"Buy the bastards some milk," my wealthy fiancée laughed, flipping a twenty-dollar bill toward my ex-wife. I'd thrown her out of my life a year ago after believing she had cheated on me.

I held Maren as her entire world shattered for the second time.

Explaining to a mother that she had given birth to three children instead of two—and that one of them had been stolen while she lay unconscious in a hospital bed—was the most excruciating moment of my life.

When I showed her the certified hospital delivery log with three distinct birth weights and foot-prints, she collapsed into my arms, screaming a sound so desperate and guttural that it rattled the thin glass of the cabin windows.

"My baby..." she wept, clutching my shirt with a desperate strength. "They told me he didn't make it! They told me he was too weak... they wouldn't even let me hold him! They said they cremated him!"

"It was a lie," I hissed, wrapping my arms tighter around her, letting"It was a lie," I hissed, wrapping my arms tighter around her, letting her tears soak my jacket. "Tessa bribed the head of obstetrics at St. Jude’s. She took him, Maren. She’s been keeping him hidden."

Maren pulled back, her eyes suddenly burning with an icy, terrifying focus. The fragile, exhausted woman from moments ago vanished, replaced by a mother whose child had been taken by wolves.

"Where is he?" she demanded, her voice flat and deadly. "Where is my son, Rowan?"

"I'm going to find out," I promised. "Tessa thinks I'm still her foolish, obedient fiancé. The wedding is in two weeks. She believes she’s about to gain complete control over my family’s estate and merge our companies. I am going to play along until I have my hands on our son and every single person involved in this is behind bars."

Maren stared at me for a long time, evaluating my face, searching for any trace of the cold monster who had cast her out a year ago.

"You can't do this alone," she said firmly. "Tessa’s father, Richard Whitmore, has politicians and judges in his pocket. If they realize you know the truth before we secure the baby, that child will vanish forever."

"I know," I said. "Which is why you and the twins are coming with me tonight. Not to my house—to a secured compound in the mountains owned by my late grandfather. No one knows it exists except me. You will be safe there with round-the-clock armed security while I tear the Whitmore empire down from the inside."

Maren looked over at the two crate-cribs. Little Liam and Maya were fast asleep, completely unaware of the storm swirling around them.

"If you fail us again, Rowan," Maren whispered, stepping closer to me, her breath cold against my cheek, "I will kill you myself."

"If I fail you again," I replied honestly, "I'll save you the trouble and do it myself."

An hour later, under the cover of midnight darkness, my security team moved Maren and the twins into an armored van. As I watched the tail lights disappear into the winding mountain roads, I pulled out my phone.

There were six missed calls and three text messages from Tessa.

Tessa: "Where are you, darling? The caterers are waiting for us to choose the wedding menu. Don't leave me waiting."