Part 5
"I need proof," Laura said, her voice dropping to a harsh whisper. She gripped the edge of her desk, her mind racing at a million miles an hour. "I need to know she is alive before I agree to anything."
There was a brief silence on the line, followed by the sound of a phone being shifted, a door opening, and a muffled scuffle. Then, a woman's weak, trembling voice came through the speaker.
"Caleb... Caleb, don't let him take it..."
The audio was abruptly cut off by a sharp slap and a gasp of pain, followed by Vincent’s voice returning to the line, completely unbothered by the violence he had just inflicted.
"There's your proof, Manager Bennett. You have exactly one hour," Vincent said coldly. "Bring the key and whatever is inside that storage locker to the abandoned railyard on the edge of the North District. Come alone. If you bring the cops, she dies. If you don't show up, she dies. The choice is yours."
The line went completely dead.
Laura slowly lowered the receiver, the dial tone buzzing like a persistent insect in her ear. Her heart was hammering against her ribs. She looked at Caleb, who had tears streaming down his face now. He had heard his mother's voice, even from across the room.
"That was him, wasn't it?" Caleb asked, his small body shaking uncontrollably. "He has Mommy."
Laura didn't answer right away. She couldn't. She needed to think. She grabbed her personal cell phone and checked her messages. Detective Harlan hadn't texted her back yet, which meant he was still processing the man from the lobby or en route to the apartment.
She couldn't wait for him to call back. She took a deep breath, looking at the silver key and the receipt for Box 414. The railyard was twenty minutes away. Ironclad Storage was only ten minutes away in the same direction.
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She looked at Sarah, her trusted head teller, who was standing outside the office door, watching through the glass with a worried expression. Laura made a decision that violated every professional and safety protocol she had ever learned.
She was going to get that evidence herself.
