Leaving Ashes, Finding Her Sky

“I gave my husband, Chandler, one of my kidneys to save his life. In return, he married me. I was a girl from an orphanage; he was a New York tycoon. I foolishly believed his gratitude would one day turn into love. Then his first love, Kristyn, came back. When she was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder, Chandler dragged me to the hospital and demanded I give her my bone marrow. My doctors warned him that with my failing health, another major surgery would be a death sentence. He called me selfish and forced me onto the operating table. As the doors swung shut, I saw Kristyn, who was supposed to be dying, sit up in her bed. A wicked, triumphant smile spread across her face. Through the glass, she mouthed the words. "I don't have a blood disorder, you idiot." A nurse plunged a thick needle into my spine. They were draining my life away to appease a liar, all on my husband's orders. I died on that table, my last thought a prayer that I would never see him again. But when I opened my eyes, I wasn't in heaven. I was in a private medical facility, and my long-lost childhood friend, Elijah, was standing over me. He looked at me, his eyes burning with a protective fire. "I faked your death, Ava," he said, his voice cold with rage. "Now, let's make them pay."”