Cutie Kitty
To help my husband, Julian Parker, pay off the debt from his stock-market losses, I agreed to sell one of my kidneys.
But on the day of the surgery, our six-year-old daughter, Ella Parker, ran to the clinic all by herself and frantically called Julian for help.
Julian sounded conflicted.
"Mom's only having one kidney removed. It'll get Dad out of this mess for good. But if she doesn't do it, Dad's whole future is ruined."
Ella kept begging him to stop the surgery, but Julian simply hung up.
Then he hurried toward a private hospital suite nearby, his face filled with worry.
Inside lay Claire Morgan, the woman he'd never gotten over. Her face was deathly pale.
"Don't worry. We've got a kidney for you. You're going to be fine."
He lowered his voice.
"And don't feel guilty. I'm the one who chose to lie to her. She's still young. She can live just fine with one kidney."
Claire's transplant was a success.
Julian was in such a good mood afterward that, for once, he even suggested taking Ella and me on a trip, calling it a belated honeymoon.
But he had no idea I was already dead.
After my kidney was removed, I couldn't even afford $9.90 for the antibiotics I needed.
The wound became infected, and I died.
And Ella finally gave up on her father, too.