Chapter 1

I died on the operating table of my own family's hospital.

My husband, Caleb Sterling, had forced me to undergo surgery to give his childhood sweetheart one of my kidneys.

Through the agonizing pain, I could hear my daughter's desperate pleas echoing in the room.

"Daddy, Mommy said she can't have another surgery! Please!"

"Daddy, please give Mommy some medicine for the pain!"

"Daddy, something is wrong with Mommy!"

Caleb just shoved our daughter away with a cold sneer.

"You're just like your mother! She has two kidneys. What's the harm in giving one to Melanie?

"Mommy, Mommy... is she the only person you care about? Fine, go stay with her then!"

He ordered all the medical staff to leave, leaving my five-year-old daughter alone with my dying body.

He had no idea that inside his own chest, he was already carrying my other kidney.

1.

The operating room was hollow and silent, with my blood trailing across the floor like a crimson river.

Through my thin hospital gown, I felt as if I were being hollowed out from the inside.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Mia's tiny, trembling voice broke the silence.

She stumbled toward me, her little face drenched in tears and snot.

"Mommy, why is there so much blood?"

She knelt beside me, her small hands shaking as she tried to wipe the blood away with her soft sleeves.

The more she wiped, the more the red stain spread.

I forced a weak smile, my voice barely a whisper.

"Don't be scared, baby. Mommy is just tired. A little blood doesn't matter."

"Daddy said... you were saving Auntie Melanie. But you told me you couldn't do this again! Does it hurt?"

She gripped my hand tightly, her tears warm against my palm.

"It doesn't hurt, honey. I'm just a little sleepy..." I used the last of my strength to stroke her cheek.

"Let me sleep for a bit, and I'll be fine. Don't be afraid."

"Don't sleep! Mommy, stay awake! Please don't leave me..."

Mia was sobbing so hard she could barely breathe.

She was so young, too young to truly understand life and death.

Yet she was terrifyingly perceptive, sensing the darkness closing in.

She suddenly stood up, shouting through her tears.

"Don't worry, Mommy! I'll find a doctor! I'll find someone to save you!"

"Mia... don't go..."

I struggled to call her back, but my throat felt like it was being crushed by invisible hands.

My daughter looked back at me one last time, her tiny fists clenched as she ran toward the heavy doors.

She pulled at the handle with all her might, pounding on the metal.

"Open up! Please open the door! My mommy is dying! Help us!"

Outside, there was no response―only a deafening, icy silence.

Panicked, she began looking for anything to help.

She tried to lift a heavy chair nearby, aiming for the glass window on the door.

But her small body lacked the strength, and the chair crashed uselessly to the floor.

She didn't give up, crawling back up to pound on the door again.

"Open the door! Save my mommy!"

I watched her small, frail back, my vision blurring with tears.

"That's enough... Mia..."

My voice was hoarse. She stopped and looked back at me, her face a mask of grief and stubbornness.

"Mommy, I'm going to save you!"

She suddenly turned toward the side window and smashed the chair against it with a burst of desperate strength!

Glass shards flew everywhere, slicing into her small arm.

She didn't even flinch at the pain as she scrambled through the broken window, her tiny shadow disappearing into the hallway.

My vision began to fade, and my body felt lighter than air.

I knew I was leaving.

But at least she wouldn't have to watch the exact moment my heart stopped.