Baron stopped walking. He stared at Brooklyn, his chest tightening with a sudden, irrational surge of anger.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Baron demanded, his voice echoing off the sterile walls. "Get back to your room."

Brooklyn did not blink. She did not slow her pace.

She didn't even give him a fraction of her peripheral vision.

She kept her chin high, her eyes fixed dead ahead. She walked with bare feet, her steps shaky but determined despite the pain radiating through her pelvis.

She walked right past him, treating him like a piece of invisible trash on the floor.

Baron's breath hitched. A hot spike of fury shot up his spine. His authority had never been ignored like this.

He spun around. He reached out with his large, heavy hand, aiming to grab her shoulder and force her to face him.

Brooklyn felt him move. She lurched to the side, narrowly avoiding his grasp as she stumbled toward the elevator.

Ding.

The stainless steel doors of the elevator slid open right in front of her.

Brooklyn stepped into the empty cabin. She turned around and pressed the button for the lobby.

Baron stood in the hallway, his hand still suspended in the air. His face was a mask of dark, thunderous rage.

The metal doors slowly slid shut, cutting off his furious glare.

As the elevator descended, the tension drained from Brooklyn's shoulders. She looked down at the bundle in her arms. She lowered her head and pressed her lips gently against the baby's warm forehead.

The elevator chimed. The doors opened to the bustling main lobby on the ground floor.

Brooklyn stepped out. She held the baby with one arm, her black silk dress flowing around her ankles.

Nurses behind the reception desk stopped typing. Patients in the waiting area turned their heads. Whispers broke out like a sudden gust of wind.

Brooklyn kept her eyes locked on the glass revolving doors. She pushed through them and stepped out into the blinding Los Angeles sunlight.

She squinted, the heat hitting her face.

Suddenly, a deafening, mechanical roar ripped through the air.

The concrete sidewalk beneath her feet began to vibrate.

Inside the lobby, people gasped and rushed to the glass windows.

Down the street, twelve massive, pitch-black armored Cadillac Escalades tore around the corner. They moved like a pack of steel wolves.

The screech of heavy tires hitting the asphalt pierced the air. The convoy slammed on their brakes, perfectly blocking all four lanes of traffic directly in front of the hospital.

Pedestrians screamed and backed away. The hospital security guards froze on the steps, their hands hovering over their radios, absolutely terrified to intervene.

In the exact center of the blockade, a custom midnight-blue Rolls-Royce Phantom purred to a halt.

The doors of the Escalades flew open simultaneously. Dozens of men in black tactical gear, wearing earpieces and dark sunglasses, poured out. They instantly formed a defensive perimeter around the hospital entrance.

The rear door of the Rolls-Royce was pulled open by a guard.

Drew Gibson stepped out. He wore a bespoke three-piece suit, his gold-rimmed glasses catching the sunlight.

His eyes scanned the steps and locked onto Brooklyn. The coldness in his gaze melted instantly, replaced by a raw, agonizing heartbreak.

He took the stairs two at a time. The tactical guards shoved the gawking crowd back, clearing a wide path for him.

Drew reached her. He immediately stripped off his suit jacket. The fabric was still warm from his body heat. He draped it over Brooklyn's shivering shoulders.

He reached out and carefully took the sleeping baby from her tired arms.

"I've got you," Drew whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "Let's go home."

Brooklyn's throat tightened. Her eyes burned, but she nodded. She pulled the large coat tighter around herself and followed him down the steps.

Director Alistair came sprinting out of the revolving doors, panting heavily.

Drew paused at the bottom of the stairs. He turned his head and shot Alistair a look so filled with lethal intent that the air seemed to freeze.

Alistair's knees buckled. He collapsed onto the concrete, gasping for air.

The guards shielded Brooklyn and Drew as they slid into the plush leather seats of the Rolls-Royce. The heavy door slammed shut.

The engines roared to life. The massive convoy accelerated, tearing away from Mount Sinai Hospital and leaving a cloud of exhaust in its wake. One of the tactical guards stayed behind, flashing a high-level federal clearance badge at the stunned hospital security, ensuring no local authorities would interfere.

An hour later, in a private lounge overlooking the glittering lights of downtown Los Angeles, Baron sat in a leather armchair. He clinked his crystal glass of whiskey against his friend Kian's glass, celebrating his newfound freedom, dismissing the chaos he'd left behind at the hospital, completely unaware of the empire he had just thrown away.