Under Pressure

While the morning sun had barely touched the cold hospital walls, Louis sat in a waiting room; his mind fluttered between a sterile present and a chaotic mess of his past. Victoria, unconscious in her seat, weighed with every minute going by unresponsive in his conscience. As much as he'd wanted to focus on her alone, outside kept yanking him back to some reality he could not flee from. The manhunt for Daniella had reached a fever pitch. The police had hunted her since the shooting incident, and with each passing day without finding her, the situation grew even tenser. The media reported on the incident in real-time, and speculations linked her to the shooting. Headlines screamed for answers, and Louis was right at the center of it all. As he sat there, his phone buzzed on the chair beside him. He picked it up and saw a message from Claire. The police are here. They want to talk. Louis felt a wave of tension wash over him. He'd been dreading this. The police had been patient with him so far, but with days passing and no sign of Daniella showing up, they were running out of patience. A rap at the door took him from his reverie. Two detectives came into the waiting room, their faces unsmiling and purposeful. Foster was the older of the two: a tall man with salt-and-pepper hair and a no-nonsense demeanor. Harris was his younger partner and quiet, yet equally keen-eyed in sizing up Louis. "Mr. Sebastian," Foster acknowledged him with a jerk of his head. "Appreciate you taking the time to speak with us." Louis rose to his feet and gestured for them to take a seat, moving tight, matching the rest of his body. "I want to help in any way I can." Foster and Harris exchanged a glance and then sat down opposite Louis. For a long moment, there was an awkward silence until Foster said, his eyes riveted on Louis, "You do realize the situation is growing more critical? We're doing everything in our power to locate Daniella, but we'll need a greater level of cooperation from you if we're going to find her." Louis swallowed hard, his jaw clenched. "I've told you everything I know. Daniella was. Unstable after Malcom's death. She blamed Victoria for everything. But I didn't know she was capable of this." Harris spoke up, firm but composed. "You say you didn't know, but Daniella's behavior was building up for quite a period of time, wasn't it? From what we have gathered, there were incidents of verbal threats, confrontations with Victoria, and even rumors about her attempting to sabotage Victoria's career. Yet, no one took any legal action." Louis shook his head as frustration mounted. "We never thought it would go this far. Daniella was angry, but none of us believed she would hurt someone." "Well, she did," said Foster matter-of-factly. "And now she's on the run. You know her better than anyone, Louis. Where would she go?" Louis leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples as the weight of the question settled on him. He had asked himself that very question since the shooting, but nothing seemed to add up. Daniella knew how to disappear-she had the resources, the connections, and the will to stay hidden. But where would she go when the walls started closing in? "I've had people looking for her, just like you," Louis said, his voice tight. "Private investigators, security teams. But she's gone completely off the grid. No one's seen or heard from her." "That's not good enough," Harris said sharply, leaning forward. "We're talking about a woman who nearly killed your wife, and every second she's out there is another second of risk. She's desperate, and desperate people make dangerous decisions." Louis's heart was racing in his chest. He knew that they were right, that Daniella, cornered and afraid, was capable of anything. Still, he had no idea where to find her, which fact was tearing him to pieces. "Look," Louis said, his voice tight with emotion. "Daniella's smart. She's probably using some old connections, laying low somewhere no one would think to look. I've been trying to figure out where that might be, but I'm coming up with nothing." He exchanged a look with Harris once more before pursuing the topic further. "You need to try harder, Mr. Sebastian. The time is almost at an end. We have the media hot on our heels, and the people want answers. We can hold them off only for so long until they begin to probe deeper into your family history. If we don't turn up Daniella soon, things are going to get a lot worse - for all of you." Louis's fists clenched, and his mind whirred furiously. He knew what they were all insinuating here. The longer Daniella was on the run, the more the public would begin speculating about what happened with the Sebastian family. The press had already begun spinning conspiracy theories about the shooting, whether he had covered for his sister, whether the family was hiding more secrets. A dangerous narrative that could ruin everything. "I'll stop at nothing until I find her," Louis said finally, his voice low but determined. "Just tell me what you need from me." Harris nodded, pleased that he'd provided a suitable answer. "We need access to whatever information you have on her old contacts, financial records, and any record that will yield a lead for us. Also, we need to know whether she has contacted anyone in your family. Anyone must know where she is." "I've turned over everything I can think of," Louis replied, huffiness creeping into his tone. "Bank accounts, phone records, emails. Even her old apartments, house rentals, nothing. And to my knowledge, she hasn't contacted any of the family members." "Attempted to contact you?" Foster pressed, eyes narrowing. "Any contact whatsoever since the shooting?" Louis shook his head. "None. I haven't heard from her since that day." Foster let out a deep sigh as he leaned back in his chair. "All right, but if anything does change, she calls you, and it's no more than a whisper-you call us immediately. Don't try to handle this on your own. She's dangerous, Louis. The sooner we bring her in, the better." Louis nodded, but the tightness in his chest didn't ease. "I'll let you know." With that, Foster and Harris stood to leave. "We'll be in touch," Foster said. Firmness in his voice was unmistakable. "In the meantime, keep thinking. There has to be something you're missing." They left Louis still sitting, fear and guilt swirling in his mind. He had already lost so much: Victoria lay in a hospital bed, Daniella was on the run, and the world watched his every step. He was supposed to find his sister. Not only to prevent her from doing worse but also to preserve what was left of his family.