PART 1
“You’ll manage for a few weeks,” Sergio said as he zipped up his suitcase. “It’s only seventy-four days.”
I could barely stay on my feet. An autoimmune disease required me to take medication every single day, and my doctors had warned me that missing even a few doses could put my health at serious risk.
Sergio knew that better than anyone. He had been with me through every medical appointment. Even so, that morning he left for a European vacation with his family.
“You can’t leave me here alone,” I pleaded.
“You’ll be fine,” he replied before walking out the front door.
A few hours later, I went to take my medication.
The pill organizer was empty.
The backup supplies were gone as well.
I tried calling Sergio, but my phone had no signal. Soon after, the internet stopped working, followed by the electricity and even the water.
When I tried to leave the house, I discovered every door had been locked from the outside, and the windows wouldn’t open either.
That’s when I realized this wasn’t an accident.
After searching the house, I found an old emergency phone. I managed to reach emergency services before its battery died.
Within minutes, police officers and firefighters arrived. They forced their way inside and rushed me to the hospital.
The doctors later told me that delaying my treatment any longer could have caused life-threatening complications.
The following day, an investigator showed me footage from a security camera facing the front of the house.
The video captured Sergio returning shortly after saying goodbye to his family. Moments later, he met with an unidentified woman before leaving again.
Not long afterward, my missing medication was recovered from a completely different location.
That discovery prompted investigators to launch a full investigation into what had really happened—and who the mysterious woman was.
