Chapter 5 - Room 214.
Claire grabbed Noah before Evan could move.
Leah stepped in front of her.
"Nobody opens that door."
The man outside knocked again.
"Mr. Mercer, we received an emergency report involving an infant."
Evan's heart pounded.
"Can we see identification?"
A badge appeared briefly in front of the peephole.
Leah shook her head.
"That proves nothing."
Evan called Rosa on the prepaid phone.
She answered immediately.
"Do not consent to entry unless they have lawful authority."
Rosa asked to be placed on speaker.
Evan did so.
"Officer, counsel for the family is on the line," he said through the door.
The voice outside became more formal.
"I'm not police."
Rosa spoke loudly enough to be heard.
"Then state your full name, agency, supervisor, and the statutory basis for a midnight entry."
Silence followed.
Claire held Noah tightly against her chest.
Leah stared at the door.
At last, the man said, "I can return with law enforcement."
Rosa answered, "Please do."
Footsteps moved away.
Evan waited at the peephole until the hallway was empty.
"Was that real?"
"Possibly," Rosa said.
"Marianne could have made a report."
Claire's face crumpled.
"What could she possibly say?"
Leah answered quietly.
"Whatever she said about me."
Rosa told them to move again.
Hotels kept records, cameras, and predictable access points.
Leah offered her apartment, but Rosa rejected that too because Marianne knew the address.
Instead, Rosa arranged for them to stay at a small furnished corporate suite belonging to her law firm.
They left through a service exit fifteen minutes later.
Evan carried the bags.
Leah drove Claire and Noah in her car.
Evan drove the SUV separately after placing the tracker inside a flower planter near the interstate gas station.
By three in the morning, they were inside a secured building across the city.
Claire sat on the sofa feeding Noah beneath a blanket.
Evan watched her eyes close between breaths.
"Sleep," he said.
"I can't."
"I'll stay awake."
Claire looked at him.
"You said that last week."
The sentence was not cruel.
That made it worse.
Evan sat beside her.
"What did I miss?"
Claire hesitated.
"Your mother took Noah from my arms while I was sleeping."
Evan stiffened.
"When?"
"Three days ago."
"Why?"
"She said I was holding him wrong."
Claire stared at the floor.
"When I asked for him back, she told me to calm down before I scared him."
Evan felt rage rise into his throat.
"And I came home that night and thanked her for helping."
Claire said nothing.
His prepaid phone buzzed.
It was Rosa.
She had run a preliminary court search.
"Evan, listen carefully."
Her tone had changed.
"There is no custody petition yet."
Evan exhaled.
"But there is something else."
"What?"
"Your mother filed a petition two months ago to become temporary trustee for a minor beneficiary."
Evan frowned.
"What minor beneficiary?"
Rosa paused.
"The filing identifies Noah Mercer."
Claire stopped breathing for a second.
Evan stood.
"Noah doesn't have a trust."
May you like
Rosa's next words turned the room cold.
"According to the court, he does."
