Hannah turned her head to look at the silent kidnappers. She said nothing, simply closing her eyes to wee the darkness that was her fate.


    But the men didn''t move. After a long moment, Hannah slowly opened her eyes to look at them.


    "What do we do now? I''ve never seen anything like this," thenky man said, bewildered.


    The bald man didn''t know what to do either. He took out his phone again and walked outside to make another call.


    Hannah watched him go and remained limp in the iron cage. The fever made it hard to breathe, and her throat felt like it was on fire.


    Every word Lionel had said was seared into her mind, reying over and over, his voice echoing in her ears.


    She slowly closed her eyes, and a single tear escaped, falling to the dusty ground.


    After what felt like an eternity, Hannah heard amotion outside the front door.


    "Wait, that''s not her husband! Stop that guy!" the bald man yelled.


    Thenky man shouted back, "We can''t! There are too many of them! Let''s get out of here, we can''t win this fight!"


    "What about the woman? Should we take her?"


    "Her husband doesn''t even want her! She''s useless to us. Let''s go!"


    Lying weakly in the cage, Hannah''s vision blurred as she watched the bald man and his crew flee through the back door.


    She blinked her heavy eyelids, each movement an immense effort. Just as her consciousness began to fade, she saw a tall figure striding toward her.


    "Hannah! Hannah! It''s okay, I''m here to save you! I''m taking you out of here now!"


    Before she could make out who it was, her world went ck, and she lost consciousnesspletely.


    The sharp sterile smell of


    disinfectant filled the air. Hannah opened her eyes to the re of a fluorescent light. The fever and exhaustion were gone, reced by a sense of relief.


    She raised her arm, her fingers grasping at the empty air, at something intangible and out of reach.


    "Doctor! Nurse! She''s awake,e quick!" Aman''s voice called out from the doorway. He had just walked in and saw that she was awake, his voice filled with excitement as he called for the nurses.


    Hannah turned her head to look at the man in the doorway.


    It was Yves.


    She stared, momentarily stunned, as the fuzzy memories began to sharpen.


    Before she had passed out, the person calling her name, telling her everything would be okay, the person who was taking her away... it wasn''t Lionel. It was Yves.


    A doctor came in for a quick examination, confirmed that Hannah was out of danger, gave some instructions, and then left.


    "The police will do everything they can to find the people who kidnapped you. For now, you just need to rest," Yves said, sitting on a chair beside her bed.


    Hannah nodded, her voice raspy. "Okay. Thank you, Mr. Lancaster. But... how did you know I was kidnapped?"


    "You didn''t show up for work all day yesterday and didn''t call in. I knew you weren''t the type to just not show up, so called you. One of them answered and said you''d been kidnapped."


    Hannah stared at Yves, her face a mask of shock, her pupils trembling. "They told


    you that, and you just... believed them?"


    Yves looked at her with a puzzled expression. "A strange man answers your


    phone and says that. Why wouldn''t I believe him?"


    Hannah''s lips parted, but no words came out. She bit her lower lip, her silence speaking volumes.


    Her hands clenched the nket tightly.