“She told me I was being dramatic about the baby’s color.”

Officer Miller shifted his weight, his boots making a sharp squeak on the sterile floor.

“Did they lock the door knowing you were inside without a phone?” he asked.

“Yes,” I said.

“Landon kissed my cheek.”

“He told me to get some rest.”

“Then I heard the key turn in the lock from the outside.”

“I tried to call out to him, but my incision…”

I pressed my hand against my lower abdomen, where the sharp pain of the stitches still throbbed.

“I couldn’t move fast enough to get to the window before they drove away.”

Sarah Jenkins exchanged a long, telling look with Officer Miller.

“Mr. Pendelton told our responding officers that he heard you screaming through the glass,” Miller said.

“He said he had to use a garden spade to break the lock on the kitchen window.”

“Yes,” I said. “Arthur is the only reason we are alive.”

“If he hadn’t come over to bring some soup, I don’t know what would have happened.”

“I fell when I tried to reach the counter.”