Chapter 216

[Cordelia]

Jasper is whisked away, taken by the nurses to the corner of the room where my vision is blocked by their bodies as they work on helping my son regain his breath.

"Dear God, please," I beg, weeping for my son. So precious, my little jasper. Not just because of the unique spark that makes him who he is, but because he is the last of Atlas left in the world.

Seconds feel like hours as I wait for the sound of my son breathing. The sound of the nurses franticly working on his lungs sends a shiver through me as I remember what Atlas told me about his family and how so many of their children died.

The Steele Family Curse, he had called it. His father's reason for becoming a scientist--to find a cure.

"Come on, Jasper," I pray. "Stay with me."

A resounding cry cuts the silence and my body releases all the tension from the moment before.

Maybe my baby had somehow managed to avoid the curse.

Shaking I hold out my arms, waiting for them to return him to me. As he settles next to