They Left Me to Die at Sea

When I came out of the ER, Sienna was curled up in Ethan's arms.

Owen was crouched in front of her, holding a cup of water for her.

Adrian held her test results and kept asking if she felt all right.

I stopped, bracing myself against the wall. Blood was seeping through the bandage on my arm again.

Ethan saw me and started to get up, but Sienna clutched the hem of his shirt.

"Evelyn, you're alive. Thank God."

Her eyes red, she laid a protective hand over her stomach.

"I'm sorry. Ethan and I really love each other. The baby was an accident."

I didn't look at her. Instead, I stared at Ethan and asked hoarsely, "When did it start?"

"Six months ago."

I gripped my hospital gown until my knuckles turned white.

"The day you proposed to me?"

He didn't answer.

That night, he had knelt in front of me, his hands shaking so badly he could barely hold the ring.

I tearfully said yes, then laughed and asked why he was so nervous.

Now he wouldn't even look at me.

"You said all you wanted was to make a home with me."

My voice cracked on the last word. I turned my head away, but the tears fell anyway.

Ethan frowned. "Evelyn, you can't control who you fall for."

Sienna spoke up softly. "Back then he wanted to break up with you, but I was afraid you'd get hurt..."

"So the two of you lied to me for six months?"

I wiped away my tears, my voice trembling. "Sienna, you helped me pick out wedding dresses every day. You listened to me go on about how wonderful Ethan was. Were you laughing at me the whole time?"

My brother stepped in front of her.

"Enough! Sienna already apologized. What more do you want?"

"I can't even ask what happened?"

"Maybe you should take a look at yourself too. You're always so aggressive. Who could put up with that?"

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.

When I was little and kids picked on me, my brother used to stand in front of me just like that.

Back then, though, he was protecting me.

Owen handed Sienna the water and said accusingly, "If you'd called off the engagement sooner, she and the baby wouldn't have had to go through all this."

I looked at him, and everything went blurry.

"The things you said on the boat... You weren't just trying to scare me, were you?"

No one answered.

I tried again. "I kept calling for you."

Owen swallowed. "It was chaos."

"You looked back at me."

He fell silent.

I looked down. After several tries, I finally slipped off the ring and placed it on the bench.

Ethan slapped his hand down over it.

"What are you doing?"

"Giving it back."

Saying those words hurt so much I could barely breathe.

He picked up the ring, his voice softening a little. "Don't do this out of spite. Sienna's pregnant, and I have to take responsibility for her and the baby. But you can still stay with me."

I stared at him, stunned.

Sienna bit her lip. "I'm not trying to come between you two. All I want is for the baby to be safe."

"I'll make sure you're taken care of," Ethan reassured her. Then he held the ring out to me again. "The engagement party is still on. We'll talk when we get home."

I didn't take it.

Suddenly Sienna clutched her stomach and drew in a sharp breath.

All three men rushed to her side.

My brother turned back and snapped at me, "Go get a doctor! What are you standing there for?"

I staggered and caught myself on the wall. My palm came away covered in blood.

"I'm in pain too."

It came out so quietly that no one heard.

Ethan asked impatiently, "What did you say?"

I looked at him, and the tears welled up again, but I slowly shook my head.

"Nothing. I'll go find a doctor."

I turned around, and a nurse came running toward me.

"Weren't you supposed to wait for us to change your bandage? You're bleeding all over the place!"

She steadied me, and only then did I realize I could barely stand.

Behind me, someone finally called my name.

I didn't look back. Instead, I grabbed the nurse's sleeve and choked out, "Could you please help me first?"

The nurse came over and steadied me as I swayed. Only then did I notice the trail of blood I had left down the hall. It looked like more than the water in Sienna's cup.