The Surgeon’s Scars: Running From My Past

of her family's estate. It had been six years since she ran away from this

iveway, her legs felt heavy. In Boston, she was Dr. Barr, a respected cardiothoracic surgeon who held lives in her hands every

r a second too long, the tips turning white from the pressure. She wasn

" the valet said, his sm

tal chandeliers spilled out onto the manicured lawn. The noise hit her first-a wall of laughter, c

ou fix trauma for a living. D

family their loved one wouldn't make it-calm, detache

dr

wd like a ship breaking ice. He looked relieved, which only made Adria feel

anning the room for threats, for ex

n't have been more than four years old. He was tug

Her n

altered. The ai

rk, inquisitive, innocent. He smiled,

d-the exact age her own child would have been. A phantom pain shot through her abdomen, sharp

n't you

She couldn't breathe. She couldn't look at him. She averted her gaze, staring fixedly

hand heavy on her shoulder. "You look li

words tasting like ash. "

hand shook. She needed the alcohol to numb the

fted. It wasn't a sound; it was a sudden, collective intake of breath. The ambi

d toward th

sen stood in

d older, harder, and colder than the man she had left behind. He radiated

wasn'

aped in shimmering silve

re flashing blindingly in their faces. She leaned into Damon, whispering something in his ear, her

d working. Six years of building walls, of convincing herself she was over him, o

t Campbell. He scanned the room with the predatory

gaze lande

sto

ue of his irises. For a second, the mask of indifference cracked, revealing something raw and terrifyi

him, confused, then followed his line of sight. When she saw A

o get back in her car and drive until the ocean swallowed the road.

y, his eyes never leaving Adria's face, and snatc

n't dr

ep toward her. Then another. The crowd parted inst

ty. She couldn't handle the hatred she saw burning ther

was like

RACK.

head sna

s in his hand had shattered. Amber liquid and bright red blood were d

d silent. The mus

scream. "Damon! Your hand!" She reached

he shards of glass digging into his palm. He shook Campbell

ped from his fingertips, leaving a macabre tr

blocking her from view. "Back off, Hansen