Chapter 1

After I married Harvey Bailey, I followed his unit all the way out to the borderlands.

I didn't care about the grueling work or the brutal weather. Even crying myself to sleep every night because I missed my parents. I could handle that.

But when our six-month-old daughter Daisy was burning up with fever and started having seizures, Harvey was busy comforting the poor girl he was helping out, leaving me outside the door.

After Daisy passed away, I didn't think twice before asking the authorities for a divorce.

Just one month left, according to the calendar on the wall.

That was when my new life would begin.

"Aimee, I've already sent someone to get Dr. Bailey. He should be here soon..."

The funeral home staff member glanced at Daisy, cold and lifeless in my arms, and spoke to me softly, trying to offer some comfort.

My eyes were swollen and red as I stared blankly at the cremation furnace.

Just a few days ago, Daisy was still smiling at me, and now she was about to be cremated right here.

"Hey, Jake's here! Is Dr. Bailey with you?" a staff member asked.

His eyes lit up when he saw Jake come running in, out of breath. Just a moment ago, we'd asked Jake to go find Harvey.

Jake wiped the sweat off his face and gave me an awkward look.

"Sorry... I tried to get Dr. Bailey, but he accused me of teaming up with you to fool him. He said nobody does cremations here, only burials. He told me if I was going to make up a story, at least make it sound real. Then he said I was just wasting his time and sent me packing."

For a moment, everyone in the room fell silent.

A faint, bitter smile tugged at my lips.

Maybe the pain of losing Daisy had already pushed me past my breaking point, or maybe Harvey's behavior was exactly what I'd expected. Either way, there was nothing left to feel.

I gently kissed Daisy's forehead, without another moment's hesitation.

Cremation was the only way I could truly take her away from this place.

"No more waiting. Go ahead," I said quietly.

Daisy had been burning up with fever for three days, and the snow was coming down hard. Desperate and alone, clutching her tight, I fought my way through the snowstorm to the local clinic.

The doctor gave her some fever medicine, but it didn't seem to help at all. Daisy, just six months old, started drifting in and out of consciousness and having seizures. It looked like she might not make it.

The doctor looked helpless and said the clinic wasn't equipped for something this serious. He told me I'd better get Harvey, the army doctor, to check on her.

Harvey was the unit's doctor, a legit army doc straight out of med school. He should know what's wrong with Daisy.

I didn't care about my soaked shoes or the sweat dripping down my face. I just plunged back into the blizzard, desperate to find Harvey.

The company commander told me the unit had been pairing up with local families to help them out, and Harvey was probably at the house of the girl he'd been assigned to assist.

Without stopping for breath, I made a beeline for the address the commander had given me.

But when I finally got there, Harvey gave me an annoyed look the moment he saw me.

Harvey snapped, "How many times do I have to tell you? Don't bother me when I'm working!"

He added, "I've put up with it a few times, but now you're just getting worse. Go home right now, or I'll tell your supervisor about this."

With that, Harvey slammed the door in my face without another word.

I pounded on the door, sobbing uncontrollably as I begged him.

"I don't care if you ignore me, but Daisy's burning up at the clinic and the doctor can't do anything. Please, just go see her, okay?"

Ignoring the lingering pain in my legs from childbirth, I fell to my knees in the freezing snow, pleading with him.

Harvey shouted, "You're really crossing the line! I had Ayana check on Daisy this morning. She was totally fine! Are you seriously cursing your own daughter just to get at me? Aimee, you're not the person I used to know!"

No matter how much I begged or pounded on the door, he just kept ignoring me.

Even when Ayana's older brother came home and dragged me away, Harvey never once came out to look at me.

The flames in the cremation furnace quickly consumed my precious Daisy.

I was so sorry. I couldn't protect Daisy...

My eyes burned from crying, but I just couldn't hold back the tears.

"Are you okay, Aimee? Do you want to sit down for a bit?" the staff member asked softly.

He gently handed me the small box holding Daisy's ashes, his eyes full of worry as he watched me.

I wiped my tears away and gave a small shake of my head, refusing his kindness.

I still had things I needed to take care of.

I submitted my divorce application to Harvey's unit.

Just one month left.

The company commander said the whole process would take about a month.

Then I could finally say goodbye to Harvey, and to this marriage that used to make me so happy, but now, it just brought me nothing but pain.