Then I forced myself upright and changed into my own clothes.
A nurse tried to stop me.
"Miss Sullivan, you can't leave—you're still bleeding badly—"
I pushed her hand away.
"I'm fine."
Every step I took, warmth soaked through beneath me, steady and unstoppable.
But I had to keep walking.
When I reached the elevator, I heard laughter drifting from the VIP suite.
Lillian's voice.
"Joel, this room is gorgeous. When I have our baby, I want to stay here too."
Joel's voice came back so tender it practically dripped.
"Sure. Whatever you want."
I leaned against the cold wall and forced the ghost of a smile.
Goodbye, Joel.
I pressed the elevator button and rode it down.
A black Maybach was already waiting at the hospital entrance.
The door opened, and a man in a bespoke suit stepped out under a black umbrella.
His eyes dropped to the bloodstains on my skirt, and his pupils contracted sharply.
"Pauline!"
He crossed the distance in a few quick strides, wrapped a long overcoat around me.
Then he lifted me into his arms.
"Brent. Take me home."
I leaned into him and blacked out.
…
Inside the VIP suite.
Joel was peeling an apple when his assistant burst through the door, white-faced and gasping.