After a messy and painful divorce from her ex-husband, Madeline decided to shift her focus entirely to her career. Her passion for medicine and her patients became her primary motivation-until she crossed paths with a blue-eyed detective who disrupt...
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Madeline had just finished her shift at Med and was finally able to enjoy some much-needed time to herself. After a long night, she took a quick shower and slipped into a dark blue turtleneck and light-wash jeans, the winter air outside prompting her to put on her boots. She loved the view of the snow-covered streets outside her window, a rare sense of peace in the chaotic city of Chicago.
With a smile, she grabbed her jacket and purse, heading out to the grocery store to pick up some essentials for dinner and wine. However, by the time she got back to her apartment, she was feeling too tired to cook. Instead, she decided to order pizza, eager to unwind with her favorite comfort food.
Just as she settled in to watch a show, there was a knock at the door. She paused the TV, grabbed the cash from the coffee table, and rushed toward the door. But when she opened it, her smile vanished. It wasn't the delivery man she expected. Standing before her was a man dressed in black, wearing a mask that covered his entire face except for his eyes.
Her instincts kicked in. Madeline tried to slam the door shut, but the man was too quick, his foot wedging between the door and the frame. With a violent shove, the door was pushed open, sending Madeline crashing to the floor with a loud thud.
"Hello, sunshine," he said with a mocking tone as he closed the door behind him.
Fear gripped Madeline as she scrambled to move away from him, her heart pounding in her chest. She tried to reach for her phone, but the man grabbed her hair, yanking her up and slamming her into the shelf that held her family pictures and books. Pain shot through her back as she hit the hard surface.
"Ahh, look at this!" He taunted, grabbing a picture of her and Jay from their first date. "Looks like your boyfriend won't be here to save you. Your father owes me, and I decided, why not kidnap his daughter to get my money back?" he shouted, throwing the picture on the ground with a violent crash.
Madeline stayed silent, her body trembling in fear. His slap stung her face, and he began to destroy her home. Her once peaceful apartment was now a wreck, her personal belongings shattered and scattered across the floor. He tore apart everything—her flowers, the pictures of her with Jay, and the ones with her family and friends.
He then grabbed a shard of glass from the broken coffee table, the sharp edge glinting as he brought it dangerously close to her neck. Madeline's eyes welled up with tears as she stared at him, her body freezing in terror. She knew this might be it—her life would end in this moment. She would never see Jay again, never laugh with her family or hold her godchildren. All because her father had crossed the wrong man.
"If only your father didn't steal from me," he sneered, dragging the glass across her stomach and arms. The pain was unbearable, and Madeline gasped for breath as he continued to beat her.
The room seemed to spin, and her breaths became shallow. Madeline coughed up blood, the metallic taste overwhelming. Her vision blurred, and the world around her felt like it was closing in.
