I knew my mother-in-law hated me, but I never thought she would hide shrimp in my food while I was pregnant. When my throat closed and I grabbed my belly, Daniel snapped, “Stop em:bar:rassing my mother.”

in and out of consciousness. The last thing I saw before a paramedic pressed an oxygen mask over my face was Margaret standing calmly in the foyer, one hand resting on Daniel’s shoulder as she whispered, “She always ruins everything.”

I woke in the hospital surrounded by white lights, machines, and silence.

Daniel sat beside the bed looking pale.

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