66

LINDEN

I remembered I was in the office, talking to Skyla. Her visit surprised me, but I was hoping I could speak to her after what I found out. But unfortunately, we didn’t get to that point.

When I struggled to breathe, she asked for help, and I managed to hold her hand. And I still remember her coming with me in the ambulance. The rest, everything was a blur.

I thought I was dreaming, but I felt the pain like I got run over by a roller. I thought I was going to die.

I couldn’t breathe.

The feeling when you drowned— the water entered your lungs and expanded your chest. The next thing you knew, you wished you could have a minute to be with your loved ones and felt sorry for how I took them for granted.

I thought I was dead.

Until the rich laugh of my wife reached my ear. I opened my eyes, feeling disoriented, but I was lying at a forty-five-degree angle, and I could sense Estelle was sitting close to me. Her sweet and alluring smell hit my nostrils, her hand holding mine.

“N