Chapter 1 - The Echo of the Scream
The sharp, panic-laden shriek ricocheted down the sterile hospital corridor, shattering the quiet morning routine of the transplant ward.
I sat upright in my hospital bed, the surgical incision in my side pulling tight with a dull, throbbing ache. Outside my open door, nurses scrambled past, their rubber-soled shoes squeaking against the polished linoleum. But I didn't flinch. I just reached for the glass of water on my bedside table, took a slow, deliberate sip, and waited.
It had been less than twenty-four hours since I had rolled into an operating room, surrendered my own healthy organ to save my husband’s life, and walked down the hall only to find him wrapped in the arms of his mistress, Jessica.
Daniel had shrugged off fifteen years of marriage as if peeling off a dirty shirt. “Jessica brought me back to life,” he had said.
Well, I was the one who had literally given him half my body to keep his heart beating. And now, I was going to show them both what happened when you mistook kindness for weakness.
The door to my room flew open, banging hard against the drywall.
Jessica stood there, her designer clothes slightly rumpled, her face flushed with absolute terror and rage. Her eyes blazed as she pointed a shaking finger at me.
"You psycho!" she screamed, drawing the attention of every nurse and patient within fifty feet. "What the hell did you just send him?"
I set my water glass down, folding my hands neatly over the crisp white blanket. I tilted my head, putting on my sweetest, most innocent smile.
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"Good morning to you too, Jessica," I said evenly. "Did the courier arrive?"
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