Albert lets out a miserable whine.
Erin bites her lip. “He seemed normal. Hospital scrubs, an ID badge, and no, I didn’t read it.”
“Oh, he had a small tattoo of a cross on his inner wrist, if that’s important?” Isla looks at us.
“Left?” I ask her. “Or right?”
She thinks for about a second. “Left.”
“Fuck,” Demyan says.
Erin frowns at her husband. “What?”
“It’s what some of Simonov’s men wear to show who they belong to,” I say.
“And then she didn’t come back,” adds Isla as Albert whines again.
My heart sinks.
Erin wraps her arms around herself. “Even with Albert going crazy after she left, we didn’t think about it. We let him out, and he just scratched and barked at the door, like he wanted out.”
“We put it down to him freaking out and wanting Alina. She said he’s skittish,” Isla mutters.
“So how long has it been?”
“Over an hour, maybe two,” Isla says. “We didn’t pay attention, mainly because we both know how long waits are in hospitals, and if they have the ultrasound on a different floor, then…”
“Then,” Erin says, “it might take forever, and he did say they were booked solid.” She lets out a shuddery breath. “We didn’t think anything was wrong until the doctor came in.”
“He wanted to know where Alina was. He had the blood test results, and the moment we told him about the ultrasound, he took off and alerted security.” Isla shakes her head. “He didn’t even pay attention to the contraband dog.”
The conversation slows time down, even though everything’s taking mere minutes.
It fucking feels like hours.
Demyan’s already on his phone, barking orders. No one’s coming in or out of this hospital. Which I’m fine with, but…
My stomach turns sickeningly. What if she’s already gone?
He catches the expression on my face and hangs up. “She’s still here. I have someone going over the CCTV, and the guards are already watching all exits. They’d have seen her go or seen her leave on the footage.”
“What about the hallways?” I ask.
“The CCTV’s just at the main entrances and exits and the waiting area, plus reception. And the stairwells.” A muscle flexes in his jaw.
“She’s here somewhere. But this fucking place is big. He could have moved her from your private area to the main part of the hospital.” I hold Albert tight. “She could be fucking anywhere.”
Wait. Maybe Albert can send us in the right direction. He knows her smell.
“Hey, Albert? You think you can show us where Alina went?”
He barks, and we look at each other.
Demyan nods. “Worth a try.”
“Find the direction, Albert,” I whisper.
I open the door and put Albert down.
