I had just given birth when my husband looked me in the eye and said, “Take the bus home. I’m taking my family to hotpot.” Two hours later, his voice was shaking on the phone: “Claire… what did you do? Everything is gone.”

carried a wilted, pathetic bouquet of generic carnations from the lobby gift shop, but his eyes told the real story. The arrogance had been completely excavated, leaving behind only sheer, unadulterated terror. StudyAnatomy

Elaine shuffled in close behind him. Without her signature crimson lipstick, her face looked pale, haggard, and deeply lined. Melissa lingered nervously in the hallway, her phone raised, presumably attempting to livestream the encounter for her minuscule social media following, desperate for a narrative she could control.

Her amateur broadcast was abruptly terminated when Martin stepped seamlessly out of the elevator bank, flanking her.

“Put the device away, immediately,” Martin ordered, his voice carrying the authority of a judge. Melissa jumped, hurriedly shoving the phone into her designer knockoff bag.

Daniel swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he approached the foot of my bed. “Claire, baby… look, this has all gotten wildly out of hand. Let’s