No Second Chances Ex-husband (Lauren and Ethan) novel Chapter 194

He Chased 194

LAUREN’S POV

The ride felt endless. Every second dragged like an eternity as I laid there cramped inside the trunk, counting the rhythmic hums of the tires against the asphalt. My back ached from the hard metal floor, but I didn’t dare move too much. The smallest sound might give me away. All I could do was hold my breath and hope I’d made the right choice sneaking along.

Minutes bled into hours. I could feel my anxiety climbing higher with every passing moment, the air inside the trunk growing warmer, thicker like it was closing in on me. My palms were damp, clutching at the side of the trunk for balance each time the car swerved or slowed. I tried to distract myself by focusing on Aria- her laugh, her sweet voice when she’d call me Mommy. I had to hold on to that image. It was the only thing keeping me sane right now.

Finally, the car jerked to a stop. My breath caught. The hum of the engine faded into silence. For a moment, everything was still. Then I heard doors opening–one, two followed by muffled voices and the sound of boots crunching against gravel. That must mean they had arrived.

I stayed completely still. My heart was pounding so hard that I was sure someone outside could hear it. This had to be the street. The street where Ethan was keeping my daughter.

But I couldn’t just burst out of the car now. I had to wait, had to give them enough time to search all the houses, we might have gotten the street address but there were still multiple houses they needed to search and the chances of finding Ethan in the first house was low, besides if Roman saw me too early, it would all be over he’d send me straight back to the house. So I waited. Seconds stretched unbearably long.

Then, out of nowhere, a voice thundered across the distance sharp and commanding.

“Police! Drop your weapons!”

The sound pierced through the stillness, making me jump. My breath hitched in my throat. For a split second, everything went silent again, like the world was holding its breath.

Then-

BANG!

BANG! BANG!

Gunfire exploded in the distance, deafening and brutal. My heart nearly stopped. The shots came fast, echoing through the street, bouncing off the walls of the trunk. I gasped, my entire body trembling. I wanted to believe it was warning shots but deep down, I knew better.

No one fires at the police unless they’re cornered. Unless they’re desperate.

My stomach twisted as realization hit me. This was it. Ethan was here.

With the kind of money and power he once had, there was no way he’d leave a kidnapped child unguarded. His men must’ve panicked when they saw the cops, and the only thing they knew how to do was shoot.

Roman had been right, it wasn’t going to be a simple recovery mission. It was a war zone.

Still… a fragile sense of hope flickered inside me. Gunfire meant resistance, and resistance meant there was something or someone worth protecting inside that house. Aria.

The thought alone gave me strength. Hold on, baby, I whispered in my head. Mommy’s coming for you.

I slowly pushed open the trunk lid, just an inch at first, squinting against the brightness outside. The air was heavy with the smell of gunpowder and dust. My eyes darted around, the street was eerily quiet now, but the echo of chaos still lingered in the

air.

Two bodies lay sprawled near the front of the car, blood seeping into the cracked pavement. My stomach lurched at the sight.

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They weren’t police officers; their clothes were too rough, too casual. Ethan’s men, maybe.

I slipped out carefully, closing the trunk behind me as quietly as I could. My knees shook slightly when I stood. The neighborhood was a blur of small houses lined close together, their windows shut tight, curtains drawn.

I didn’t know which one Roman and the police had entered, but then

BANG!

A burst of gunfire came from the house right beside me, the sound tearing through the air. I flinched, my whole body stiffening My breath came in quick, shaky gasps. Fear gripped me hard, every instinct screaming for me to run.

But I didn’t.

Because somewhere in that chaos, my daughter was waiting for me.

Ignoring the pounding in my chest, I ran toward the house, my shoes slapping against the concrete. The front door was wide open, hanging off its hinges. Inside was worse bodies lay scattered across the floor, a few still twitching weakly. The smell of blood hit me so strongly I almost gagged all this happened in a few minutes, and I forced myself forward, my eyes darting around.

“Aria?” I whispered under my breath, my voice barely audible over the ringing in my ears.

No answer. Just silence.

Room after room, I searched, but each one was empty, beds overturned, drawers pulled open, like someone had been in a hurry to find or destroy something.

Then, as I stepped into the last hallway, something small and shiny caught my eye. I knelt down, reaching for it.

It was an earring. A small pink one shaped like a heart.

My breath caught in my throat. I knew this piece, it was Aria’s. I’d bought it for her months ago, She’d promised to “take good care of it forever.”

A sob built in my throat. She’d been here.

“Hold on, baby,” I whispered, my hands trembling as I clutched the earring tight.

But Ethan and Roman… they were nowhere in sight. Neither was the investigator. I had to find them.

I ran toward the kitchen, my footsteps echoing through the house. It was empty too, but then something at the corner of my eye caught my attention. Movement.

I crept closer to the window and peeked outside.

There they were.

In the backyard stood three figures Roman, the investigator, and Ethan. The investigator’s gun was raised, aimed straight at Ethan. Roman stood beside him, his hand out, trying to de–escalate.

And then my gaze dropped lower and my heart nearly stopped.

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