The boardroom of Vance Development felt like the inside of a collapsing lung.

Julian sat at the head of the long mahogany table, staring blankly at the chaotic spread of financial projections, legal threats, and breach-of-contract notices. His CFO, Marcus, was pacing the length of the room, sweati

The photograph burned Julian’s retinas.

*Clara.*

The quiet, unassuming woman who packed Toby’s lunches. The woman who sat in the background at his corporate dinners, nodding politely while Julian bragged about his visionary designs to investors. The woman who had given up her master's degree in

The pediatric cardiology wing of St. Jude’s was painted in soft, unthreatening pastels, but to Clara Vance, the walls felt like they were closing in. The steady, rhythmic beep of the heart monitor was the only anchor keeping her tethered to reality.

Toby sat in the center of the oversized hospital