Chapter 1

The clock on the wall read close to midnight, but my mind was a million miles away. 

The hospital corridors were eerily quiet,.

 I should have been relieved that my shift was over, but instead, a gnawing anxiety twisted my stomach into knots.

 Caleb should be home by now, waiting, probably but not patiently. 

The thought of everything waiting for me at home dishes, laundry, him…made my head spin.

“Ivy!”

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of Dr. Collins’ voice.

 She was striding towards me, her arms full of files, and I quickly tried to pull myself together.

“You’re still here?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Good, because I wanted to catch you before you left. You've been doing excellent work lately, and I’m sure a promotion is on the horizon.”

I forced a smile, trying to push down the anxiety bubbling inside me. 

“Thank you, Dr. Collins. That really means a lot.”

She nodded, her eyes softening a bit. 

“Of course my dear. But don’t let me keep you. Go on, get home and get some rest. You’ve earned it.”

I nodded, the tension in my chest easing just a little. 

“I will. Thank you ma’am.”

I turned to leave, eager to escape into the night, to put as much distance between myself and this place as possible. But just as I reached the door I heard her voice again.

“Wait, Ivy!” I froze, my hand hovering over the door handle.

 “We’ve got an emergency. One of the nurses is out, and we need you to step in please Ivy”

My heart sank. I wasn’t supposed to be on duty anymore, but the look in Dr. Collins’ eyes told me she needed me. 

“I… I really should be getting home ma’am,” I stammered, torn between my duty and the fear of what awaited me if I stayed.

“I know,” she said, her voice urgent.

 “But we’re really short-staffed tonight, and this is critical. Can you help us out, just this once?”

I hesitated, my thoughts were spinning.

 Caleb’s voice was in my head, cold and demanding, but Dr. Collins’ plea pulled at my conscience. 

“Alright,” I finally said, pushing the fear aside as best as I could. “I’ll help.”

“Thank you,” she breathed, relief washing over her face. 

“Alright then, we’re needed in the ICU. Let’s go.”

We hurried down the hall, the urgency in the air palpable. As we approached the ICU, the sharp, antiseptic smell hit me, a familiar scent that usually brought a sense of purpose. But tonight, it felt like a shroud of tension hanging over everything.

As soon as we entered the room, I was thrust into action. The patient, a middle-aged man, was on the gurney, his chest rising and falling rapidly, each breath a struggle. The doctors were already at work, barking orders as they assessed the situation.

“Ivy, we need oxygen, now!” one of the doctors ordered, his voice cutting through the chaos.

I rushed to the side, grabbing the oxygen mask and connecting it to the tank, my hands moving quickly but steadily. The hiss of the oxygen filled the room as I placed the mask over the patient’s face, securing it behind his head. His eyes fluttered open for a moment, panic reflected in them before he drifted back into unconsciousness.

“BP is dropping!” another nurse called out, and I moved to the monitor, adjusting the IV drip to increase the fluids. The steady beeping of the heart monitor filled the room, a tense rhythm that matched the pounding of my own heart.

I moved around the bed, checking vitals, adjusting machines, and assisting wherever I was needed. The air was thick with the smell of antiseptic and sweat, the fluorescent lights casting harsh shadows on the faces around me.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, but I ignored it, focusing on the task at hand. The world outside this room ceased to exist; there was only the patient and the delicate balance of the life we were fighting to maintain. I helped with the chest compressions, the rhythmic pressure under my hands grounding me in the moment, each compression a prayer that the heart would continue to beat.

But the phone kept buzzing, insistent, relentless. It jolted me back to reality, to the life that awaited me outside this room. I glanced down Caleb. 

The sight of his name sent a shiver down my spine. He’d been calling for the past few minutes, and I knew I couldn’t ignore it any longer.

I took a deep breath and stepped back, pulling my phone out and answering it with trembling hands. “Caleb, I’m at work”

“Come home. Now.” His voice was cold, laced with barely contained anger.

“I can’t,” I whispered, glancing at Dr. Collins who was still directing the team.

 “There’s an emergency. I have to…”

“I don’t care!” he snapped, his voice sharp enough to cut through any excuse I could think of. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll get home immediately.”

My heart pounded, fear and frustration warring within me. “I’ll try to”

“Now, Ivy.”

The line went dead, leaving me standing there, the phone still pressed to my ear as if it could somehow reverse time. Dr. Collins called me back to reality, her voice pulling me into the tense atmosphere of the ward. I shoved the phone back into my pocket and returned to the bedside, forcing my focus back onto the patient.

“Vitals stabilizing,” someone called out, and a small wave of relief washed over the room. I stayed by the patient’s side, adjusting the oxygen flow, wiping the sweat from his forehead, my movements automatic but precise.

But then, minutes later, commotion erupted outside the ward. Angry shouts of a man echoed down the hallway. My blood ran cold as I recognized the voice.

“Where is she? I want to see Ivy, now!”

Dr. Collins turned to me, her expression shifting from concern to alarm. 

“What’s going on?”

“I… I think that’s my husband,” I managed to say, my voice barely a whisper.

She didn’t hesitate. 

“Go. We’ll manage here.”

I nodded, my legs moving on autopilot towards the source of the chaos. I pushed open the doors, and there he was

Caleb, looking wild-eyed and furious, being held back by two security guards.

“I said Let go of me!” he was shouting, jerking against their hold. 

“She’s my wife! What right do you have to keep her here?”

I wanted to melt into the floor, the shame and embarrassment.

 Everyone around us had stopped to stare, their murmurs filling the space.

“Caleb, please,” I pleaded, stepping closer. “Calm down.”

His eyes locked onto mine, blazing with anger. 

“Who the hell do you think you are, hanging up on me?” he spat, his voice low and dangerous. “You’re coming with me. Now.”

“I can’t,” I whispered, my eyes meeting that of the security guards who were still holding him back.

“You have no right to keep her here!” he roared at the hospital staff, his voice echoing off the sterile walls.

 “A married woman has duties at home! She’s not your slave!”

My cheeks burned with humiliation as all eyes turned to me, the weight of their judgment pressing down on me, making me feel small, exposed.

“Join me at the car park,” Caleb commanded, his voice ice-cold.

 “Or you’ll regret it.”

He turned and stormed towards the exit, leaving me standing there, frozen in place. 

Dr. Collins walked over to me, her voice gentle but firm. 

“Ivy, what are you doing with a man like that?”

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. I could feel everyone’s eyes on me, waiting for an explanation I couldn’t give.

Dr. Collins sighed, her gaze lingering on the faint bruise on my cheek. “Is he the reason for that swelling yesterday?”

I shook my head, but I knew my eyes betrayed me. Just then, Caleb’s voice rang out from outside, sharp and commanding, making me flinch.

“Ivy!” he shouted, clearly losing patience.

“I… I have to go,” I mumbled, barely able to get the words out as I hurried after him.

As I disappeared through the doors, I could feel the weight of the hospital staff’s stares on my back, their unspoken questions hanging heavy in the air.

“They look like they come from two different worlds… what on earth is holding them together?” I heard someone murmur, their voice filled with a mix of confusion and pity.