Twelve Seconds
Chapter 03 - Twelve Seconds
Ethan woke the next morning to eighty-three missed notifications.
Strangers called him a monster.
Someone had posted his old employee photo.
Someone else found the apartment building where he lived with his foster mother, June, and spray-painted KIDNAPPER across the sidewalk.
June stood at the kitchen window in her robe, staring outside.
"Don't read the comments," she said.
"I already did."
"You know what happened."
"Doesn't seem to matter."
June turned toward him.
She had taken Ethan in when he was fourteen, after three foster placements and two group homes. She knew what he looked like when he was angry.
This was different.
This was shame.
"Ethan," she said, "you saved that baby."
He looked down.
"I touched someone else's kid. That's all people see."
June sat beside him.
"You heard a child in trouble. You did what nobody else did."
His face changed.
For a second, he was no longer twenty-two.
"I should've done it before."
June knew exactly what he meant.
Her voice softened.
"Sophie wasn't your fault."
Ethan stood so quickly the chair scraped backward.
"I don't want to talk about Sophie."
He grabbed his keys and left.
Across town, Madison sat in a pediatric urgent-care room while a doctor examined Noah.
Blake paced near the door.
"He's fine," Blake kept saying. "This is ridiculous."
Dr. Patel ignored him.
After checking Noah's temperature and hydration, she looked at Madison.
"Your son appears stable now. But based on your description, he may have been experiencing early heat stress."
Madison went still.
"How long would that take?"
"It depends on temperature, airflow, clothing, and the vehicle. Cars can heat quickly."
Blake folded his arms.
"She said two minutes."
Dr. Patel looked at him.
"Then I would strongly suggest making sure the timeline is accurate."
On the drive home, Madison said nothing.
Blake filled the silence.
"That doctor was covering herself."
Madison watched buildings slide past the window.
"I thought you had Noah."
Blake's hands tightened on the steering wheel.
"What?"
"When I went into the office, I handed you the diaper bag."
"You said the nanny was coming."
"No. You said the nanny was coming."
Blake looked at her.
Just one second.
Then back at the road.
But one second was enough.
Madison felt something cold settle inside her.
May you like
Because for the first time since the parking lot, she remembered exactly what she had said that morning.
And Blake had just lied about it.
