Chapter 171

The ICU hallway stretched before Camille, sterile and bright. Her footsteps echoed against the tile floor as she followed the doctor. The smell of antiseptic filled her nose, making her eyes water, or perhaps it was the weight of what waited ahead.

“Five minutes,” the doctor reminded her, pausing outside a door. “He’s very weak.”

Camille nodded, her throat too tight for words.

The doctor pushed the door open, revealing a small room filled with machines. Their steady beeping cut through the silence, marking each beat of Stefan’s heart. He lay still in the center of it all, nearly lost among tubes and wires. His skin looked gray against the white sheets, but his eyes were open, alert and watching for her.

“I’ll be right outside,” the doctor said, and then she was alone with the man who had once been her husband. The man who had betrayed her. The man who had taken a bullet meant for her.

Camille approached the bed slowly. Stefan’s shoulder was heavily band