Page 58 of Billion-Dollar Ransom

IN THE BEDROOM, Four read the text from her sister:

Can you come here now?

The blood in Four’s veins felt like ice water. This was what she had been terrified of. “It’s two days, tops, One told us,” her husband had assured her. “She’ll be fine for two days.” Deep inside, however, Four had known something like this would happen.

Four’s thumbs trembled as she tried to think of the best way to tell her sister that now was absolutely not a good time.

It’s urgent. They’re worried about her platelet count. They want to do another transfusion.

Four read the text and was surprised by the gasp that came out of her mouth. Quickly, she thumbed:

Can’t you agree to it?

Three blinking dots, and then:

Yes, but… don’t you want to be here?

Four typed quickly:

More than anything.

But leaving this house right now would be catastrophic.

Four knew that One had watchers all over, keeping tabs on his team.

There had to be a watcher here too. Maybe several.

And leaving this house was grounds for immediate termination of their contract.

One’s chilling words were seared into her memory:

The plan must be followed precisely . Not a single change will be permitted. If you ignore a step, you will not be paid. If you improvise, you will not be paid.

But this was her child. Her heart. Her everything.

Four typed quickly:

I’m on my way.

Three intercepted her in the bedroom doorway. She didn’t have to say a word; the panic in her eyes said everything. Three knew that nothing was going to stop his wife from going to their daughter right now. He kissed her firmly, then wrapped her in his arms. They went downstairs.

“Where are you going?”

Finney stood up from the kitchen table and stared at Four with a haunted look in her eyes. Cal pushed his chair back from the table, his small hands trembling slightly.

Four hadn’t expected Cal and Finney to be upset by her leaving, and the looks of panic on their faces broke her heart. Right now, she was exactly half of the only stability they had in this world.

Four crouched down and wrapped Finney in a hug. A real hug, not the hug of a kidnapper trying to lull her charge into a false sense of security. A hug she wished she could be giving her daughter—and would be, very soon.

Unless One stopped her.