Chapter 7 - THE COUNTDOWN
The waiting room clock ticked with agonizing slowness. Three hours. Bea was in surgery, and Mae was pacing the floor, her phone clutched tightly in her hand.
Every time her phone buzzed, her heart jumped. It was Sarah.
“Got the bags. Got Buster. Luna fought me a bit but she’s in the carrier. We are out. The house is empty.”
Mae closed her eyes, exhaling a breath she felt she’d been holding for a decade. Half the battle was won. But Theo was out there, a wounded animal whose absolute control had been shattered. Men like Theo didn’t just surrender; they retaliated.
The surgeon finally emerged through the double doors. He pulled off his surgical cap, his face exhausted but relieved.
"We got it all," he said, offering a tired smile. "It was severe, Mae. If you had waited another week... I don't even want to think about it. But she's a fighter. She's going to be okay."
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Mae collapsed into a chair, burying her face in her hands, weeping uncontrollably. They were tears of terror, of relief, and of a deep, burning love. She had saved her daughter.
But as she looked up through her tears, she saw a shadow pass by the waiting room window. A man in a tailored suit, watching her from the hallway before disappearing. Theo wasn't gone. The real war was just beginning.
