Chapter 1

When the speeding van sent me flying, I was completely dazed. My body was hurled into the air, then slammed hard against the ground.

I could almost hear the sound of my bones snapping and my organs rupturing.

Seconds later, searing pain radiated through every nerve in my body.

The chaos around me flooded my fading consciousness like a roaring tide—the screech of tires, terrified screams, and then, a familiar ringtone cutting through it all.

With the last of my strength, I fumbled my phone out of my pocket, raised it shakily to my ear, and gasped out between ragged breaths, "Blaire... I... I've been in an accident..."

As I felt my life slipping away, a wave of terror crashed over me.

What would happen to Blaire Kennedy if I died?

I bit down hard on my tongue, forcing myself to stay conscious. "Blaire... if I don't make it through this... take care of yourself. Besides the house and the car, I've also been putting away a quiet savings account for you—a few hundred thousand in CDs. The deposit slips are tucked in—"

"Jim, there's no one else here. You don't have to put on this act. I don't have time for your little performance right now."

The ice in her voice sent my heart plunging into freefall.

She enunciated each word with cold precision, "If you really wanted to do right by me, you'd stop stalling and hand over the money for Dustin's treatment."

Blood loss was already darkening my vision, but I still forced the words out, "He's not sick. He just needs the money to feed his—"

"God, you are so selfish, Jim. You won't lend him a cent, and on top of that, you keep slinging mud at him right in front of me!"

Blaire let out a bitter laugh. "I've known him for years. Don't you think I know him better than you do?"

I tasted nothing but bitterness beneath the metallic tang of blood in my mouth.

'Blaire... I've explained this to you so many times. Couldn't you just believe me once?' I thought.

A few passersby rushed over. One of them immediately called 911, while another pressed down hard on my wounds to stem the bleeding.

"Stay with me, man—don't you dare fall asleep. The ambulance is on its way!"

"Shit... I can't stop the bleeding from your thigh..."

The commotion on my end seemed to give Blaire pause. "Wait... you're actually in an accident?"

I opened my mouth, trying to respond, but then I heard her scoff.

"Serves you right. Maybe this is what you get for being such a cheapskate."

Her words drove into my chest like a knife, carving out a hollow space that bled raw and open.

In that moment, I realized my heart hurt even more than my body.

Finally, the darkness closed in. Just before consciousness slipped away entirely, I heard her voice drifting farther and farther into the distance, "You have three days, Jim. If you still won't hand over the money by then, I'm filing for divorce. A cold, selfish man like you doesn't deserve a wife..."

With that one sentence, she shattered years of love and sacrifice into dust. I felt nothing but cold—like I was trapped in a frozen vault.

Ten years we'd known each other. Three years we'd been married. And in the end, I meant less to her than some two-bit liar.

I'd had enough.

'I'm tired of walking this road, Blaire. If you want a divorce, fine. Let's see who ends up regretting it.'

Those were my last thoughts before the darkness swallowed me whole.