A Reborn Bride Pearl Emerging from Dust by Sally Garcia

"No, don't!" Hudson frowned, his voice tense. "Don't look into it. Knowing won't help!"

"Not knowing doesn't help either!" Calliope shot back, just as stubborn.

"If I know, at least I can try!" she insisted.

"Look, Hudson, I'm only calling you by your name because we get along. You're a good person." she said honestly. "Maybe I can't help you, but at least give me a chance to try. How do you know I can't help if we don't even give it a shot?"

Hudson hesitated. He finally let his shoulders drop, giving in. He knew Calliope— when she set her mind to something, there was no shaking her off. If he kept resisting, she'd only dig her heels in further. And she was more than capable of pinning him down if she wanted to. If this got messy, Lance would find out, and things would just get worse.

Better to let her check him out and keep things quiet.

Calliope grew serious, focusing as she examined him. The longer she checked, the deeper her frown became.

Just like Hudson had warned, this was bad. Really bad. The kind of situation where, medically speaking, there was no hope.

"You've had scans, right? X-rays, MRIs...where are they? I need to see them," Calliope said, searching for any sliver of possibility in the impossible.

didn't bring them home, did you?" she pressed. "You're afraid Lance would find out, so they're still at the hospital, right? Come on,

steely. "I

her off. "He's already

Calliope snapped. "One more

know. Every day I get is borrowed time, but with my condition, every

it

the last.

sitting in

can help with the pain, make it easier... I'd be grateful. Treatment isn't worth it otherwise. It's

that in cases like his, endless treatments only dragged out the suffering, stripping away

didn't

least look, didn't

helplessness. Everyone called her a

She'd lost her

but every time it