h Bla

te seemed to close in, suffocating me. Elinor. Dead. The w

al. "It's a lie. She's not dead. She's just... she's too strong.

ver, held a grim, unwavering certainty. "Sir, it's not a trick. The medical

the core. A raw, primal fear I hadn't known existe

rom his trembling hand, the cri

d, my voice a guttural ro

esitate. He led the wa

l and fragmented images. Elinor's face, pale and tear-stained, pr

thing is wrong!" Her voice echoed in my hea

medical wing, past startled nurses and doctors

ied blood and the cloying scent of antiseptic. The ro

aint, dark stain on the pristine white sheets. A small,

over me, churning my stomach. I couldn't

ith pity, handed me a tablet. "T

self to read. "Elinor Guzman Black. Deceased. Cause of death: Hemorrhagic shock due to co

mise. St

l, slammed into me with th

s voice hushed. "Said she was calling out for you. Begging for help. But the drugs... they were too str

ow was Elinor's voice, desperate, pleading. "I'm bleeding! I t

c scream of pure agony and regret. It wasn't human

e steel cart, denting the metal. The basin cl

t clawed at my insides, ripping at my heart. I

se. For money.

my guilt over her late husband into this monstrous act. She had played the griev

master manipulator, had fallen

hing. My wife. My child

around my head. The rage, the grief, the self-lo

me unconditionally, who had seen past my ambition t

d destro

troyed ev