Chapter 1 - The Breath of Life
The white marble of the mansion hallway felt colder than ice against Ethan’s skin. Every breath felt like inhaling glass, his chest tightening in a suffocating grip. Across the quiet estate, the silence was broken only by his agonizing gasps. He had fallen, helpless, abandoned by the strength he always took for granted. But then came a small, fragile shadow.
Lily knelt beside him, her small frame clad in pink pajamas, holding a white stuffed bunny tucked tightly under her arm. In her tiny hands, she held a blue portable nebulizer—her own lifeline. Without hesitation, she placed the mask over his mouth. Her eyes were wide, brimmed with tears, yet filled with an innocence that saw no danger, only a fellow soul in pain. As the cool vapor filled Ethan’s lungs, bringing the first agonizing rush of oxygen back to his body, he looked up into the eyes of the child who had just saved his life. "Who are you?" he managed to gasp hoarsely. "I'm Lily," she whispered. In that single, desperate moment, a bond was forged—one that the powerful walls of the mansion could never tear apart.
