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After slipping my feet into both boots, I straighten and look at Zane. “You planning to try to tell me I need to get back in bed?”

Zane shakes his head. “I know better. And if it were Tessa that was taken? There’s not a single thing in the world I wouldn’t risk to get her back.”

“Good. Then what’s the plan?”

“We’re working on one.”

“He’s going to kill her as soon as possible,” I tell Zane. “He has no reason to keep her alive.”

“Actually, thanks to quick thinking by Sawyer and Mrs. Marooney, that’s not entirely true.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” I demand, frustration growing every second we’re here. With her in his grasp, Leon has no reason to keep Dahlia alive. In fact, letting her survive is a risk to everything he’s been trying to kill for.

Zane withdraws his phone, taps on the screen a few times, then turns it around so a video starts playing.

A blonde sitting behind a news counter smiles at the camera. “This just in: We have a major update on the Phillip Prescott estate. As it turns out, he has a missing heir, and News 7 has the scoop.”

The screen splits, putting the newscaster on one side and Mrs. Marooney on the other, filmed with what looks like a cell phone camera.

“Joining me today is Mrs. Betty Marooney, close friends with the late Phillip Prescott. Good morning, Mrs. Marooney. I am so glad you could join me.”

“Morning. I’m grateful to be here.”

“Can you tell me how you know about this missing heir?”

“Phillip discovered his estranged son had married and the two of them had a daughter. It’s why he went to live at Pine Meadow instead of staying at his own estate.”

“Because his granddaughter worked there?” the newscaster asks.

“Yes. Over time, the two of them got close, and he changed his will to leave her everything.”

“Oh wow. How did she take this news?”

“She never knew.”

“He didn’t tell her? Why not?”

“He was trying to find a way to tell her, but hadn’t figured out how to do it. Then, he passed suddenly, and I feared she would never find out.”

The newscaster nods sadly. “What is the name of this heir?”

“Dahlia Swanson,” Mrs. Marooney says sternly into the camera. “She is the missing heir to Phillip Prescott’s estate, and I have reason to believe her life is in danger because of it.”

Zane swipes on the screen, and Leon Smith comes into view, standing on the steps of what looks like an office building.

“Mr. Smith, did you see the report of a missing heir? What are your thoughts?” A reporter demands.

Leon’s expression is a mask of concern, but I can see the fury hidden in his gaze. “I assure you, if there is any truth to these missing heir allegations, we are going to handle it with the utmost respect to Mr. Prescott’s memory and his wishes. Thank you.”

Zane pulls the phone away and turns it off.

“You outed her on national television,” I say.

“Killing her now would be foolish, wouldn’t you say?” Weston says. “Her body turns up anywhere, and it’s going to look really bad for him.”

I nod, so beyond grateful for their quick thinking.

“It won’t buy us long,” Zane says. “Maybe a few days before he finds a way around this.”