The ICU room was always too cold no matter how much they turned up the heater. It was like the entire ward was devoid of any sort of warmth both internal and external because of the level of grief that had stained the place over the years.

Machines hummed around Hayden, blinking lights and quiet beeps in perfect rhythm, mocking the stillness of his body. His skin looked too pale against the white sheets. Tubes snaked into his arms, down his throat. Every sound, every flicker of movement from ...