on shifted. "I'll

ound for a bit. I'll be back soon. Tal

rned and l

lio

ot, nearly losing he

off to so eagerly? To

le. Elliot h

be Mrs. Hardin. Ame

location was a hospital, hi

s carefully. "Yes, sir. Miss M

cold. "You're being reassigned. Ten yea

ned, but he didn't da

muttered, "You know how he feels about

woken up. The college student who ha

o much blood and passed out. You didn't have a

k...

t asking for anything, but I'm a student too. When they brought you in, I had to use my tuiti

ically, "I'm... sorry. How much.

"Not too much. Sixty-eight hundred do

ht hundre

To her, it might as we

ance than she could spend, buying every

even afford lif

do you

e knew she couldn't n

wo days? I promise

ay. Even if she ha

as about to cry. "I can't wai

oney right now*, her eyes caught a figure s

e didn't know how long

ords out. "Ellio

d mocking. "Amelia, you're better at hidin

send her back to the

"No... that's not... I wasn't hiding from you. I passed out.

er halting spe

e? She hadn't had a stutter before.

I don't want to hear your

part was

orward and dragge

tely. "No! I won't go! D

one of the men away. In her panic, she collided with an IV stand. It

ook still grazed the side of his n

gasped

y collapsing to her knees. "I'm sor

eason. She dropped to her knees and be

ioned reflex-tr

k. It stung. His finge

ely go

hifted into another kind of di

t u

then nearly fell again as p

only irritated him

finally found her voice. "Wait! How can you do this?

turned to her-sharp

ndsome but harsh face, but she presse

t kind of sick? Heart disease? Stomach probl

body trembled more. Her

was confus

did she

uh

e ac

hink I'm an actress? No! She's

lipped through it casually. He laughed. "Lung cancer this time? Tha

extras or the fake chart

ture hadn'

taste rising in her throat. Her voice sho

row up? Or when you slit your wrists to get me to come home? Or the car accident you st

cut like

uldn't den

ne all tho

ost-obsessively, like a madwoman-she

aking illness. Attempt

circle thought s

se he h

ore. She didn't want his love. She knew

half. "Enough of these ga

ack

o West

ht in her eyes went out

as because she

took h

ered her courage and said, "Ca

ng. The air pressure

little..