Chapter 4

I left the bar and walked aimlessly through the city streets. The night air was cold, but I didn't feel it. I felt a different kind of chill, one that came from deep inside.

Crysta' s words came back to me. It' s the least you can do.

Maybe she was right. Maybe I wasn' t trying hard enough. Jackson was caught between his past and his present. If I wanted to save my marriage, I had to be a part of his new reality. I had to connect with his son.

The next day, I went to a toy store and bought the biggest, most expensive remote-control car I could find. Then, I drove to the hospital.

I found Leo' s room. He was alone, sitting up in bed, looking small and frail against the stark white sheets. Karly was nowhere in sight.

Taking a deep breath, I pasted a warm smile on my face and walked in.

"Hi, Leo. I' m Eleanor. I brought you something."

I held out the brightly colored box.

His big, dark eyes, so much like Jackson' s, stared at me. But there was no childish curiosity in them. Only cold, hard resentment.

He suddenly screamed, a raw, angry sound. "Go away! You' re the bad woman! You stole my daddy!"

He scrambled across the bed and shoved me, his small hands surprisingly strong.

"Leo, stop!" I was stunned by his hostility. I saw that his frantic movements had dislodged his IV line. A bright red drop of blood welled up where the needle had been. "Leo, your hand is bleeding. Let me help you."

I reached for him, but he slapped my hand away.

"I hate you!" he shrieked, and pushed me again, hard.

I stumbled backward, my heel catching on the leg of a chair. I flailed, trying to catch my balance. At the same time, Leo, having lunged with all his might, lost his own footing and tumbled off the bed, hitting his head on the hard floor with a sickening thud.

He immediately started wailing.

The door flew open and Karly rushed in, followed by Jackson.

"Leo!" Karly shrieked, scooping him up. She saw the dislodged IV, the bump already forming on his forehead. Her eyes were frantic.

Jackson rushed to my side, grabbing my arms to steady me. "Eleanor, are you okay? What happened?"

Before I could answer, Leo' s crying stopped. His body went rigid, and he began to convulse in Karly' s arms.

"Oh my god, he' s having a seizure!" Karly screamed, her face a mask of terror.

Jackson let go of me instantly. He didn' t hesitate. He turned his back on me and scooped his son from Karly' s arms.

I stumbled again, my hand flying to my abdomen as a sharp, cramping pain shot through me. I fell back into the chair, the impact jarring my whole body.

"Get a doctor!" Jackson yelled, running out of the room with Leo. Karly was right behind him, sobbing hysterically.

As he ran past, Jackson shot me a look. It was full of anger and blame. As if this was all my fault.

I was left alone in the silent room. The pain in my belly intensified, a vicious, twisting cramp. I heard Jackson' s frantic shouts echoing down the hall, calling for doctors, for help. For his son.

I stared at the empty doorway, praying he would come back. That he would remember me.

He never did.

My eyes were fixed on that doorway, my heart breaking with every second that passed.

Save me, Jackson, I thought. Save our baby.

Then I looked down.

A dark, crimson stain was spreading across the light fabric of my dress.

The world dissolved into a haze of red and pain. My last conscious thought was of the child I would never hold, the life that was slipping away from me, unnoticed and unmourned by the man who was supposed to love us most.