Chapter 1

1

The earthquake hit like a sledgehammer. Both my husband's childhood sweetheart and I were caught in the chaos, and the shock sent us both into premature labor.

My husband, Hudson, is a surgeon. He arrived at the scene within minutes to save us.

But there was only one ambulance available.

To save his precious Skylar, Hudson chose to physically drag me off the stretcher and leave me behind in the middle of the aftershocks.

I grabbed his sleeve, begging him through the pain, but his face remained a mask of cold indifference.

"Sienna, why are you being so heartless? If I don't save Skylar now, she'll die!"

I watched in total despair as the ambulance pulled away, taking my husband and his lover with it.

A bitter, broken laugh escaped my lips. "Hudson, if you don't save me... I'm going to die, too."

By the time the ambulance disappeared from my sight, my body was wracked with violent contractions.

The waves of pain were unbearable. I knelt on the cracked pavement, my vision blurring as I nearly blacked out.

I looked down and saw the dark, wet crimson staining my skirt. I closed my eyes, letting the darkness swallow me whole.

The massive quake had leveled parts of the city. Skylar and I had both fallen, and both of us were on the verge of giving birth.

I had been so certain that Hudson would prioritize me.

Even though things had been tense between us lately, I believed he wouldn't abandon his own flesh and blood.

He couldn't be that cold-blooded, I thought. But reality dealt me a killing blow.

When the first ambulance arrived, I was already being lifted onto the stretcher by the paramedics.

Hudson stepped forward, his eyes icy as he looked at me.

"Sienna, stop being so selfish. You're really going to fight Skylar for the only ambulance? Do you want her to die that badly?"

"What?" I whispered, unable to believe my ears.

"You've bullied her enough in the past," he snapped. "She's in early labor because of this disaster. How can you even look at yourself in the mirror?"

He gestured to his colleagues. "What are you waiting for? Get Skylar on that stretcher! Another ambulance will be here soon. Sienna will be fine."

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to hold back the tears.

"Hudson, the contractions have already started. This is your child. Please, don't do this to us..."

"Just wait," he interrupted, his voice dripping with impatience.

"Skylar needs an immediate evaluation at the hospital."

When his colleagues hesitated, Hudson took matters into his own hands. He physically forced me up and shoved me back onto the dirt.

I clung to his jacket, my fingers trembling. If I didn't get to a hospital now, I knew my baby and I wouldn't make it.

"Hudson, please! He's your son! You can't just leave him!"

"Even if you hate me," I sobbed, "don't take it out on the baby. He's your family!"

He leaned down and cold-bloodedly pried my fingers off him one by one.

"Sienna, you're a selfish woman. You of all people should understand my choice."

"When my brother Hunter and your best friend Scarlett were in that car accident, I saw you choose to save Scarlett first."

His voice was like a shard of ice piercing my soul.

"No, that's not what happened... Let me explain..."

But he didn't give me a chance. He pushed me aside and climbed into the ambulance.

The sirens faded into the distance. Hudson was so focused on protecting Skylar that he didn't look back at me even once.

I collapsed on the ground, a memory flashing through my mind from the day Skylar returned to the country.

Hudson had been wasted, his eyes bloodshot as he looked at me with pure resentment.

"Sienna, I regret marrying you. I only ever loved Skylar. Why won't you just let me go?"

In his head, I was the villain. I was the one who had stolen his happiness.

Now that he had a chance to choose her, he wasn't going to let a little thing like my life get in the way.

Before the light left my eyes, I stared at the road where he had vanished.

I finally stopped fighting and let the darkness take me.

The "next ambulance" Hudson promised didn't arrive until thirty minutes after I had lost consciousness.

His colleagues scrambled to get me onto the stretcher, but it was far too late.

I was already gone.

I felt my soul drift upward, hovering in the cramped space of the vehicle.

I watched with a strange numbness as the medical team tried to revive me.

"Hurry! She's not breathing! Forget the mother, try to save the baby!"

A young nurse started to sob as she worked.

"Dr. Miller, there's so much blood. The baby... I don't think he's going to make it either."

"Shut up and keep working! Give me the scalpel!" the lead doctor barked.

I watched them cut into my lifeless body to pull out a tiny, blue-tinged infant.

He was a boy. He was so small, his eyes tightly shut, and his heart was silent.

The doctor tried CPR, tried everything to bring that little spark of life back.

But it was no use. By the time they reached the hospital, the ambulance was filled with a deafening silence.