Chapter 4

At four in the morning, Pine Creek Town was still dark.

I put on my wig and tied on a thick scarf.

My medical kit, painkillers, and the last bit of cash were all packed into my backpack.

I didn't go to the front desk to check out.

I just left a note on the table.

"Please don't call the police. You can keep the deposit."

When I pushed open the hotel door, the cold wind, mixed with snowflakes, hit me in the face.

Mrs. Gable, the hotel owner, was an early riser, preparing to make porridge.

She saw me walking alone out of town, then went to check my room.

The note on the table and the oxygen concentrator's deposit slip made her face change.

She immediately called the community aid station.

The aid station checked my registration record and found no emergency contact.

They could only contact the park's rescue center as per regulations.

The rescue center used my phone's linked medical emergency card to retrieve an old emergency contact.

That number, I hadn't called in three years.

Ethan Miller received the unfamiliar call while having breakfast with his child at the hot springs hotel.

Chloe was carefully peeling an egg for Leo.

The voice on the other end was urgent.

"Excuse me, do you know Rory Hayes?"

"She headed alone towards the closed forest trail early this morning, it's very dangerous there due to high winds."

Ethan's first reaction wasn't concern.

He frowned, a hint of impatience in his voice.

"What is she stirring up now?"

He thought I was using this extreme method to get his attention.

Just like when I used to throw tantrums and run away from home.

Chloe stopped peeling the egg.

"Ethan, Leo has a snowmobile reservation at ten."

She reminded him softly, trying to redirect his attention.

Ethan hesitated for a few seconds.

But he still stood up, grabbing his jacket from the back of the chair.

"I'll be right back."

Chloe pulled at his sleeve.

"Are you going to abandon us to go find your ex-wife?"

For the first time, Ethan didn't explain himself to her.

"She's out there alone in the snow."

He only said that, then strode out of the restaurant.

I walked along the edge of the birch forest, the snow already past my ankles.

With every step, the pulling pain in my abdomen intensified.

I remembered the first time I had a stomach hemorrhage after our divorce three years ago.

That night, I was writhing on the ground in pain, and I called Ethan's number.

But it was Chloe who answered.

"Ethan's bathing the baby. Whatever it is, you can call back tomorrow."

She hung up after saying that.

In the end, I took a taxi to the emergency room by myself.

The doctor asked if I had any family.

I said no.

From that day on, I never called him again.

I leaned against a birch tree and swallowed two painkillers.

From the distance, I heard the barking of a dog in the snow.

Officer Ben, a rescue worker, scanning the registration photo sent by the aid station, suddenly stopped.

He turned and looked at Ethan Miller, who was following behind.

"Mr. Miller, you truly didn't know?"

Ethan's heart sank abruptly.

"Know what?"

The rescue worker handed him his phone.

On the screen was the medical condition note I had uploaded when borrowing the portable oxygen concentrator.

[Stage IV Stomach Cancer, abdominal metastasis, post-ostomy surgery, with drainage tube, warning of hypothermia and infection.]

In the howling wind and snow, Ethan stood frozen.