When I woke, the sharp scent of antiseptic burned my nose. The harsh hospital lights made my head throb, and for a split second, I didn’t remember anything. Then it all crashed down on me.
Celeste was gone.
Marco had been cheating.
Selena had killed my daughter.
And Marco had covered for her.
A sound built in my throat—something raw, something unbearable—but I forced it down. My fingers curled around the scratchy hospital sheets, gripping them so hard my nails dug into my palm.
This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be real. But it was.
A chair creaked beside me.
“You’re awake.”
Marco’s voice.
My stomach twisted violently. I turned my head, my movements stiff and mechanical. There he was, sitting by my bedside, his face filled with concern, his brows drawn together like he actually cared. I wanted to scream. To claw at his face. To make him feel even a fraction of what I was feeling.
But I didn’t.
I swallowed the pain, the anger, the horror clawing at my insides, and kept my voice steady. “How long was I out?”
“Just a few hours.” He exhaled like he’d been holding his breath. “You scared me, Olivia.”
I scared him?