The most immaculately decorated packages can conceal the most sinister, fatal secrets. 🎀💀

While Julian and Vance geared up to hunt down Victoria, Elise sat on the cot, staring at her phone. She felt utterly helpless. She was a kindergarten teacher, not an action hero. But as she scrolled through her old text messages, trying to distract herself, she noticed something odd.

Two days ago, Marcus had texted her asking for the exact address of their new townhouse to "send a baby shower gift."

Elise’s blood ran cold. Julian had explicitly told Marcus not to send anything, insisting they wanted to keep their location entirely off the grid until the baby was born. Elise had given him the address anyway, thinking Marcus was just being sweet.

"Julian," Elise called out, her voice trembling. "Julian, you said Victoria was out of the country. How would she know where we live?"

Julian strapped a holster to his chest. "She has money, Elise. She hired a private investigator."

"No," Elise stood up, walking over to him with her phone. "Marcus asked for our address two days ago. He said he was sending a gift."

Julian froze. He stared at the text message on Elise’s screen. Marcus was his oldest friend. They had gone to Harvard Law together. But Marcus also handled the finances for Victoria’s father.

Vance stepped up behind Julian, looking at the screen. "Kid. Marcus just told you Victoria is in New Jersey. He gave you a location."

Julian’s eyes widened in horrifying realization. "It's an ambush. He's sending us into a trap."