All Chapters of A Love That Drowned in Silence: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

8 Chapters

Chapter 1

After Jessica Morrison hung up on me again, I stopped calling.Our daughter, Emma Channing, was curled up on the hospital bed in the hallway. She pointed at the payment window across the way and looked up at me."Daddy, is that Mommy?"I looked over and sure enough, there was Jessica, holding her precious son in her arms.When our eyes met, she froze for a second. Then she set the boy down in Mark's arms, whispered a few instructions, and walked toward me.The moment she saw our daughter, she let out a little sigh and immediately turned on me."Ryan, you know how weak Emma is. You left her out here in the hallway on purpose? Is the hospital out of rooms?"I bit back a bitter laugh. The anger in my chest was burning hotter by the second."Emma has a high fever. I called you dozens of times. Why didn't you pick up? You drained every cent from my paycheck—thousands of dollars. And you really think this is about whether there's a room?"My voice carried, and people started to star

Chapter 2

After Emma was out of danger, I checked her out of the hospital.When we got home, I opened the door to find the place completely trashed. The shattered remains of our family portrait were still on the floor—Jessica had thrown it there a week ago after we got into a fight.She'd been divorced from Mark for five years. Our daughter was five years old. But in all that time, Jessica had never stopped putting the father and son first."Daddy, will you shave my hair for me?"Emma held up the electric clippers to me. The chemotherapy she needed would make her hair fall out anyway. She'd always been so proud of her hair, but at this point, there was no saving it."Daddy... will my hair ever grow back?"Soft strands of hair fell to the floor one by one. I could see the tears glistening in the corners of my little girl's eyes. My heart ached.It all traced back to that one phone call from Mark. That was the moment Emma's health took its first hit.Jessica was eight months pregnant at th

Chapter 3

Jessica didn't come home for several days.At first, Emma asked about her every single day. But eventually, she stopped bringing it up. It was like she'd forgotten Jessica existed.Then, on Emma's birthday, I took the day off so I could stay home and celebrate with her properly.All the hospital visits and medications had worn my daughter down to skin and bones. Every time I looked at her, I couldn't help but cry.Suddenly, there was noise at the front door. Emma's head shot up.Jessica walked in carrying a birthday cake. She kicked off her heels without a second thought, didn't mention where she'd been, and just smiled."Emma, Mommy's here to celebrate your birthday."Honestly, I didn't want Jessica anywhere near our daughter. But I knew what Emma wanted more than anything was her mother's attention. Sure enough, the moment Jessica walked in, some color actually returned to Emma's pale little face.Jessica pulled a dress out of a gift bag. "I bought you a present, sweetie. Do

Chapter 4

My body reacted before my brain could catch up. I grabbed Emma and drove full speed to the hospital, running through several red lights along the way.As I pushed the gurney alongside the doctors into the ER, I ran straight into Jessica—who was carrying Oliver, mid-asthma attack.She frowned but barely looked at me, then glanced at Emma's pale face on the gurney."Ryan, what are you doing now?" she said. "I just left the house, and now you two show up at the hospital. You'd go to any length to fake being sick, wouldn't you?"She set Oliver down and took his hand. The boy was still a little short of breath, but his cheeks were rosy. He looked perfectly fine.Mark, standing next to Jessica, sighed and shook his head. "Ryan, I hate to be the one to say this, but Jessica and I are divorced. You two are the married couple now. She and I only stay in touch because of our son."His words sounded like advice, but the mockery in his voice was impossible to miss.I didn't want to get into

Chapter 5

"Sandra? What are you doing here?!" Jessica's voice was sharp with disbelief. "I'm Emma's real mother. Who do you think you are?"I watched Jessica's face contort. She never expected Sandra Williams to show up at the hospital. She stared daggers at her. Even Mark couldn't take his eyes off Sandra.Sandra didn't even acknowledge Jessica. Instead, she turned to me. "Emma's condition is critical. If you trust me, transfer her to another hospital."Jessica's face turned an ugly shade of green at being ignored. "Ryan, if you walk out that door with our daughter today, we're done. Divorce."I knew all about their history. Jessica and Sandra had been rivals since college. They couldn't stand each other. Back when Jessica was dating Mark, he'd never been able to get Sandra out of his head. That was the real reason Jessica had divorced him in the first place.And then, after the divorce, she chose me. Only to find out that I knew Sandra too.In Jessica's mind, every man she wanted, Sandra

Chapter 6

"Jessica, are you regretting giving me that thirty thousand?" Mark's voice had cooled by several degrees. "Because if you are, just give it back to Ryan and use it to treat Emma."The mention of Ryan, combined with the sting of Sandra showing up at the hospital, immediately put Jessica on the defensive."Emma's condition is fake," she shot back. "I gave you that thirty grand, so it's yours. End of story."She ruffled Oliver's hair. "If my son wants to go on vacation, then we're going."She followed Mark and Oliver back to their place—not the home she shared with Ryan. She was determined to wait Ryan out, to make him come crawling back, begging her to return.They'd been married for five years, but honestly? She'd never really cut ties with Mark. Not completely.Jessica had always told herself it was because of Oliver. A child, she reasoned, was the one part of a mother that could never be separated. Of course, she and Mark would stay in touch. So she'd built a second home with th

Chapter 7

This wasn't the first time something like this had happened.Jessica snatched her phone back and canceled the order. "Mark, I've taken too many days off this month. My paycheck is barely anything. Use your own phone to order."Mark's face went tight. But finally, he pulled out his own phone and placed an order—much more modest than the one she'd just canceled.By now, Jessica knew exactly what game Mark was playing. She wasn't blind.For years, they'd shared a joint bank account. Every cent of her paycheck went straight to Mark and Oliver. Meanwhile, Ryan's salary covered everything for their household.The thought stirred something uncomfortable in her chest. Guilt, maybe. She'd lost her appetite entirely.She grabbed her purse, changed her shoes, and headed for the door.Mark looked up from his game just long enough to notice. "Where are you going?"Jessica let out a breath. "I left something at the house. I need to go get it."Mark didn't ask what. He didn't offer to drive

Chapter 8

Sandra brought in the most authoritative surgeon from the city.Emma's condition had suddenly taken a turn for the worse. Surgery was her only chance."Ryan, I know you're scared to take this risk as Emma's father," Sandra said. "But this is the only option we have. Don't worry—Dr. Zimmons knows what he's doing."With Sandra's encouragement, I finally agreed to let Emma have the surgery.I don't know how long I waited outside the operating room. Finally, the light went off, and they wheeled Emma out into a regular hospital room. Only then did I allow myself to breathe.The lead surgeon approached me. "The surgery went very well. There's no need to worry."I thanked him over and over, my voice shaking.By the time I turned around, Sandra was already in the room, watching over Emma."Ryan," she said, "from now on, I'll treat Emma as my own daughter. And as long as I'm around, no one will ever hurt you or her again."Sandra said that because she knew exactly what the last few yea

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