Henry Jackson stood frozen in his bedroom, the cracked screen of his spare phone staring up at him from the floor like a mocking eye. The word "accident" echoed in his skull, a thunderclap that drowned out everything else. How could he have been so blind—so utterly, unforgivably stupid? While he'd been playing the hero for Isabella, chasing ghosts of jealousy and misplaced chivalry, Eliana had been probably fighting for her life in a hospital. And her father?. His hands trembled as he bent down, snatching the phone up with a curse under his breath.
"Eliana? Eliana, are you still there?" His voice cracked, raw with panic, as he pressed the device to his ear.
On the other end, Eliana's breath came in shaky bursts, her honey eyes fluttering shut in the sterile glow of the hospital room. "Henry... yes, I'm here. Please, just... come. I need you."
