Goodbye, Mr. Regret

She'd been having a nightmare, but what really woke her was the pain.

She'd gone a whole day without her medication.

That was something she simply couldn't do.

Jessica turned her face away, refusing to look at him.

But the pain was so sharp, so overwhelming, that she could barely endure it; half- reclined in the plane's seat, her body curled up uncontrollably.

Timothy's panic only grew. He gripped her arm, his voice tight with worry. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Leave me alone!" she snapped, shoving his hand away.

If it weren't for him, she wouldn't be suffering this way.noveldrama

She hadn't been born with liver disease. The doctors said her illness was the result of years of bottled-up emotions.

She'd been getting better-distancing herself from Timothy and his son, faithfully taking the medicine prescribed for her conservative treatment. The cancer cells had even shown signs of shrinking, giving her a real chance at surgery.

But now, he was about to ruin everything again.

"You're my wife. How could I not care? Is it your stomach? Let me help-maybe a little massage-"

She'd been asleep for seven or eight hours; they must be almost there.

Jessica's forehead was slick with sweat. This pain-no massage could possibly ease it.

"Don't touch me."

She pushed him away again.

Timothy stared at the perspiration beading on her brow, then called out to the pilot, "Contact the nearest airstrip. We need to land as soon as possible."

They were already back in the country. It didn't matter if they didn't go straight to Riverside City.

With her in this state, he had to get her to a hospital.

"Timothy! Don't change course. Take us home, straight home!"

Her medication was at the house. All she needed was to take her pills, and she'd be fine.

She was always careful to have her medication ready and on time. If they landed somewhere unfamiliar, it would only delay things, and there was no guarantee she could even get the prescription she needed.

Her cancer-she would never, ever let him find out about it.

It was already hard enough to leave him as it was; that secret was her last card, her last escape route.

Someday, it would save her.

Timothy was still uneasy. "But you're in so much pain. You need a doctor."

"I'm like this because of you. I just need to rest. I want to go home, Timothy. Please-I don't want to go anywhere else. Just take me home."

Her words were so firm, so resolute, that Timothy had no choice but to back down. He told the pilot to stick to the original flight plan and head for Riverside City.

Jessica was in agony, using every ounce of strength she had just to hold herself together.

Timothy couldn't stand it anymore. He unbuckled her seatbelt and lifted her into his arms.

The pain was so all-consuming she had no energy left to protest. She let herself be held.

His embrace was familiar and warm.

It was steady, comforting—the kind of place she'd wanted to lean on more times than she could count.

He'd saved her once, when she was at her lowest. He was always so calm, so unshakeable; deep down, she believed he could make her feel safe.

Timothy's large hand slipped under her sweater, coming to rest on her abdomen, his palm radiating heat through her skin.

"Is it here?" he asked gently, voice low.

When you're suffering, every emotion is raw and exposed.

Having someone care-it's a devastating kind of tenderness.

She wanted to resist, but the pain had already drowned out any strength to refuse him.

Not wanting to answer, she stayed silent. Timothy did what he could, softly

rubbing her stomach, trying to soothe her, to ease the pain.

There's always someone in this

ie'

ет

world who, when you hurt, that pain cuts even deeper because of them and yet, when you see them, you somehow forget all the pain.

That person is always the one you once loved with all your heart.

"Jessy, you've wanted to leave the island for so long, haven't you?,

We'rest there. Once we're

home, your wish will finally come true."

He tried to distract her with small talk.

Focusing on the pain only made it worse-he knew that, and it worked.

"Actually, there's a surprise I want to tell you about.”

Jessica hesitated, skeptical.

A surprise from him? More likely a shock or a scare.

"Don't you want to know what it is?"

She gave him a blank look.

"You don't trust me anymore, do you?"

She still said nothing.

He held her tighter. "That's okay. You'll believe me eventually. As long as you stay,

I promise I'll tell you, all right?"

She didn't hold out hope.

She knew from experience that anything he called hope would only end in disappointment.

A surprise. She couldn't care less.

Maybe it was just because she was listening to him, getting lost in his words, that

the pain didn't feel quite so sharp anymore.

Timothy gently dabbed the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief, and, without realizing it, she drifted off to sleep again.

When she opened her eyes, the helicopter had already landed.

Secretary Allen had been waiting for them in the car, and soon they arrived at the Gilded Whisper Estates.

Jessica hurried upstairs to the master bedroom and locked the door behind her.

Her purse hung from the coat rack; she rushed over and pulled out her bottle of

pills.

To keep anyone from finding out, she'd divided her medicine into small, opaque zip bags.

She poured out a dose and swallowed it dry.

Then she left the room, avoided her

l.ne

usual mug, and grabbed a disposable cup, filling it at the tap. She gulped down the water, washing the pills the rest of the way down.

Her stomach still ached, but with her medication inside her, she finally felt herself

relax just a little.

Out on the balcony, Timothy was on the phone-she overheard him asking about

a cosmetic specialist.

He was insane.

He still hadn't given up on his plan.

Jessica checked her phone; now there was a signal. Two names came to mind

immediately.

Vince and Herbert Wheeler.