Chapter 14 - The Night Anna Disappeared|
Anna was supposed to have a quiet afternoon.
Her next treatment was scheduled for the following morning, and Dr. Reed had advised her to rest, drink fluids, and avoid unnecessary stress. Gabriel had promised to spend the day with her without taking business calls unless there was a genuine emergency.
At noon, they sat in the garden with a tray of tea and two plates of toast.
Anna wore a soft blue sweater and a scarf tied loosely around her head. The winter sun touched the glass canopy, and for a little while the world felt ordinary.
“Tell me something,” she said.
“Anything.”
“If we had met before you became the head of the family, what would you have done?”
Gabriel considered the question.
“Probably made a terrible first impression.”
She smiled.
“Probably?”
“I would have tried to impress you by pretending I knew more about coffee than I did.”
“You still do that.”
“I've improved.”
“You once told me that espresso was supposed to taste bitter.”
“It is supposed to taste bitter.”
“Not when it's made properly.”
He laughed, and the sound surprised them both.
Anna leaned back in her chair.
“I miss this.”
“What?”
“Us being stupid about ordinary things.”
He reached for her hand.
“We can have more of it.”
She looked at him carefully.
“Don't promise me a future because you're afraid of losing the present.”
He nodded.
“All right. Then I'll say this instead: I want more of it, and I'll keep making room for it.”
She squeezed his fingers.
“That I can believe.”
At two, Gabriel went inside to speak with Marco. The call lasted less than ten minutes. When he returned, Anna was gone.
Her tea sat untouched on the table.
The blanket had fallen to the floor.
Her phone lay beside the chair.
For one terrible second, Gabriel couldn't move.
Then he shouted for security.
The garden was searched first. Staff members checked the bedrooms, the kitchen, and the front entrance. No one had seen Anna leave, and the cameras showed no vehicle entering or exiting the estate during the previous half hour.
Gabriel picked up her phone.
A message was open on the screen.
We have information about your treatment. Come alone if you want to know the truth.
The message had been sent from an unregistered number.
He called Anna.
The phone rang from the chair beside him.
He called again.
Nothing.
His fear became something cold and sharp.
“Lock down the estate,” he ordered. “No one leaves until we know what happened.”
Marco arrived within minutes.
“Boss, we found a gate camera that was disabled for seven minutes.”
“Who disabled it?”
“We're checking.”
“Find Anna.”
“We will.”
Gabriel grabbed his coat.
Marco caught his arm.
“Don't go alone.”
Gabriel looked at him.
“Someone has my wife.”
“And if you rush into a trap, you won't help her.”
For a moment, Gabriel wanted to strike him simply because the warning was true.
Then he remembered Anna's words.
You don't protect me by making my life smaller.
He forced himself to breathe.
“Contact the police. Get the medical center's security team involved. I want every location connected to Peter Lang checked.”
Marco nodded and began issuing orders.
Within twenty minutes, the investigation identified a vehicle that had entered through a service gate while the camera was offline. It belonged to a transport company connected to Northstar Medical Services.
The same company that had accessed Anna's treatment schedule.
Gabriel watched the footage.
A woman wearing a dark coat had entered the vehicle. Her face was obscured by a scarf, but the shape of her body and the way she moved were familiar.
“That's Anna,” he said.
The vehicle had traveled toward an industrial district on the edge of Chicago.
Police units were dispatched.
Gabriel remained in the command room, watching the location tracker update. Every minute felt like an hour.
Then a message arrived.
It contained a photograph of Anna sitting in a bare room, her hands resting on her lap. She appeared frightened but unharmed.
Beneath the image was a sentence.
If you want your wife back, withdraw the audit and sign the trust amendment.
Gabriel stared at the message.
The trust amendment would restore Peter's access to the family's financial records and give the trustees authority to make decisions if Gabriel became unavailable.
It would also allow them to continue collecting medical information.
They weren't trying to steal money alone.
They wanted control.
Gabriel looked at Marco.
“Find the room.”
“We're tracing the image.”
“Now.”
The tracker identified a building used by a private records-management company. Police units surrounded it, and a negotiator established contact with someone inside.
But before the officers entered, Gabriel received another message.
This one contained a voice recording.
Anna's voice was weak but clear.
“Gabriel, don't sign anything. Please. Whatever they tell you, don't let them use my name to control the family.”
The recording ended with a sharp noise.
Then another voice spoke.
“She's right about one thing, Moretti. Your wife understands you better than you do.”
Gabriel recognized Peter Lang.
“Come alone,” Peter continued. “Bring the signed amendment, and she walks out.”
The message ended.
Marco looked at Gabriel.
“We have officers in position. You don't need to negotiate with him yourself.”
Gabriel stared at the photograph of Anna.
For the first time in his life, he understood the difference between a threat and a choice.
A threat demanded obedience.
A choice required him to decide what kind of man he would be.
He looked at Marco.
“Tell the negotiator I will speak to Peter.”
“Boss—”
“Not alone. On the phone. With the police listening.”
Marco nodded.
Gabriel picked up the secure line.
When Peter answered, Gabriel's voice was steady.
“You want the amendment?”
“Yes.”
“Then tell me why you took my wife.”
Peter laughed softly.
“Because you finally started asking the right questions.”
May you like
He paused.
“And because Anna knows something about your father's death that you still don't.”
