My breath hitched.

At the same moment, the heavy wooden door of the room began to open again.

The door swung wide, hitting the rubber stopper on the wall with a dull thud.

A young man in a wrinkled gray suit stood in the doorway, holding a manila envelope.

He looked at the chart on the wall, then at me.

“Emma Parker?” he asked, his voice cracking slightly.

“Who are you?” Thomas demanded, stepping between the man and my bed.

“I’m a process server,” the man said, reaching out to hand the envelope toward Thomas. “These are court documents. Emergency petition for temporary custody.”

Victoria snatched the envelope before Thomas could touch it.

She ripped it open, her eyes scanning the pages with rapid, practiced movements.

“They filed an emergency ex parte motion,” Victoria said, her voice dropping an octave. “Margaret’s attorneys are claiming you are mentally unstable and physically unable to care for Ethan.”

“That’s a lie,” Laura whispered, her hand coming to rest on my shoulder.

“Of course it is,” Victoria said, looking up. “But they’ve secured a hearing for tomorrow morning at nine o’clock.”