Chapter 10 A Threat

MEANWHILE BACK AT VERA'S HOME “Dammit! I don’t believe this! How far could a girl with an infant travel in the middle of the night? Bloody incompetent... the lot of them!” Francois, Vera's father, threw his phone on the table, frustration rising to the surface and about to boil over. "What the hell have I done?!" "Honey, please calm down; they will find her," Margot, his wife and Vera's stepmother, said quietly from across the room. But how could he be calm when he had no idea where his little girl was? "When?! Who knows where she is or what’s happening to her right now?! Fuck! Despite my strict instructions to keep that damn baby away from her for this exact reason, they gave it to her!” He fired that nurse immediately after arriving at the hospital and learning that Vera had left with her baby. Nothing was said to him about Logan or his accompanying men. The nurse who had allowed Logan inside was paid by Logan's people to keep his visit between them. So she only informed Francois that Vera had escaped with her baby. Francois had given strict instructions after learning that Vera had given birth, instructing that the baby be kept away from her. He owned the hospital. But the nurse chose to face his wrath over Logan's. "I shouldn’t have forced her to give up the baby. I should have tried another way.” Francois said, and Margot moved closer to her husband to comfort him. "You had no idea this would happen. You were doing what you believed was best for her—" “—And where were you? You should have been there with her—” “—Okay, I get that you’re worried about Vera, but that’s not fair,” Margot said with a pained voice. “You know I had to be at that event. Plus, I had no idea she would go into labor early. I would’ve canceled if I could, you know that.” Her eyes shimmered with hurt, and Francois realized she was right. He was being unfair. Margot had done nothing but love his daughter since she entered their lives. She was not to blame. It was his fault for assuming Vera would simply allow them to take her baby without protest. He had expected the orphanage staff to arrive before the birth, but something had gone wrong, and they had not arrived on time. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” “It’s okay, honey. I know.” Margot took another step closer. “Listen, I’m going to call Laurent and check how the search is going, alright? I’ll call Alain, too. You sit down for a moment and take a breath. You’re no good to her like this. We need to keep our heads clear. She couldn’t have gotten far. We’ll find her.” Margot said, and she was still watching Francois leave the house when a voice called from behind her. “Mom!” Alain, her son, and Vera's stepbrother, called out as he dashed inside. Margot turned sharply at the sound of his voice. "Did you find something?" she asked, approaching him. Alain had been out searching since the morning. “Yeah,” he replied, slightly breathless. "A man sleeping in the park saw a girl fitting her description get into an SUV, holding what appeared to be a baby. But it was on the opposite side of town." Alain quickly explained before rushing past Margot to inform his stepfather, but she grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Who else knows about this?" she asked, scanning the room to ensure no one was listening. “Who else is aware of this?” she repeated. “Just the guy I was with. Why?” he asked, frowning in confusion, and Margot stepped closer, gripping his shoulders. “Because you can’t tell anyone else about this,” she said in a low voice. Alain's confusion grew, so she leaned in and elaborated, her voice even quieter. “Don’t you see? This solves our problem. With her out of the picture, it’ll be easier for us to get rid of Francois. Even better if she turns up dead somewhere.” She didn’t say the last part aloud, but the implication hung in the air. Alain's expression gradually changed to a smile as he realized what his mother was saying. “You need to get with the program, Alain. I won’t always be here to hold your hand,” she said, releasing him and stepping back. “What about Felix? He heard everything.” Alain said, but Margot quickly raised her hand. “Don’t worry about that; I’ll take care of it,” she whispered, and just then, Alain’s phone rang. He pulled it out and glanced at the screen, frowning. “It’s Logan. I need to take it.” “Go ahead,” Margot nodded. “I have a call to make too.” She stepped out onto the terrace, making sure she was out of Francois's earshot, and called Laurent. "Listen, we may have a problem. Someone gave Alain a lead in front of your pal. Do whatever it takes to maintain his silence. Also, make sure no one searches the location I am about to send you, at least not until you have confirmed she will not be found there. Any information discovered must be reported to you first. Laurent, you need to step up your game. This is the break we’ve been waiting for.” Laurent said he understood, but Margot saw movement out of the corner of her eye and quickly changed her tone. “Listen, Laurent,” she said louder. "We pay you handsomely to keep this family safe. I do not want to hear anything from you other than, "We found her." Do you understand what I am saying?" She ended the call without waiting for a response and turned to Francois who stood just a short distance away, watching her. Exhaling, she was relieved he had not heard her. And she made a mental note to be careful. It would be disastrous if he suspected she did not truly want his brat found. Before she could say anything, François's phone buzzed, and after looking at it, he rushed inside, rushing past Margot, who wondered if he received a new lead. She tried to ask, but François was already on a call, leaving her standing there. She was about to follow him when the sound of shoes tapping against the hard tiles behind her caused her to pause. Her eyes widened with surprise as she turned. “Logan? This is a surprise. We didn’t know you were coming over. We—” “-Have there been any developments?” Logan abruptly cut her off, an unsettling expression on his face prompting Margot to whisper in her head how much he despised him. “Developments?” Margot asked, perplexed by what he was talking about. “With Vera. Have you found anything?” He clarified with a clenched jaw, instantly twisting her expression into one of confusion, taken aback by his unexpected and unwelcome concern. How did he even know she had gone missing? She wanted nothing more than to tell him to leave and mind his own business, but she knew better. Alain had recently begun working with Logan, and he knew she had to be cautious if she wanted her son to succeed. Logan had a lot of influence. "No, not yet, but our people are working on it. Thank you for your concern.” Logan had already turned his back on her by the time she finished, pulling out his phone and placing it against his ear. Margot huffed and leaned against the counter, crossing her arms as she watched him leave. The last thing she needed was his people searching for Vera, too. He was a threat to her plan. Just then, Alain entered, and she opened her mouth to speak, but he spoke first, confirming her worst nightmare. “We have a problem. Logan’s having his people look for Vera,” he whisper-yelled, rushing toward her, looking spooked. “Why? No one asked for his help.” Margot asked, getting even more confused now. “He says he wants to help. I tried telling him we’ve got it covered, but he won’t back off.” “Damn it, Alain! We don’t need this.” "This is not my fault; I had no idea he was coming here until a few minutes ago." "I'm not blaming you; I'm just frustrated, okay? Since when does Logan care about someone other than himself, anyway? This is a problem, Alain. You need to do something.” “What can I do? You know I don’t control Logan.” “I don’t know, Alain! Just th—” “Is everything okay?” A voice boomed behind her and Alain, and they both froze when they turned to see Francois standing there, staring at them. Did he hear them?