Jace stood outside the hospital under the harsh glare of the afternoon sun, the envelope clutched tightly in his sweating palm. Inside was a check—Elias's check. The amount scrawled on it could cover months of rent, erase debts, and buy his brother a second chance at life. It felt like blood money. And still, he clung to it like salvation. He stepped into the hospital, swallowed by its sterile chill. The scent of antiseptic and worry clung to every corner. At the reception, a nurse barely ...