Chapter 5 - The Great Escape
At exactly 7:15 a.m., a sleek, black unmarked SUV pulled smoothly up to the service gate of our sprawling suburban estate.
Inside the house, the grand grandfather clock in the foyer chimed the hour. Upstairs, the master suite was still quiet; Nicholas always slept until 8:00 a.m. before his assistant picked him up for the morning executive briefing at the bank.
I moved through our bedroom like a ghost.
I packed a single diaper bag for Julian—formula, diapers, his favorite plush blanket—and tossed a change of clothes for myself into a canvas tote. I reached into my bedside drawer, retrieved my passport, birth certificate, and the spare flash drive containing every single backup of the nursery camera footage.
Then, I reached into my robe pocket, pulled out the unlabeled pill bottle Nicholas had left behind, and placed it neatly in the center of his pristine white bathroom vanity, right beside his electric toothbrush.
Let him wonder when he woke up whether I took them or found them.
“Let’s go, baby boy,” I whispered, kissing the top of Julian’s head as I strapped him securely into his infant car seat.
We slipped out the side service door just as the morning gardeners began trimming the hedges near the front drive. The two security operatives Marcus had sent—former federal agents with sharp suits and cold, professional eyes—opened the SUV door for me with quiet efficiency.
“Morning, Mrs. Hale,” the driver nodded respectfully as I slid into the leather backseat, pulling Julian’s car seat safely beside me.
“Call me Ms. Moretti,” I corrected quietly. “My maiden name is back.”
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The SUV glided silently down the private driveway, turning out onto the main road just as the first morning rays of sunlight broke across the manicured lawns.
For the first time in eight months, the air in my lungs didn't feel heavy. It felt crisp, clear, and utterly limitless.
