SHE DRAGGED HER LITTLE GIRL ACROSS THE FLOOR WHILE SHE CRIED “MOMMY, PLEASE STOP!”… BUT THE MOM HAD NO IDEA HER HUSBAND WAS ABOUT TO WALK THROUGH THE DOOR AND SEE EVERYTHING.

My heart hammered against my ribs.

I kept my eyes on the road, trying not to look panicked. I didn't want Emily to be scared.

"Daddy?" she asked from the backseat. "Why is that car following us?"

She was five. She was observant. Too observant.

I took a deep breath. "It's probably just going the same way we are, baby."

But I knew it wasn't.

I turned onto a side street. The black car turned too.

I sped up. It sped up.

I slowed down. It slowed down.

My mind raced. Who was this? Rachel's accomplice? What did they want?

I thought about Emily in the backseat. Innocent. Trusting.

I had to get us somewhere safe.

I reached for my phone and called Detective Carter.

He answered on the first ring. "Anderson?"

"Someone's following us," I said, keeping my voice low. "Black sedan. Tinted windows. They've been on us since we left the house."

"Where are you?" Detective Carter's voice was sharp with urgency.

"Headed toward my sister's place on Maplewood Drive. About ten minutes out."

"Stay on the line with me," he said. "I'm sending units to intercept. Don't stop. Don't pull over. Keep driving."

I nodded, even though he couldn't see me. "Okay."

Emily was quiet in the backseat. I could see her in the rearview mirror, watching the car behind us. Her little face was serious.

"Daddy," she said softly. "Is it the bad person?"

I didn't lie to her. Not this time.

"I think it might be, baby," I said. "But the police are coming. Everything's going to be okay."

I took a turn. Then another. The black car stayed right behind us.

I could see the flashing lights in the distance now. Police cars coming toward us.

The black car must have seen them too.

Suddenly, it swerved. It turned down a side street and sped away.

"Detective, they're running," I said into the phone. "They turned onto Oak Street."

"We got units heading that way," he said. "Are you and Emily okay?"

I looked back at my daughter. She was pale, but she was holding her stuffed rabbit tightly. She looked at me and nodded.

"We're okay," I said.

We met the police at the entrance to my sister's community.

Detective Carter was there in person. He got out of his car and approached mine.

"Are you sure you're both all right?" he asked.

"We're fine," I said. "Did they get the car?"

"Lost them," he admitted. "But we got the license plate. We're running it now. And we're going to have officers patrolling this area too. You'll be safe here."

My sister Megan was waiting at her front door. She'd known something was wrong from my voice on the phone.

When she saw us, she ran down the steps and pulled Emily into a hug.

"Oh, baby," she whispered. "I'm so glad you're here."

She looked at me. Her eyes were full of worry. "What's going on, James?"

"Not here," I said. "Inside."

We went into her house. Megan made us tea while Emily played with her golden retriever, Max.

I told Megan everything.

About what I'd walked in on. About Rachel not being who she said she was. About the fake adoption. The plane tickets. The car following us.

Megan's face went pale as I spoke.

"I can't believe it," she whispered when I finished. "She seemed so... normal. So nice."

"She was good at pretending," I said bitterly.

Megan reached across the table and took my hand. "You did the right thing, James. You got Emily out. You saved her."

"I should have seen it sooner," I said. The guilt was eating me alive.

"You couldn't have known," she said firmly. "None of us could. She was a professional. A con artist. The only thing that matters is that Emily is safe now. And you're going to make sure she stays that way."

She was right.

I looked over at Emily. She was laughing as Max licked her face.

She was safe. For now.

But I knew this wasn't over.

Rachel was in jail, but her accomplice was still out there.

And whoever they were, they knew where we were.

They knew who we were.

And they might try again.

I pulled out my phone and called a lawyer again. Not my regular one this time.

A specialist.

Someone who handled custody battles. And fraud. And dangerous situations.

I needed to make sure Emily was legally mine. Completely.