Chapter 6

A few months later, Leo, whom I had saved, finally passed away.

The complications came too suddenly, and by the time they were discovered, it was too late for treatment.

I clearly remember that day, Ryan kneeling by the hospital bed, holding Leo's hand and saying, "I'm sorry, Leo. I failed to protect you."

After that, he started having insomnia. Sometimes he would wake up in the middle of the night and hold me tightly.

"If only we had discovered the complications earlier," he said, his eyes cold. "If only we could have saved him sooner."

I thought he was blaming himself, but I didn't notice the resentment in his eyes when he looked at me.

In his heart, if my ability to be reborn could have been used more timely, perhaps Leo wouldn't have died.

Days passed like this.

I started having frequent nightmares, dreaming of Leo standing by the hospital bed asking me, "Why didn't you save me earlier?"

Ryan would hold me when I woke up startled, comforting me softly.

But those kisses seemed to lack the warmth they once had.

Until our wedding anniversary.

I had just set the table when the emergency call came in.

There had been a major landslide in the mountain area. Bella had led the advance team but was trapped inside.

We rushed to the hospital.

The doctor said, "Extensive internal organ damage. We need to transplant immediately."

I saw Ryan's hands shaking, but his eyes were eerily calm.

He turned to look at me with an expression I had never seen before.

At that moment, I finally understood why he had been acting strange lately.

But it was too late.

"I'm sorry," he said.

As the anesthetic needle pierced my neck, I saw tears in his eyes.

"You said you couldn't die," his voice was soft. "Bella's different. She won't survive a second time."

As I was pushed into the operating room, I heard him talking to the doctor: "Take the heart first."

As the scalpel cut into my body, I remembered what Leo had once said: "Ryan values loyalty, but once he's set his mind on something, he'll stop at nothing."

In fact, since Leo's passing, Ryan had been calculating how to use my ability to be reborn.

He was waiting for an opportunity, waiting for a reason to convince himself.

And Bella was the perfect reason.

The surgery was successful.

My soul floated in the hospital corridor, watching two people being wheeled out of the operating room.

One was Bella, with a stable heartbeat. The other was me, my body emptied.

"Bella's saved," the nurse said. "The transplanted organs are in good condition."

Ryan breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes red-rimmed.

He held Bella's hand, keeping vigil for an entire night.

I floated beside him, watching him tuck Bella in. His hands were steady, as if afraid of hurting her.

Afterwards, he stood facing the window for a long time.

"You've suffered," he said, his voice hoarse beyond recognition.

Who was he talking to?

After I had died once to save Leo, he had kept vigil over me in the same way, saying the same words.

But now, the body that had been pushed into the morgue didn't even have a heart.

"Captain Quinn," the on-duty nurse called out to him, "What should we do with Ms. Hart's remains?"