Chapter 7 - The Sanitarium
I froze in the walk-in closet, my hand still resting on the safe door.
Below me, I heard the heavy thud of a car door shutting, followed by the sound of voices. Not just Reagan's.
"I don't care what Carter says, Julian," Reagan’s voice drifted up the stairs, sharp and irritated. "He's paranoid. He thinks he saw Finnley at the docks."
"Finnley Dennis is a rat with nowhere to run," a deep, smooth voice replied—Julian Vance. "If he shows his face, my people will handle him. But we cannot afford any distractions. The board meeting is in ten days. Once the dissolution is signed, Camden Dennis will 'succumb' to his illness, and the book will be closed."
Once the dissolution is signed, Camden Dennis will succumb.
They were planning to murder my father the moment the company was dissolved.
"I'll double the security at St. Jude's just in case," Vance continued, his footsteps echoing in the foyer. "Dr. Sterling needs to keep him under heavy sedation until we're ready. I don't want him having another 'moment of clarity' like he did last month."
I slid out of the closet, keeping my movements silent. I couldn't go back down the main stairs. I had to use the master bedroom balcony.
I opened the glass double doors of the balcony, stepping out into the cold rain. The drop was about fifteen feet onto a patch of thick shrubbery. I didn't hesitate.
I climbed over the railing, hung by my hands for a second, and let go.
I crashed through the wet branches, the impact jarring my knees, but I managed to roll onto the grass. I ignored the pain, scrambling to my feet and sprinting across the lawn toward the street.
I threw myself into the passenger seat of Maya’s car, panting heavily. "Go, go, go!"
Maya slammed her foot on the gas, the tires squealing on the wet asphalt as we sped away from the Silver Lake estate.
"Did they see you?" she gasped, checking her rearview mirror.
May you like
"No," I wheezed, holding up the black keycard and the blank authorization form. "But we have to move now. Vance is planning to kill him as soon as the board meeting happens. We don't have days, Maya. We have to go to St. Jude’s tonight."
She looked at me, her eyes reflecting the dashboard lights, filled with fear but also an unyielding resolve. "Then we're going upstate."
