How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue

Some decisions simply can't be stopped by a few words.

His head throbbed so badly it felt like it might split open, but sleep was out of the question. Every time Jarrod closed his eyes, all he could see was Elodie's cold, indifferent face—her expression chiseling itself deeper and deeper into his mind, relentless as a jackhammer.

He sat in the nursery for two hours, motionless, lost.

When he finally stood up, he left the room and rummaged through a cabinet until he found a half-finished pack of cigarettes and a lighter he'd stashed away. He didn't look at Cara-just muttered, "Can you make a few nourishing dishes? The kind Elodie likes. Give them to Hosea and have him take them to the hospital."

Cara noticed something was wrong. "Is Mrs. Sterling ill? I could deliver the food myself, if you'd like."

"That won't be necessary. The driver can handle it."

Jarrod's voice was hoarse as he bit down on a cigarette and bowed his head to light it. His hand trembled ever so slightly, and it took him two or three tries before the lighter finally sparked. Without another word, he stepped out onto the balcony.

Cara had worked for the Silverstein family for more than a decade, so she'd seen her share of drama. But never had she seen Jarrod look so defeated, so weighed down by grief-his gloom was almost frightening. Still, she knew better than to pry into the affairs of her employers.

Elodie spent two days in the hospital.

Not once did Jarrod show up during that time. Instead, his driver appeared a few times, dropping off meals three times a day. It was as if Jarrod himself had vanished from the face of the earth.

Elodie didn't ask after him. When she was discharged, she returned to her apartment complex without a word.

Word of what had happened to her reached Alexander Sterling soon enough. Whether it was her losing the baby-or the diagnosis-she hadn't intended to keep it from him, especially now that she'd stopped going to VistaLink Technologies. She'd always assumed Alexander would be calmer and less impulsive than Esmeralda, but when he showed up in a rush, his eyes were red. He glared at her, torn between wanting to scold and comfort her; in the end, all he could do was grit his teeth and say, "Elodie, do you even consider us friends? What are friends for, if not to help you? Why are you insisting on carrying this burden alone?"

But Elodie was still recovering, and Alexander, worried and angry, forced himself to hold back.

He paced the living room, hands on his hips, taking deep breaths, struggling to accept the situation. At last, he blurted out, "You're stopping all work, effective immediately. Focus on getting treatment and nothing else. Stop worrying about everything for once, will you?"

Losing the baby was a tragedy, but right now, her health was what mattered most.

Elodie had expected this reaction

from him-he was even more stubborn than Esmeralda, and far harder to placate. She tried to reason with him. "I promise, I'll finish up the work on Project 719 and then I'll focus on getting better. Things are stable right now, you know that. It's hard to drop out of the project suddenly with all the restrictions in place."

Alexander understood, but it didn't make things easier. He stared at her, jaw clenched, helpless.

Elodie was just too stubborn. That's why she hadn't told them sooner; and now,

trying to make her quit was nearly impossible.

He swallowed down his frustration,

thinking how unfair the world

was-how every hardship seemed to land on Elodie's shoulders. "Handle what you can with 719. Graduate school is starting soon and you have no energy to spare. I'll talk to the old man and have your enrollment deferred. I'm not letting you run yourself into the ground."

Elodie knew he was right; there was no other way for now.

Alexander also put his foot down: no more work at VistaLink Technologies. He insisted she take at least two weeks off to rest and recover. Even after such a loss, she needed time to heal.

Elodie didn't argue. But as long as there was work to do for Project 719, she intended to see it through.

She didn't mention any of this to her grandmother or uncles. Their phone calls were brief, and she kept her tone light, never letting on that something was wrong.

Esmeralda decided to stay and look after her. As for the neighbor across the hall...

Elodie never saw Jarrod again. He'd vanished as completely as if he'd never existed.

Truthfully, she'd expected things to end up this way. Knowing the truth about her illness, she herself felt the pain of losing the baby-how much more unbearable must it be for Jarrod, who was still in the dark, left to believe she simply didn't want his child?noveldrama

He was never one to hold back his temper. She knew that much.

In the end, Elodie only rested for a week before she was back at work. Grief had

no end, and she needed something-anything-to keep herself from sinking into helpless sorrow.

She still hadn't heard back from the hospital or Elias. She could guess why; hospitals always tried to sweep

the

these things under the rug, D

police would take time to

investigate. There would be no quick answers. But she needed closure, and, more importantly, she needed proof-proof of who had tried to hurt her.

Once she arrived at work, Elodie gathered her team for a quick meeting.

Over in the hangar, the team was racing to finalize the specs for the aircraft's stealth technology. Next, it would be up to her to lead the development of the flight control system.

Leaving the conference room, she nearly collided with someone coming down the hallway.