I was seven when I pushed my newborn brother and sister to a hospital in an old wheelbarrow because Mom hadn’t moved in three days. I thought getting the babies there would end the nightmare—until police found a letter beside my mother warning that a man was coming for us.

By 5:30 AM, the emergency sirens were blaring across the city.

The unmarked SUV skidded to a halt outside the ambulance bay of St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

Agent Vance, who had successfully escaped the house through a secondary tactical route with the state police unit, was already waiting at the doors alongside a squad of heavily armed SWAT officers.

"Sterling's vehicle was spotted heading toward the highway ten minutes ago," Vance reported as Miller and I sprinted inside. "He knows he lost the primary box, so he's coming here to eliminate the witnesses."

"He won't get past the lobby," Miller said, pulling out his badge. "Where are the babies?"

"NICU, Floor 3," Vance said. "We cleared the entire wing. Dr. Sarah Kim is holding them in the secure surgical suite."

We rode the high-speed service elevator up to the third floor. The hallway was completely dark except for the green emergency exit signs. Armed officers stood at every corner.

Dr. Kim—a kind, middle-aged pediatrician with soft eyes—met us at the double steel doors.

"They're doing remarkable, Maya," Dr. Kim smiled, guiding me into the quiet, warm room.

There, sitting side by side inside a heated twin incubator, were Leo and Mia.

Their tiny cheeks were pink. They were breathing smoothly, wrapped in fresh, soft blue and pink blankets. Color had returned to their skin.

I walked up to the clear acrylic wall of the incubator, pressing my palm against the glass.

Leo opened his tiny dark eyes, his small fist reaching out toward where my hand rested.

"Hi, buddy," I whispered, tears spilling freely over my cheeks. "I told you I'd get us help."

"Maya," Agent Vance said, stepping beside me with a laptop open on a stainless-steel medical tray. "We recovered the steel box from the house, but Sterling's men had damaged the main hard drives with a magnet during the raid. The data is corrupted. We don't have enough to convict him."

I looked at Agent Vance, then reached deep into the pocket of my hospital jacket.

I pulled out the small, heavy silver USB drive and set it on the laptop keyboard.

"Will this work?" I asked softly.