.

The door swung shut behind her.

And just like that, he was alone.

For a moment Brandon simply stood there, listening to the strange quiet of the hospital’s service halls.

The sounds were muted down here—distant footsteps, the squeak of a cart wheel, the faint beeping of medical equipment somewhere far above.

An orderly pushed a cart full of folded linens past him without even looking up.

Life went on.

Completely unaware that Lyse Spade—the woman who ruled his heart —was lying upstairs in an ICU bed.

Hurt.

Maybe dying.

And he was stuck down here in a basement hallway like an idiot.

Frustration twisted through his chest like a coiled snake.

He began pacing.

Back and forth.

The soft tap of his shoes against the linoleum echoed in the corridor.

He couldn’t just stand here.

He couldn’t wait.

He needed to see her.

Needed to know she was alive.

His mind kept flashing back to the warehouse.

The gun in his hand.

The iron bar smashing against metal.

Blood.

Shouting.

Everything he had risked... just to be close to her again.

And now he was here.

So close.

Yet still completely locked out.

A flicker of movement at the far end of the corridor made him freeze.

Someone had stepped into view.

A massive figure.

Broad shoulders.

Tattooed arms visible beneath a tight sleeve.

Brandon’s heart slammed against his ribs.

Igor.

How the hell had he found him here?

Brandon reacted instantly, stepping backward into the shadows of a side hallway.

He pressed himself against the wall and cautiously leaned forward to peek around the corner.

Sure enough.

Igor stood there like a statue at the end of the corridor.

Not moving.

Just watching.

Waiting.

Brandon’s pulse pounded in his ears.

Had Igor seen him?

Was he baiting him?

Brandon slowly pulled his phone from his pocket.

His fingers moved quickly across the screen.

Igor’s here. Hospital.

He hit send.

A second later his phone buzzed.

"Go Time."

Brandon held his breath as the giant man frowned slightly.

Then, without a word, turned away.

He walked down the opposite hallway.

Gone.

Brandon blinked.

What the hell was that?

He quickly exited the doorway and headed for the west wing, where Lyse was waiting."

Across the hospital lobby, another confrontation was unfolding.

Levi Van Doren stood perfectly still as he studied the man in front of him.

Luca.

The name didn’t come immediately.

But the face...

Yes.

Recognition slowly sharpened in Levi’s mind.

There had been bright lights.

Cameras flashing.

Questions shouted from behind barricades.

Paparazzi.

And this man had been among them.

The limp made him unmistakable.

One of that flock of photographers who had been stalking Lyse.

The pieces slid together in Levi’s mind with quiet, chilling precision.

"Who are you?" Levi asked.

"And what are you doing here?"

Luca swallowed.

His throat felt like sandpaper.

Behind him, he could almost feel Igor’s looming presence—even though the giant man had long drifted away into the crowd.

He had to think fast.

"My wife," Luca stammered.

The lie sounded pathetic even to his own ears.

"She’s... uh... she’s in for a procedure. I was just looking for her room."

Levi’s face remained completely unreadable.

"A procedure?"

"Yes," Luca said quickly, gaining a shred of confidence. "Appendicitis. Very sudden."

"I see."

Levi’s calm tone was far more terrifying than if he had shouted.

"And your name?"

Luca’s brain scrambled desperately for something believable.

"Smith," he blurted out.

A pause.

"John Smith."

For a fraction of a second something flickered across Levi’s face.

Amusement.

Or perhaps contempt.

It vanished instantly.

"Mr. Smith," Levi said quietly.

"I’m going to ask you one more time."

He stepped closer.

The air between them tightened.

"And I suggest you consider your answer very carefully."

A bead of sweat slid down Luca’s neck.

Even though Igor wasn’t standing behind him anymore, the threat of him still weighed heavily on Luca’s mind.

If he talked too much—

Igor would kill him.

If he lied badly—

Levi might kill him.

Luca glanced over his shoulder quickly to make sure Igor hadn’t returned.

Nothing.

Just a crowd of anxious hospital visitors.

"Who are you," Levi repeated slowly, "and why are you really here?"

Luca’s brain locked.

The pressure snapped something loose in his mind.

And the words came out before he could stop them.

"Brandon Marlowe killed Sutton Marlowe and Bret Faulkner, it’s in the wine."

The sentence hung in the air like a gunshot.

For a brief moment Levi said nothing, his eyes narrowing sharply.

Then—

A piercing wail shattered the silence.

BEEEEEEEP.

The hospital fire alarm exploded to life.

Red lights began flashing along the ceiling.

The shrill siren echoed through every hallway.

"What’s going on?" a nurse shouted as she rushed past them.

Another voice yelled from down the corridor.

"Fire in the west wing! We need to evacuate!"

Suddenly the calm hospital lobby dissolved into chaos.

Staff members rushed in every direction.

Patients were wheeled toward exits.

Alarms blared endlessly.

Levi’s attention flickered toward the commotion.

Just for a moment.

But that moment was enough.

Luca didn’t hesitate.

He turned and ran.

Pain shot through his injured leg as he pushed himself forward.

But adrenaline overrode everything.

He shoved past confused visitors and sprinting nurses.

Behind him Levi’s voice rang out sharply.

"Find him!"

Two men in dark suits appeared instantly at his side.

But Luca had already vanished into the moving crowd.

He ran blindly through the hallways.

Past operating room doors.

Past panicked staff shouting instructions.

His lungs burned.

His leg screamed with every step.

But he didn’t stop.

He couldn’t stop.

He found a stairwell door and threw himself through it.

Then he ran down the concrete stairs two at a time.

Down.

Down.

Down.

Until he burst into the basement level.

The noise of the alarms was muffled down here.

The hallway was empty.

Silent.

Luca staggered forward and leaned heavily against a cold concrete wall.

His chest heaved as he gasped for air.

"Jesus..." he muttered between breaths.

He had to find Igor.

They needed to get out of the hospital immediately.

Luca pulled out his phone and dialed Igor’s number.

The call rang once.

Then went straight to voicemail.

"Damn it."

He tried again.

Same result.

Voicemail.

Luca lowered the phone slowly.

Something felt wrong.

Very wrong.

He pushed himself off the wall and looked around the basement corridor.

His eyes darted nervously from shadow to shadow.

The place was empty.

Too empty.

For now.

And Luca had the terrible feeling that somewhere in the hospital...

Igor was already moving.