Chapter 10 - THE WOMAN AT THE ELEVATOR
Owen woke just after midnight.
His color had improved.
Daniel sat beside him while Sarah slept curled in a chair.
"Dad?"
"Right here."
"Is Grandma mad at me?"
The question broke something inside Daniel.
"No, buddy. And even if she is, that isn't your job to fix."
Owen picked at the blanket.
"She said Mom would go away if I told anyone."
Daniel leaned closer.
"What else did she say?"
Owen hesitated.
"She said she'd be my real parent soon."
Daniel pressed the call button for the nurse and asked for Detective Ramos.
Before Ramos arrived, the elevator doors opened at the end of the hall.
Evelyn stepped out.
She wore a gray coat and carried a bouquet of lilies.
Daniel stood so fast the chair scraped the floor.
"How did you get up here?"
"I'm his grandmother."
"Leave."
She looked past him toward Owen's room.
"I need to speak to him alone."
"You will never be alone with him again."
Her mouth tightened.
Then she lowered her voice.
"Daniel, you're emotional. Sarah has manipulated you. Give me five minutes with Owen and this can all end."
A security guard appeared behind her.
Daniel saw something else.
Evelyn's right hand was clenched around a small blue folder.
The same color as the file she had emailed.
As security escorted her back toward the elevator, a loose paper slid from the folder and landed near Daniel's shoe.
He picked it up.
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It was a petition for emergency custody.
Already signed by a judge.
