Chapter 5 - The Man Behind the Glass
Victor Crane stepped through the NICU doors as though he belonged there.
The maintenance uniform was clean. The forged badge clipped to his chest looked real. His hands rested calmly on the handle of the empty transport incubator.
Only the scar beside his mouth betrayed him.
Shelby backed toward bed nine.
“That’s him,” she whispered. “That’s the man who threatened me.”
Crane smiled.
“You should have stayed gone.”
Wade moved between Crane and Noah.
The change in him was immediate.
The patient volunteer disappeared.
Grizzly Holden stood in his place.
Crane’s smile weakened.
“I heard you were here.”
Wade’s voice was low.
“Then you should have run.”
Hospital security officers rushed into the corridor behind Crane, but one of them suddenly turned and locked the outer doors.
Cole swore.
“He’s one of Crane’s men.”
The corrupt officer drew a concealed handgun.
Several nurses screamed.
Dr. Hale placed himself in front of the incubators.
“There are infants in this room!”
Crane did not look at him.
“Then nobody should do anything foolish.”
Wade raised his hands slowly.
His body still blocked Noah from view.
“You drugged a premature baby.”
Crane shrugged.
“Only enough to keep him quiet during transport.”
“He could have died.”
“Babies are fragile.”
Shelby lunged forward, but Rachel caught her.
“You’re sick!” Shelby shouted.
Crane finally looked at her.
“You signed the surrender papers.”
“I signed nothing.”
“You would have eventually.”
“I came back for my son.”
“And now you’ve made this expensive.”
Wade’s eyes narrowed.
“Who paid for Noah?”
Crane laughed.
“You think this is about one baby?”
Cole shifted slightly toward the wall.
The corrupt officer pointed the gun at him.
“Don’t move.”
Crane continued.
“There are families willing to pay hundreds of thousands for healthy newborns. They don’t want questions. They don’t want court delays. They want a child.”
Rachel stared at him.
“So you steal babies from vulnerable mothers.”
“I solve problems.”
Shelby’s voice shook with rage.
“My son is not a problem.”
“No,” Crane replied. “He’s inventory.”
Wade took one step forward.
The officer aimed the gun at his chest.
“Stay back.”
Crane smirked.
“You always had trouble controlling your temper, Grizzly.”
Wade stopped.
“People change.”
“You didn’t.”
“You don’t know me anymore.”
“I know exactly who you are. You built your empire by making people afraid. I simply learned from you.”
Wade’s jaw tightened.
Crane pointed toward the old bracelet on his wrist.
“You’re still wearing that?”
The entire unit went quiet.
Wade stared at him.
“How do you know about Samuel?”
Crane’s smile returned.
“I know more than you think.”
Cole looked sharply at his brother.
“Wade.”
Crane pushed the empty transport incubator closer.
“Twenty-three years ago, Pine Valley had fewer cameras and worse record keeping. A premature infant could disappear easily.”
Wade’s face went still.
“What are you saying?”
Crane tilted his head.
“You were told Samuel died.”
Rachel’s breath caught.
Dr. Hale stepped closer.
“The death is documented.”
“Documents can be changed,” Crane said.
Wade did not blink.
“Say exactly what you mean.”
Crane watched him enjoyably.
“The doctor who signed Samuel’s death certificate later ran private adoptions for wealthy clients. Very private adoptions.”
Cole’s face hardened.
“You’re lying.”
“Maybe.”
Wade crossed the distance between them before anyone could react.
The corrupt officer raised the weapon, but Cole slammed a metal supply cart into him. The gun struck the floor and slid beneath a cabinet.
Security officers rushed forward.
Crane tried to turn.
Wade seized the front of his uniform and drove him against the wall.
Every monitor in the room seemed louder.
“Was my son alive?” Wade demanded.
Crane smiled despite the pain.
“You’ll never know.”
Wade tightened his grip.
Crane’s feet nearly left the floor.
“Wade!” Rachel shouted.
He did not look at her.
“Tell me.”
Crane laughed.
“The great Grizzly Holden, begging for an answer.”
Wade’s fist drew back.
Then Noah cried.
It was a weak sound.
Barely more than a breath.
But Wade heard it.
His hand stopped.
Rachel’s voice softened.
“Don’t become the man he expects you to be.”
Wade looked toward bed nine.
Shelby stood beside the incubator, one hand pressed against the clear wall. Noah’s small chest rose and fell beneath the oxygen support.
Wade slowly lowered his fist.
He released Crane.
Crane dropped against the wall, coughing.
“You should have killed me,” he muttered.
“No,” Wade said. “You’re going to talk.”
Police flooded the corridor moments later.
This time, Dana had contacted state investigators instead of local officers. Crane’s corrupt guard was handcuffed beside him.
Detective Maria Alvarez entered the NICU and looked over the scene.
“Victor Crane, you are under arrest for attempted kidnapping, conspiracy, assault, falsification of medical records, and suspected trafficking of infants.”
Crane smiled at Wade as officers pulled him away.
“Ask them about Samuel.”
Wade followed him with his eyes.
“I will.”
Crane’s smile faded.
“And when I find the truth,” Wade continued, “you’d better hope the police reach everyone involved before I do.”
Alvarez stepped between them.
“Mr. Holden, that is enough.”
Crane was taken from the unit.
The doors finally closed.
The silence afterward felt unreal.
Shelby immediately turned toward Dr. Hale.
“How is Noah?”
“He is responding to treatment,” the doctor said. “The sedative level is falling. We need to watch him closely through the night.”
Shelby pressed a hand to her chest.
“Can I touch him?”
“Yes.”
Rachel helped her place one hand through the incubator opening.
Noah’s fingers curled weakly around the tip of Shelby’s finger.
She began to cry.
“I’m here,” she whispered. “I’m not leaving again.”
Wade stood several feet away.
He seemed to be watching them, but Rachel noticed his eyes were unfocused.
She approached him.
“You heard what Crane said.”
“Yes.”
“He may have been trying to hurt you.”
“He knew the doctor’s involvement.”
“That information could have come from old records.”
Wade looked at the bracelet on his wrist.
“For twenty-three years, I believed I watched my son die.”
“You did watch doctors try to save him.”
“I never saw his body.”
Rachel went still.
“What?”
“They said he had been taken for an examination. Clara was sedated. By the time I demanded to see him, they said the hospital had already handled the remains.”
“That shouldn’t have happened.”
“I knew that.” His voice grew rough. “But I was destroyed. Clara was falling apart. I accepted what they told me.”
Rachel glanced toward Dr. Hale.
“We can review the records.”
Wade looked at her.
“Can you prove whether he died?”
“I don’t know.”
It was not the answer he wanted.
But it was honest.
Wade lowered his head.
“What if I spent twenty-three years mourning a child who was alive?”
Rachel touched his arm.
“Then we find out what happened.”
He looked toward Noah and Shelby.
“And if Crane lied?”
“Then Samuel is still your son. Nothing changes that.”
Wade’s eyes moved to her hand.
Rachel started to pull away, but he gently covered it with his scarred fingers.
“Thank you.”
Across the room, Dr. Hale opened an old hospital database.
He searched Samuel Holden’s name.
A moment later, his expression changed.
“Wade.”
Everyone turned.
Dr. Hale stared at the computer.
“What is it?” Rachel asked.
“The electronic record says Samuel died at 3:42 a.m.”
Wade waited.
Dr. Hale swallowed.
“But the original paper death certificate is missing.”
Cole stepped closer.
“What about the identification number?”
Dr. Hale typed again.
His face grew pale.
“The number was reused two days later.”
“For another child?” Wade asked.
“No.”
May you like
Dr. Hale looked directly at him.
“For an adoption file.”
