All Chapters of After My Last Breath: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

[Elara]The next morning couldn’t have arrived sooner.The second I wake up, I almost rush out of the room to check on Cora.After what Dr. Wilson said last night, I have been restless. I still don’t know what’s wrong with my daughter, but that doesn’t do anything to ease my anxiety. My heart keeps thundering, and my chest keeps hurting.The moment I open the door, I come face-to-face with Damon himself.I almost forgot about the call he received last night—the call from Hannah that pulled him out of bed faster than any million-dollar project could.He looks at me squarely, his brows furrowed so deeply that he looks more intense than usual. “What are you rushing to?”I take a step back, hoping to bring some calm to my face. “To check on Cora. It’s her last day at school before the holidays start. I don’t want her to be late.”My answer seems satisfactory to him, considering he doesn’t follow it up with another question.He walks inside—almost into me. “We need to talk.”“I—” But befor

[Elara]My fingers tighten around the phone as it rings. Finally, Gwen answers. “Hello, Mrs. Blackwood. Everything okay?”“I’m fine,” I lie, my eyes on the school gates. “I just need you to watch Cora tonight. I’ll be there to pick her up soon, but I can’t do this alone.”“I’ve got it covered,” Gwen says cheerfully. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Blackwood. I’ll take good care of her.”I exhale slowly, feeling some of the tension in my shoulders ease. “Thank you. Make sure she eats properly and doesn’t get too excited. Maybe just a movie or some quiet games tonight.”“No problem. I even brought a few homemade snacks for her,” Gwen adds. “She’ll be fine. Go take care of what you need to.”Gwen Gold is a college student I often contact when I need someone to watch over Cora in my absence. Although several maids and helpers around the house could do the same job, Cora feels far more comfortable with Gwen. Ever since Cora turned three, Gwen has been an important part of her life.I glance at the scho

[Elara]I rush to the hospital, my mind wrecked and heart pounding.Cora has to be fine. She just has to be.“Mrs. Blackwood!” Gwen spots me and runs over. “Thank God you’re here—I didn’t know what to do.”“How’s Cora? What did the doctor say?”“They haven’t come out yet,” she says nervously.Before I can ask more, Dr. Wilson appears with a resident.“The thing I was afraid of has happened,” he says gravely.My breath catches. “Please—tell me she’s okay.”“She’s stable for now,” Dr. Wilson tells me, “but we can’t wait any longer. The VSDs are causing severe left-to-right shunting, and her oxygen saturation levels are dropping. We need to operate within forty-eight hours.”“Then do it,” I whisper. “Please, just save her.”The doctor nods and leaves. I sink onto the bench, trembling. Gwen squeezes my hand. “She’ll be fine,” she murmurs.“She has to be,” I breathe.A nurse calls me to fill out the consent forms, but when I beg for a minute with Cora, she finally allows it.However, what

[Damon]“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” The words fly out before I can stop them. “being this close to some stranger?”The moment I saw her standing that near to the man in scrubs, something in my chest burned. My hands clenched, my jaw locked.I don’t even know what got into me. She was just talking to him. But for some reason, that little distance between them—which, thinking about it now, wasn’t even that small—made me completely lose it.“We were just talking,” she says, her tone calm—too calm. It throws me off.Before this, every time I accused her of something, she’d rush to defend herself, desperate to make me understand. But now, for the first time, she acts like it doesn’t matter.She turns to the man. “Thanks for earlier.”He nods, then glances at me with a look that practically screams murder. Before I can say anything, he turns and walks inside the OR.No. Why the hell would he look at me like that? Like I’d offended him somehow. And even if I did—who would dare?