After getting the room number from the nurses' station, Claire carried the little boy, Ryan Lancaster, down the hallway towards his father's hospital room.
Ryan's sobs had quieted, but his small hands still clung tightly to the fabric of her coat, as if afraid she might disappear.
She gently patted his back, offering a reassuring smile. "It's okay, sweetheart. We'll find your dad in no time."
Just as she turned the corner, a man suddenly rushed out of the hospital room. He looked to be in his early thirties—tall and broad-shouldered, his presence commanding and intense. With sharp, chiseled features, a straight nose, and a firm set to his lips, he exuded an air of authority.
Dressed in a dark suit with his tie slightly loosened, he looked both professional and slightly disheveled—like
