After being left for dead by the mafia don she trusted, a woman claws her way back to freedom and rebuilds her life on her own terms. As she grows stronger, the man who abandoned her begins to realize what he lost — and she's determined he'll regret it.
Of course, of course. Mommy will have some brought right away. Dad chimed in. You rest first.
Don't worry about Emma. She's just been spoiled rotted. The call was disconnected. I stared blankly at the darkened screen.
So my life mattered less than Grace wanting a bowl of hot soup. The snow pressed tighter and tighter. I knew I couldn't wait any longer. I could freeze in solid.
I gritted my teeth. Tears smeared across my face. Hold on. I have to hold on.
The wind swept the snow right back, filling the gap I just dug. I was on the edge of despair. Finally, with trembling hands, I sent my mother a video When the call connected, the face on screen wasn't my mother's. It was Grace. She looked at my wrecked,
desperate face through the camera and smiled faintly. Then she muted the microphone. I see everything on their end. They couldn't hear a word I said. In the private suite at the hospital, the lights were warm. Mom was bending down to drape a jacket over Grace's shoulders. Dad was handing her a bowl of hot soup, stroking her head with a pained
Lucas stood beside her, leaning down to adjust her scarf. Flowers and cake sat on the table. Mom held Grace's hand, smiling. When she was feeling better, we'll throw you a proper celebration dinner. Lucas sat next to her, ladling soup, passing her napkins.
When she coughed softly, he was the first to press a glass of warm water into her hand. That was a tenderness I had never been given. I slammed my frozen, cracked fingers against the screen over and over, screaming again and again.