Chapter 1 - The First Squeeze
"You know why I talk to you?" she asked.
The room remained perfectly silent, except for the steady, mechanical hiss of the oxygen machine.
Willa leaned closer to the bed, her breath ghosting over Everett’s pale cheek.
"Because I know you are in there," she whispered.
She placed her hand over his, her thumb resting lightly against his knuckles.
"I can see it in your pupil responses, and I can see it in the way your breathing changes when certain names are spoken."
She waited, staring at the strong, scarred hand trapped beneath hers.
"If you can hear me, give me a sign," she pleaded softly.
Nothing happened.
Willa let out a shaky breath, wondering if the crushing isolation was finally breaking her mind.
She was risking everything by secretly altering his IV fluids, drawing the dangerous suspicion of Dr. Whitfield.
She stood up to check the hallway, making sure none of Sterling's guards were lingering outside the heavy oak door.
The corridor was quiet, but the shadows underneath the doorframe shifted ominously.
Someone was standing out there, listening.
Willa quickly moved back to the bedside, pretending to smooth the wrinkles out of the expensive blankets.
Suddenly, she felt a distinct, undeniable pressure against her palm.
Everett’s fingers curled inward, squeezing her hand with surprising strength.
Her heart slammed against her ribs in sheer disbelief.
He was awake, and he was fighting his way back to the surface.
Before she could process the victory, the bedroom door swung open without a single knock.
Sterling Kane stepped into the room, his expensive shoes completely silent on the Persian rug.
His cold eyes flicked from Willa’s terrified face down to where her hand was tightly entwined with Everett’s.
"How incredibly touching," Sterling sneered, walking closer to the medical bed.
"A devoted, loyal wife holding her vegetable husband's hand in the dark."
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Willa tried to quickly pull her hand away, but Everett’s grip suddenly tightened like an iron vise, his knuckles turning white.
Sterling stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes locking onto his cousin's aggressively shifting fingers.
