Chapter 2 - THE AMBER ALERT IN THE GRASS
The morning sunlight glinted sharply off the hood of the dark grey SUV as it idled ominously near the corporate curb.
Vanessa lay motionless on the manicured lawn, her light blue maternity dress stained crimson where she clutched her swollen belly.
Nine-year-old Noah knelt beside her, his navy blue t-shirt soaked with sweat and tears as his small hands shook uncontrollably.
"Mom! Can you hear me? Please wake up!" Noah screamed into the empty morning air, his voice cracking with pure terror.
A few yards away, the security guard wrestled the woman in the bright red fitted dress against the side of a concrete pillar.
"Let me go, you fool!" Evelyn snarled, thrashing violently against the guard's heavy grip while her dark hair whipped across her face.
Noah ignored the scuffle, his tear-filled eyes locking onto a black smartphone lying half-hidden in the damp grass.
Without hesitation, the young boy snatched the phone off the turf, pressing the glowing screen tightly to his ear.
A sharp electronic call-connecting beep pierced the chaotic noise of the street as the call connected automatically.
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"Mom..." Noah whispered into the speaker, his heart pounding a frantic rhythm against his ribs.
"...Dad knew she was coming," a cold, distorted voice echoed from the other end of the line before the call abruptly disconnected.
