What if she’d tripped outside? What if someone had seen her running and taken advantage? What if she’d been hurt, unable to call for help? His chest tightened with helpless dread, each fear louder than the last. Finally, unable to reason away the panic tightening around him, Evan reached for his phone.
The situation no longer felt like a misunderstanding or a joke gone too far. His wife had run out of the house terrified—and she hadn’t come back. With trembling hands, he dialed the police. The officers arrived quickly, their steady professionalism grounding Evan even as fear kept rising in him.