Chapter 2

At ten the next morning, I pulled up outside the downtown bus terminal just as my mother’s bus arrived.

The fever had broken, but my body still ached.

When my mother stepped off the bus, she was carrying two oversized duffel bags stuffed with homemade food and clothes.

The first thing she did wasn’t hug me.

She looked past me.

“Where’s Ethan?”

“I told him not to make a fuss. He insisted he’d send a car for me.”

I took one of the heavy bags from her hand.

“Something came up at work.”

“We’ll just grab a cab.”

She nodded without questioning it.

As soon as we got into the taxi, I turned my phone back on.

Two unread messages from Ethan popped onto the screen.

I sent a car to pick your mom up.

I’m taking Sophie to St. Anne’s first. Her stomach pain got worse.

The second message followed almost immediately.

Everything’s arranged.

Dr. Mitchell’s office knows your mom is coming. They’ll take care of her.

For three years, Ethan had always been generous to my family.

That was one of the reasons I’d loved him so deeply.

Even now, it was easy to mistake generosity for devotion.

I slipped my phone back into my purse.

“We’re going to St. Anne’s.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------

The hospital lobby was already crowded when we arrived.

I stopped at the private cardiology suite and handed our appointment confirmation to the receptionist.

She glanced at the screen, then looked at me apologetically.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Sullivan.”

“Dr. Mitchell is tied up with another patient right now.”

“Mr. Carter asked if your mother could wait a little longer.”

I froze.

One of the consultation-room doors stood partly open.

Through the narrow opening, I could see everything.

Ethan sat beside Sophie, one arm protectively around her shoulders.

Sophie’s eyes were red.

She held a hand against her stomach as if she were in unbearable pain.

“Please take another look at her, Dr. Mitchell.”

“She threw up twice last night.”

“She can barely stand because of the stomach pain.”

The cardiologist sighed.

“Ethan…”

“Ethan, I’m a cardiologist. I can call GI and ask whether they can squeeze her in, but I can’t evaluate severe abdominal pain in a cardiology appointment.”

“And your future mother-in-law has been on my schedule for months.”

Ethan barely reacted.

“Claire’s mother is stable. This is a routine follow-up.”

“She can wait thirty minutes.”

“Gastroenterology says it’ll be hours.”

“Just make the call and get Sophie seen sooner.”

Outside the room, my mother tightened her grip on the worn handles of her bags.

She wasn’t deaf.

She wasn’t foolish.

She had heard every word.

The smile she’d worn all morning quietly disappeared.

“Claire…”

“If they’re busy…”

“We can go home.”

Her weathered hands trembled slightly.

Seeing that was enough.

Whatever tiny spark of hope I’d carried into this life died in that moment.

I pushed the consultation room door open.

Both Ethan and Sophie looked up.

A flicker of surprise crossed Ethan’s face.

“Oh, perfect.”

“Take your mom next door and wait about ten minutes.”

“I’m almost done here.”

His tone was casual.

As if asking me to wait was the most natural thing in the world.

My eyes drifted to Sophie’s hand wrapped around his arm.

She didn’t let go.

Not even after seeing me.

I slowly reached into my purse.

Pulled out my appointment slip.

And tore it cleanly in half.

The ripped pieces fluttered to the floor, landing at Sophie’s feet.

Ethan shot to his feet.

His face darkened instantly.

“Claire!”

“Have you lost your mind?”

I ignored him completely.

Instead, I walked back to my mother and gently took her arm.

“Mom.”

“We’re leaving.”

“We’ll find another cardiologist.”

No shouting.

No tears.

No dramatic confrontation.

I didn’t even spare Ethan another glance.

Together, my mother and I walked out of the consultation room.

Behind us, I heard Ethan’s angry voice echo down the hallway.

“Claire!”

“Stop right there!”

I never turned around.

Abandonment doesn’t always happen all at once.

Sometimes it happens one compromise at a time,

one broken promise at a time,

one more request to wait just a little longer.

This time, I was done waiting.