The door opened all the way, exposing a narrow, freezing hallway that smelled of damp drywall, stale grease, and something heavy and sweet—like rot or fever.

Daniel didn't step aside. He stood like a brick wall between Richard Vance and the three sleeping children.

"Custody?" Daniel scoffed, his voice dropping into a dangerous, low rumble. "Where were you three hours ago when these kids were freezing in a condemned building while their mother was dying on the floor?"

Richard Vance didn't flinch. He adjusted his expensive silk tie, his face completely devoid of warmth. "My client—and my family—have been searching for Sarah and these children for four years, Mr. Mercer. Sarah took off with my late brother Julian’s children after his death, hiding them in slums under fake names. She is mentally unstable and unfit."

"She was terrified!" Lucy suddenly shouted, jumping up from the couch, her small fists clenched at her sides. "You hurt her! You locked her in that big house and took her medicine away!"

"Lucy, quiet," Richard said calmly, as if scolding a pet. He turned back to the CPS officer. "As you can see, Officer, the children have been brainwashed by a mother suffering from severe paranoid delusions. I have a court-ordered temporary guardianship decree signed by Judge Harrison this morning."

The CPS worker stepped forward nervously. "Mr. Mercer... Mr. Vance possesses legal documentation naming him as the children's paternal uncle and emergency guardian. Until the mother recovers—if she recovers—the state requires us to place the children in a verified, stable environment."

"Stable environment?" Daniel stepped right into Vance's personal space, his broad shoulders towering over the lawyer. "I am their biological uncle. My sister is fifty feet away in an ICU room fighting for her life because your family drove her into hiding."

"You own a greasy auto repair shop in a working-class neighborhood, Mr. Mercer," Vance sneered softly, so only Daniel could hear. "You live in a two-bedroom house. You don't have the legal capital, the income, or the status to challenge the Vance Trust in family court. Step aside, or I'll have these officers arrest you for interference."

The two police officers shifted uncomfortably, resting their hands near their utility belts.

Daniel looked back at Lucy. She was trembling violently, her eyes filled with the exact same terror he had seen in Patel's Market when she was cornered over two cans of milk.

He knew he couldn't fight two police officers in a hospital waiting room. If he got arrested tonight, he would be locked in a cell while Vance walked out the door with Sarah's children.

Daniel took a slow, deep breath, forcing his temper back under iron control.

"You aren't taking them anywhere tonight," Daniel said coldly to Vance. "It's three in the morning. They are medical patients under pediatric observation for severe malnutrition."

The CPS officer nodded quickly. "He's right, Mr. Vance. Medical protocol requires twenty-four hours of pediatric clearance before transfer."

Vance checked his silver watch, letting out a dismissive sigh. "Fine. Nine o'clock tomorrow morning, Mr. Mercer. Enjoy your seven hours with them. Because by noon, you will never see them again."

Vance turned on his heel and walked out down the polished corridor, his hard leather shoes clicking like a ticking clock against the floor.

Daniel turned back to Lucy. He knelt down in front of her, taking her small, cold hands in his.