Chapter 8 - THE HOSPITAL SANCTUARY
The sterile, brightly lit examination room at St. Jude's Memorial Hospital smelled faintly of antiseptic and clean linen.
Dr. Harrison, a kind-eyed pediatrician with graying temples, gently checked the girls' vital signs while Mark watched from the corner.
"Physically, they are severely malnourished and dehydrated, but there are no permanent internal injuries, Mark," Dr. Harrison reported softly.
Mark let out a ragged breath he felt like he had been holding for six agonizing months.
"How could I have missed the signs, Doctor? I was right downstairs working on corporate expansion plans," Mark muttered bitterly, burying his face in his hands.
"Abusive partners are masters of isolation and deception, Mr. Cole... don't blame yourself for a monster's calculated crimes," Dr. Harrison advised gently.
The girls were wrapped in warm flannel blankets, sipping warm chicken broth from paper cups with cautious sips.
"Papa, are we going back to that dark room ever again?" the youngest daughter asked timidly, her eyes wide with lingering terror.
"Never. That house is locked forever, and the woman who put you there is going to prison for a very long time," Mark promised, kissing her forehead.
A knock sounded on the examination room door, and Detective Vance stepped inside holding a thick manila folder.
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"We searched Victoria's private dressing room at the mansion, Mr. Cole... and we found something disturbing," the detective said.
***
