Chapter 1

My mother-in-law, Nora, lay dying from a cerebral hemorrhage, and only one person could save her—her son Owen, a renowned surgeon.

My heart clung to a fragile hope, begging for Owen to rush back and perform the surgery that could save Nora's life. Swallowing my grief, I called him, only to be answered by the voice of his childhood sweetheart.

"Owen is celebrating my birthday with me," she said. "He told me today belongs to me and me alone. Stop calling him."

Before I could utter a word, she hung up.

Nora passed away, leaving her entire estate to me.

Furious, Owen accused me of being vicious and cruel, blaming me for keeping him from seeing his mother one last time.

I met his anger with a cold laugh. "Tell me, Owen, who was it that really killed your mother? Wasn't it you, the ever-devoted son?"

*****

"Chloe, you need to get over here! Your mother-in-law... it doesn't look good."

I dropped everything and rushed to Nora's place the second I got the call from our neighbor, Zoey. Stepping out of the elevator, I found a small crowd huddled outside her door.

Zoey was a nervous wreck. She practically lunged at me the moment she saw me.

"Chloe, the key! Hurry! It's your mother-in-law. She's collapsed!"

My heart sank. I scrambled for my keys.

Nora's been living with a brain hemorrhage for a while now. She had a close call once before.

Luckily, my husband, Owen, was a top neurosurgeon here. He operated on her himself and saved her life last time. But he said that the last surgery was just a stopgap. If this happened again... it would be bad.

The door swung open. Nora was out cold on the floor.

Zoey helped me get her onto the couch. She started pressing hard on the groove under Nora's nose, yelling at me, "Call Owen! He's a brain surgeon. He'll know what to do!"

Seeing Nora's lips turning blue, I felt a cold sweat break out.

Owen was one of the best. If he knew his own mother was in trouble, he'd be here in a heartbeat.

But I called again and again. No answer. Then, it went straight to voicemail.

Out of options, I dialed 911, begging them to get here fast.

Watching the color drain from Nora's face, I grabbed her emergency pills, forced one into her mouth, and prayed it would do something.

A few seconds later, her eyes fluttered open. She was coming around.

But instead of getting better, she clutched her chest and choked up a dark, bloody mess.

I was terrified, holding her as she swayed. "Nora, stay with me! Owen's on his way!"

I called Owen through my tears, over and over. He finally picked up after what felt like the twentieth try, and his voice was pure irritation.

"Chloe, what is it now?

"Can't this wait until tomorrow? It's Aurora's birthday. She's got no one else. I need to be here for her.

"I talked to Mom today, for God's sake. Are you really this desperate to make me come home?

"Unless the house is on fire, I'm hanging up."

Aurora?

Wait... did he mean Aurora Crawford? His precious childhood friend?

My heart sank, but now wasn't the time to argue with him.

"Don't hang up! Mom is really..."

But before I could finish, the cold, mechanical dial tone filled my ear.

Panic clawed at my throat. How could Owen be celebrating Aurora's birthday at a time like this?

Zoey noticed my distress and called out, "Can Owen not make it because of surgery? If it's surgery, fine, we can't waste public resources. But if not... how could he abandon his own mother?"

She was right. How could Owen choose Aurora over his own mother?

I called Owen again. The moment the call connected, I yelled into the phone, "Owen! Mom's had another brain hemorrhage! Get back here now and operate!"