Chapter 37- Zane
Seven days and a C-section later, I was finally leaving the hospital. My stomach felt like it had been stitched by God himself—tight and sore with every shift—but I didn’t care. My daughter was nestled in my mother’s arms, pink-faced and sleeping like she hadn’t just changed my whole damn world.
Evelyn Samara . She was perfect. Round cheeks, a head full of thick curls, and a scream that already sounded like mine when I got pissed off.
Sam was off getting the car. My daddy pushed my wheelchair down the hospital ramp. I was bundled in my robe, sore as hell. My mom walked beside us, holding Evelyn so tight like she might disappear.
Sam’s parents were already outside waiting.
His mama was holding one of those fancy pink diaper bags, and his daddy had a goofy, proud smile plastered on his face.
They’d cleared out a room for us in their mini-mansion until the house we were renovating was done.
The Airbnb Sam had us staying in was too cramped now.
We needed space—for her, for us, for the new chapter we were limping into.
The air was bright. The world felt alive. I was smiling. Tired, yes, but smiling.
Then I saw him. My heart kicked off.
At first, I thought I was seeing things. We’d made TikTok again. I’d heard people had called Mark’s job and got him fired because he had lunged at me outside the courthouse. He was public enemy number one after somebody found our court transcript on the public database.
He was just standing across the street like some kind of ghost that hadn’t realized he was dead yet. I blinked, and he was still there—with wild eyes. Only now, he looked worse—drawn out, thinner, twitchy. He looked like he’d aged a year in a week.
I opened my mouth to say something, but the words died when he moved. Fast. Then he was outright running.
"YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT ME!" he screamed, voice cutting through the moment like a blade.
My body tensed. My mom turned slightly, confused. My daddy stopped the chair.
I saw the gun before I heard the shot. And for a split second, the world slowed.
I felt the pain before I heard the boom. A hot sting ripped through me. My breath caught, and the air left my lungs like someone had snatched it.
My thought seconds after was, This motherfucker killed me.