Chapter 4

It was difficult to get a cab from the fancy neighborhood the villa was in. I wasn't much of a speed walker, so the nearest bus stop was 30 minutes away. Luckily, the cemetery advisor swung by to pick me up for our appointment.

By the time Suzanne started driving around looking for me, I was already long gone.

At the cemetery, I flipped through the brochures detailing the options while the advisor showed me around. There were only a few good plots, so it didn't take long to decide.

Mom had been reluctant to part with Dad before, so she'd kept his urn at home. Now I could finally lay them to rest together.

I was afraid Mom was still angry with me. Dad had always been the gentle one in our family. No matter how badly I messed up, he always smiled and pleaded with Mom on my behalf. I pressed my cheek against the cold ceramic urn and tried to make a deal with Dad.

"You always loved me the most. Come visit me in my dreams. Help me convince Mom not to be angry with me anymore. It'd be even better if she agreed to visit me in my dreams, too, even just once. I miss her so much."

Before long, the grave held the two people who loved me more than anything in the world. In the past, they nagged me about everything, and I would just listen in silence. Now I was the one sitting at their grave, spilling my heart to them while they took it all in silence.

I poured a handful of soil over their urns myself. It wasn't until the grave was fully covered that the strength I had been forcibly holding myself together with finally ran out. All the anguish I'd kept at bay came pouring out.

Kneeling before the grave, I pressed my forehead against the ground. I would never feel the warmth of Mom's cheek again. All I could touch was the cold, hard dirt.

It was cold enough to make me tremble.

My tears burst out like water from a broken dam. My raw, broken sobs echoed through the cemetery.

The sun had set for hours before I finally stumbled out of the cemetery, but I didn't go home. I had no home to go to.

I'd booked an early flight, so I went straight to the airport.

…

Outside the old apartment building my family used to live in, Suzanne leaned against her car. The orange glow of the cigarette between her fingers kept flickering. She couldn't remember how many she'd smoked.

After leaving the villa, I'd vanished without a trace. Her calls and messages were met with radio silence.

She was belatedly hit with the realization that I didn't have any friends. The people who liked my social media posts and called me up occasionally were just staff from her PR department and the editors I got to know while dealing with her various scandals over the years.

Could anything be any more ironic than that?

Panic gnawed at her, and nicotine was the only thing she could use to dull the anxiety.

Suzanne vaguely began to realize that she might have made a mistake. She shouldn't have tacitly allowed Nathan to pick up the ring from the floor. She shouldn't have tossed the ring at my feet in the first place. That was not how a proposal should go.

There should have been flowers, fireworks, and a solemn promise to spend the rest of our lives together.

She knew how much I loved romantic gestures. I would've been moved beyond words. Once she put the ring on my finger, I would've closed my eyes and kissed her.

Just thinking about it now made Suzanne chuckle. A rush of anticipation rose in her heart.

Then she thought about Mom, who, as far as she knew, was still at the hospital. I might be a stubborn man, but she knew I cared a lot about Mom and would visit her often.

Besides, Mom's condition had improved enough to receive the bone marrow transplant. Surely that meant I would be spending even more time with Mom at the hospital.

Suzanne crushed her cigarette beneath her heel, opened the car door, and drove toward the hospital just as the sky began to brighten.

Meanwhile, an announcement played at the airport.

"Attention, passengers. Carodia Airlines flight CA886 to Longshire is now boarding. Please proceed to Gate 2 with your boarding pass."

The plane took off, soaring straight into the blue sky. I sat quietly in my seat and closed my eyes, awaiting the new life I was about to start the moment the plane landed.

…

Suzanne arrived at the hospital and rushed up to the ward. She opened the door, only for her smile to freeze.

The hospital room was empty. It didn't seem to be in use at all.

All at once, panic gripped her. She approached the bed. The sheets and bedding had all been freshly changed. The bathroom was empty, too. The glass vase was gone, along with the flowers I used to replace every day. Even the patient chart at the foot of the bed had disappeared.

A dizzying fear swept over Suzanne. She sprinted down the hallway, not caring how crazed she looked, and grabbed a passing nurse.

"Where's the patient in VIP Room 3? Was she transferred to another room or hospital? Where did they take her?"

The nurse eyed her strangely, looking rather confused. "Didn't Mr. Perry tell you about it, Ms. Harper? His mother passed away two days ago."