She was long since used to being the one left behind.

    Frank’s hand, hanging at his side, curled slowly into a fist. His eyes smoldered with barely contained anger, but before he could speak, Marcia grew frantic.

    She clutched his arm, her voice trembling with sobs. “Frank, iyou /ihave to save Hickey–he’s your own nephew!”

    Frank’s gaze darkened, his expression unreadable. “Elissa is my wife.”

    “So that’s how it is…”

    Marcia suddenly let out a twistedugh, her face etched with bitter disappointment as she stared at Frank. “Then let your brother turn in his grave. Let Hickey go down with him! Let him see that his own brother doesn’t care about his only child!”

    “Frank, how could you do this to Spencer?”

    Her usations struck Frank like physical blows. He squeezed his eyes shut in pain.

    He’d sworn at his brother’s grave that he’d watch over his nephew, that he’d protect Spencer’s son no matter what.

    But Elissa…

    The scarred man, growing impatient with their indecision, rapped the muzzle of his gun on Elissa’s head. “Time’s running out, Mr. Atwater. I’m going to count to ten. If you keep hesitating, they both die.”

    “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five…”

    Frank’s fists trembled with the effort not to act rashly. At the veryst second, he shouted, “The boy! I choose the boy!”

    He chose the child.

    12:08

    He chose Hickey.

    Elissa wasn’t surprised in the least.

    “I can tell, Mr. Atwater. You must be quite the doting uncle,” the scarred man said with a mocking smile, then waved for his men to untie Hickey.

    As soon as Hickey was free, he bolted straight into Marcia’s arms, sobbing, “Mom! I was so scared…”

    Frank dropped his gaze, his voice cold and clipped as he ordered Marcia, “Take him and get out.”

    “What about you?”

    Marcia refused to leave so easily. Watching Frank risk himself to save Elissa made her ache with hatred, though her face betrayed nothing.

    “Come with us, Frank. Please?”

    When he stood firm, unmoved, she suddenly thought of something. “Frank, I’ll never feel safe if you stay behind alone. If youe with us right now, I’ll tell you where that little girl went all those years ago. Deal?” She truly meant to tell him.

    After all, as soon as they walked out that door, Elissa wouldn’t survive the next five minutes. What harm was there in telling?

    “What did you say?”

    Frank red at her, jaw clenched. “You know where she is?”

    Marcia nodded, “Yes, but only if you leave with us.”

    Frank instinctively nced at Elissa, his throat working painfully as his fists tightened until his knuckles stood out white. He still couldn’t make

    the choice.

    He found himself wondering, when had Elissa be so important to him?

    Elissa, for her part, knew him well enough to read the hesitation in his

    12:08

    eyes with a single nce.

    He had already chosen to abandon her once. Now, it seemed like he was about to do it again.

    It’s fine, she thought.

    As Frank was about to turn away, and Elissa’s heart went cold and numb, his phone suddenly rang, shattering the silence.

    “Don’t move!”

    The scarred man whirled, instantly on edge. “You called the cops, didn’t you?”

    Frank nced back at him, icy calm. “If I wanted you dead, would I bother calling the police?”

    The Atwater family practically ran half of Vistapeak City. If he wanted this to end, he had other means.

    “Answer it,” the scarred man ordered, still suspicious. He shot a look to one of his men, a tattooed thug. “Go listen in.”

    Frank, careful not to provoke the man holding the gun, pulled out his phone and answered, voice rough and impatient. “Speak.”

    “Mr. Atwater…”

    Bernard on the other end sounded nervous, knowing full well this wasn’t the best time, but he had no choice. “We’ve found it. The car that picked up the girl from the orphanage all those years ago–that belonged to the Murphy family. And the only child the Murphy family ever adopted… was thedy of the house.”