I showed up at the hospital to surprise my husband during his shift. But the second one of his coworkers saw me, all the color left his face. Then his eyes filled with tears. “He hasn’t said a word to you, has he?” Ben and I had been married eleven years, and for every one of those years, I had shared him with the hospital. He was a remarkably gifted surgeon.

Our two families had celebrated holidays together for almost ten years, and Brian had helped Paul put together the wooden play set in their backyard.

Karen answered the front door in a morning cardigan, and her face sank into a look of deep worry when she saw how I was standing.

“Hannah, what in the world has happened?”

“I need to talk to Paul right now, Karen.”

She stepped aside without another question, seeing the cold resolve in my eyes.

Paul came slowly down the wooden staircase and stopped on the third step, his shoulders sagging in complete defeat.

He didn’t seem surprised to find me standing in his living room among the framed photos of his children.