Rose walked into the hospital with her heart pounding so loudly it echoed in her ears. She had rushed straight from work, barely breathing the entire drive. As soon as she stepped inside the hallway, she saw stress hanging in the air like thick smoke.
Gwen sat on a chair with her hands shaking, tears rolling down her cheeks nonstop. Damien stood beside her, pacing back and forth like a trapped animal, anger burning in every line of his face. Lucas was near the wall, hands on his head, looking like he hadn’t taken a full breath since morning.
The moment Lucas saw Rose, his shoulders dropped with relief for a split second but the exhaustion and tension quickly returned.
Rose didn’t speak at first. She walked straight to Gwen, knelt beside her, and gently wrapped her arms around her.
“Mrs
