Chapter 9: Robert Took the Baby to the Abandoned Hospital
Elena tore through the house, screaming Noah’s name.
Daniel checked every room, though he knew the child was gone.
“How?” he shouted at the officers. “There were police everywhere!”
One officer held up a nurse’s jacket. “Robert changed clothes in the ambulance after attacking the paramedic. A second vehicle was waiting near the intersection.”
“Who helped him?” Elena demanded.
“We’re reviewing traffic cameras.”
Daniel’s phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered on speaker. “Where is my son?”
Robert’s voice came through weak but clear. “He’s safe for now.”
Elena stepped close. “If you touch him—”
“You should be more concerned about what Daniel will do when he learns the truth.”
Daniel clenched the phone. “Tell me where you are.”
“You know the place. St. Matthew’s Hospital. The old maternity wing.”
Margaret whispered, “That building has been closed for twenty years.”
Robert continued, “Come without police, or Noah disappears the way the other baby did.”
The call ended.
Daniel moved toward the door.
Elena blocked him. “We tell the police.”
“He said alone.”
“And you think he’ll keep his word?”
“I won’t risk Noah.”
“You are not risking only yourself. Robert wants something.”
Adrian held up the original trust page Sophie had protected. “He wants this.”
Margaret shook her head. “It’s more than the trust. St. Matthew’s kept paper records in the basement. Robert tried to buy the property twice.”
Daniel stared at her. “Because evidence of the baby switch is still there.”
“Maybe.”
Elena faced the lead officer. “Track the phone and surround the hospital quietly.”
The officer nodded. “We’ll keep our distance, but no one goes inside without us.”
Daniel answered, “I’m going in.”
“So am I,” Elena said.
“No.”
“He took my child.”
Adrian stepped forward. “And the truth about my brother may be inside.”
Margaret rose. “I’m coming too.”
Daniel looked at her coldly. “You’ve done enough.”
“That is why I have to go.”
Thirty minutes later, they reached the abandoned hospital. Rain poured through holes in the roof, and broken windows stared down like empty eyes.
Daniel’s phone rang again.
“Enter through the maternity wing,” Robert ordered. “Leave the police outside.”
Daniel, Elena, Adrian, and Margaret stepped through the rusted doors.
A baby cried somewhere above them.
“Noah!” Elena ran toward the stairs.
A speaker crackled overhead.
“Stop,” Robert said. “The floor above you is unstable.”
Daniel looked up. “Show yourself!”
A light turned on at the far end of the corridor. Noah’s carrier sat beneath it.
Elena rushed forward, but Adrian caught her arm.
A thin wire stretched across the hallway.
“It’s connected to the ceiling,” he warned.
Robert’s voice filled the corridor. “Place the trust document on the floor and send it toward the light.”
Daniel took it from Adrian.
Margaret whispered, “Don’t. Once he gets it, he’ll kill us.”
Robert laughed through the speaker. “Maggie finally tells the truth.”
Daniel placed the document down but kept one hand on it.
“First, tell me which baby was switched.”
A door opened on the second-floor balcony.
Robert appeared, pale from blood loss, holding Noah against his chest.
Beside him stood a hooded figure.
Robert pulled back the hood.
Daniel stared at the man’s face and forgot how to breathe.
The stranger looked almost exactly like him.
May you like
Robert smiled.
“Meet the real Daniel Hayes.”
