Chapter 1 - The Paper Veil
The sterile smell of antiseptic lingered thick in the air, biting and unforgiving. Julian stood frozen at the threshold of Room 412, the vibrant bouquet of white roses slipping from his grasp until the stems bruised against the linoleum tiles. His pulse drummed against his temples in deafening strokes. Before him lay Elena, his wife, framed by harsh fluorescent light, looking more frail and distant than he had ever seen her.
Dr. Robert lowered the thermal printout, giving them a heavy, solemn nod before stepping out into the quiet corridor. Julian took a hesitant step forward, his polished shoes scuffing against the silence. "Elena, please... let me explain," he managed, his voice cracking beneath an avalanche of panic and guilt. He reached for the cold chrome rail of her bed, but she shrank away, pulling the rough hospital blanket up to her chin.
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Her gaze was stripped of warmth. The woman who used to greet him with radiant smiles looked at him as though he were a stranger intruding on her private tragedy. "You didn't know?" she whispered, her voice laced with venom and exhaustion. "Or did you just hope it would disappear before anyone found out?" Julian shook his head wildly, his throat closing up. "It’s not what you think. I swear on my life, Elena, I didn't know."
"You swore on our vows, Julian," she retorted, staring through him. Her hand settled protective and trembling over her abdomen. "Eight weeks. While you were supposedly in Chicago securing the firm's portfolio, I was bleeding in the dark. Don't touch me." He dropped his hands, desperate to bridge the widening chasm, but then the soft chime of his phone broke the stillness—a notification flashing a name on the lock screen that made the room turn ice cold.
