ce. The cool night air felt like a baptism, washing away the stench of smoke and

I used to be, the man I had killed to survive. I swore to myself, right the

never set foot in. I had cash, enough to pay for discretion. The "doctor" was a grizzled man with yell

he grunted, cleaning the wound with

a million miles away. I was a musician who had once played for cheering crowds, a man who had married into one

bitter it almos

olation, the one I couldn't see. The one that had stolen my future. A wave

r an address on the other side of the state, a secluded

of the cab. I leaned my head against the cool glass o

enthouse, and Eve was calling my name, her voice filled w

full of life, not cold possession. I saw our first date, our wedding

mirking from his bed, my father's cane raining down on me, Eve's fa

my heart a leaden weight in my chest. The path

ir, we'

ghtmare. I woke with a start, my heart p

tes of a massive, sprawling estate, surrou

s footsteps silent on the marble floors. The place was grander than Eve's penthouse, but it was

he home of a terminally ill woman. Instead, it was filled with the subtle, clean scent o

woman was sitting in a high-backed chair, her face turned

I asked, my

my breath caug

ibrant, her skin glowing with health, her eyes a warm, intelligent br

e stood and walked towards me, holding a small,

imple, elegant wedding band, a fam

ind racing. The gardenia scent, her healthy

I said, the words

in someone else's game for so long, I co

lied