“Avoid the tollways,” Ryker said. “Use the back roads through the forest preserve.”

“Understood,” Marco said, and the line cut out.

Ryker turned to me, his face grim. “State police? At three in the morning?”

“Voss has connections in the county sheriff’s department,” I said, the pieces starting to fall into place. “And the state attorney’s office. He has spent twenty years building those alliances.”

“He’s moving fast,” Ryker said.

“Because he knows once the twins are legally yours, the Steel trust is locked away from him forever,” I said. “He needs to get them back before we can get to a judge.”

A soft sound from the hallway made us both freeze.

Ryker’s hand went immediately to the holster under his arm.

I gripped the paperweight tighter.

The heavy oak door of the study slowly creaked open.

A small, pale face peered through the crack.

It was Lily.

Her dark eyes were wide with fear, her messy brown curls falling over her shoulders.

She was clutching a worn, stuffed rabbit to her chest.

Behind her, Owen stood, his thumb in his mouth, his shoulders shaking slightly.