The Billionaire Ex-Wife's Return (Cynthia and Ethan) novel Chapter 283

Chapter 283

Third Person POV

Anna sat back in her chair, her expression calculating despite the tears still wet on her cheeks.

"I'll take you to the place," she said quietly. "But I need guarantees."

Detective Susan raised an eyebrow. "Guarantees?"

"A comfortable prison," Anna said, meeting the detective's gaze steadily. "Less restrictive. Protection from Grace and Pascal if they're ever caught. And assurance that Hayden will be cared for properly while I'm serving my sentence."

Detective Susan's jaw tightened. "You're in no position to make demands, Ms. Walker."

"Then I guess you'll have to find the cabin on your own," Anna replied, her voice hardening slightly. "Good luck with that. It's not on any official records. Jerome bought it under a shell company that doesn't exist anymore."

Cynthia leaned forward, her hands flat on the table.

"Anna," she said quietly. "Please. If you know where Ethan is, just tell us. Don't make this about…"

"I'm not making this about anything except survival," Anna interrupted. "Mine and Hayden's. I'm willing to help you find Ethan. I'm willing to cooperate fully. But I need to know my daughter will be okay. That I won't spend the next twenty years in maximum security being someone's target."

Detective Susan and Cynthia exchanged a long look.

Then Detective Susan pulled out her phone and stepped out of the room.

Five minutes later, she returned, her expression neutral.

"The DA is willing to negotiate," she said. "Reduced sentence in exchange for cooperation and testimony against Grace and Pascal Walker. Medium security facility with good behavior considerations. And we'll make sure Hayden is placed with appropriate family or foster care."

Anna studied her for a long moment.

Then she nodded.

"Okay," she said. "I'll take you there."

…

Twenty minutes later, a convoy of police vehicles pulled out of the station.

Two patrol cars, one unmarked detective vehicle, and the SUV Anna was riding in with a social worker and Hayden.

And trailing behind, against explicit police instructions, was Kevin's car with Cynthia in the passenger seat.

"This is a bad idea," Kevin said for the third time. "The police told you to stay back."

"I don't care," Cynthia replied, her eyes fixed on the road ahead. "If Ethan's there, I need to be there."

"If there's a confrontation—if Pascal or Grace are there—you could get hurt," Kevin argued.

"I'm not staying behind," Cynthia said firmly. "So you can either keep driving, or I'll get out and call an Uber."

Kevin muttered something under his breath that sounded like a curse, but he kept driving.

…

The convoy headed east, leaving the city proper and moving into the industrial outskirts of Missford.

Old warehouses. Abandoned factories. Lots filled with rusting equipment and forgotten machinery.

Not exactly the kind of neighborhood where someone would expect to find a hiding place.

Which, Cynthia realized, was probably exactly the point.

Anna directed them through a series of increasingly narrow streets until they reached what looked like an old bus depot that had been converted into makeshift housing.

A "bushouse cabin," as Anna had called it.

The structure was massive—an old garage that had once housed municipal buses, now sectioned off into crude living quarters. The metal siding was rusted and peeling, windows covered with cardboard or boarded up entirely.

It looked abandoned, forgotten.

Perfect for hiding.

The convoy pulled to a stop about a block away, out of sight.

Detective Susan got out of her vehicle and approached Anna's SUV.

"This is it?" she asked.

Anna nodded, pointing. "That one. Third section from the left. Pascal used to crash here when he didn't want Grace knowing where he was."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify