ft beeping of a machine. My eyes fluttered open

lcome back. You gave us quite a scare. You

ied to sit up, my stoma

ile becoming a little more personal. "But there's someth

like a physica

e. We had bee

ered. "That's

ere," she said gently,

white letters. Positive.

dreaming of our future. He'd talked about teaching our son to play baseball, our daug

d conceived in love was going to be born into a wo

everything, he was the fath

ad just posted a new photo. It was of Arthur, asleep in our bed. He looked peaceful, angelic. Her hand

e gives so much of himself to protect me. My hear

it just minutes ago. "You a

it down and dialed his number. It

voice was co

I started, bu

Diana's voice whine in the background

antly softened, dripping with a tenderness he hadn

the phone down, but didn't hang up. I could hear every sweet nothing he whispered to her, e

k up. "Are you still there?" he

'm in the

? I'm busy, Ella. Don't bother me with y

hun

one buzzed with a tex

s sympathy? Pathetic. He doesn't care about you. He

back finally came, silent and hot. I wrapped my ar

nnocent life. It was mi

. He had made tha

idn't want

. Twenty days left. I would be stron

ly visitor I had was my grandmother, Hertha Mills. She was my l

ade chicken soup, her face etched with worry

I couldn't bring myself to tell her about th

ng with anger. "He is not worthy of you

leaving him. I'm going to Da

th relief. "Good. Th

y hand, her presence a comfor

d went. Then one o'clock. I called her phone, but it went straight to voicemail. A

s been an accident. Your grandmother... she was bro

all the way to the emergency room. I found her on a gurney in the hallway, h

cried, rushin

omething strange. It was also eer

I asked a frantic-looking

th pity. "They're all ups

t? W

there. The woman he's with, a Ms. Hess, fainted. He insisted

ugh me. I sprinted to the elevators,

top-tier doctors surrounded a bed where Diana lay, a cool compress on her f

is?" I screamed, my voice

n turning to one of annoyance.

ry doctor in this hospital up here for her?" I pointed at

se. My grandmother was in a ca

thur, their faces

"No one is leaving," he said, his voice low and dangerous

my grandmothe