Seven years ago, a patient died during an emergency rescue I led. They said I didn't do enough to save him. The family protested outside the hospital with signs, demanding justice. They were there every single day, blocking the entrance and yelling that I should pay with my life. My own father thought I was guilty. When he passed away, he didn't even let me attend his funeral. The hospital stripped me of everything, and I spent seven years in prison. When I got out, I went north to the forest. I became a ranger. I finally found peace. Then Adrian Cross showed up and ruined everything. He was my ex-husband, and he'd done pretty well for himself. He ran a big hospital by then, and everyone knew his name. His team rolled into the ranger station during a heavy snowstorm, and their vehicles cut through the silent white landscape. Someone's voice rang out across the clearing. "Dr. Wells, Mr. Cross has been thinking about you this whole time! He's still wearing his wedding ring!" I saw him standing there in the crowd, looking perfect as always. Just seeing him made me feel sick. Because this man, who supposedly never stopped thinking about me, was the same person who rewrote the medical records seven years ago. He protected his precious first love and made me take the fall for everything.
Snow kept hammering against the window. I opened the door, and Adrian was standing outside in his coat. There wasn't a single snowflake on him. "Victoria?" He sounded surprised, like he couldn't believe it was really me. I didn't answer. My hand grabbed onto the doorframe, and a rough piece of wood jabbed into my palm. It hurt like hell. "Mr. Cross, I heard you were bringing your team out here for winter medical rounds, so I thought I'd stop by and say hello." Connor, one of the other rangers, squeezed past me from behind. He was rubbing his hands together against the cold and grinning like an idiot. "I'll just be here for a minute." My heart jumped, and something twisted in my chest. I didn't have a choice. I walked outside. The second I stepped through the door, a woman with glasses headed straight for me. I recognized her immediately. She used to work under Rachel Green. I had no idea what she was doing in Adrian's team back then. "You're Dr. Wells, aren't you? Mr. Cross talks about you all the time." She smiled at me, but there was something pointed in her tone. "He always sayid you were incredible in the ER back in the day. I never thought I'd actually run into you out here." Adrian cleared his throat suddenly, but his face stayed completely blank. "Why don't you all wait outside? I need to talk to her alone." Everyone took the hint and filed out of the cabin. Once they were gone, Adrian finally spoke. "Victoria, am... I too late?" I bit down hard on my lip. When I spoke, my voice came out barely above a whisper. "I wouldn't dare ask you to come find me, Mr. Cross." This was the first time I'd ever talked to him like he was a stranger. Adrian frowned and looked me up and down, then moved toward me. "You look... terrible. How'd you end up like this?" Terrible? Was he seriously asking me that right now? I sneered and stepped back without thinking. "Director Cross, if there's nothing else, you should probably head back. I've got patrol rounds to do later." I shoved my hands into my pockets to hide the chilblains covering them. I didn't want to give him anything to mock me with. But he just looked at me with that supposedly loving gaze and said, "Vic, does it really have to be like this between us? Actually, there's something you didn't know back then..." Just as Adrian was about to step closer, a voice interrupted him. "Ad, didn't you promise you'd come with me to my prenatal appointment today? How did you forget again?" Rachel had one hand resting on her slightly rounded belly, and she was pouting at Adrian like a spoiled kid. Then she turned to me with this smug look on her face. "Dr. Wells, how nice to see you here. It's been forever since we last met each other, hasn't it? Ad and I had plans for laster, so I got so worried that I had to track him down when I couldn't find him earlier. I hope I'm not interrupting your little reunion." She looped her arm through Adrian's like it was the most natural thing in the world. So they already had a baby on the way. Then what the hell was he even doing here? Had he driven all this way just so I could see how happy he was now? I shouldn't have been surprised. Back when I was the department head, he made me work as Rachel's assistant just to give her more opportunities. And when the medical accident happened, he threw me under the bus without a second thought. Love like that needed an audience. It always did. I forced a smile, and just as I was about to say something, Rachel's lackey from earlier piped up again. "Oh Honey, you don't have to come all the way here. It's freezing out here. You really need to be careful in your condition. Honestly, you should just stay home and rest. Don't worry, I've got everything under control here." What a fucking kiss-ass. I didn't want to deal with any of their bullshit, so I turned around and started closing the door.
My brother, Zachary Wells, called me out of nowhere. I hadn't heard from him in years. "Listen, Victoria, I'm warning you. Stop bothering Adrian! He's about to be a father, so quit embarrassing yourself!" I froze. Rachel must've complained to him about me. Before I could even process that, Zachary kept going. "You didn't even show up to Dad's funeral, and Mom's health is terrible. Adrian's been taking care of everything for us these past few years! Don't you dare cause any more trouble!" I was about to ask him how Mom was doing, but he hung up on me. Right. I went to prison for seven years and the whole family thought I was a disgrace to the Wells name. Before Dad died, he made it clear I wasn't allowed at his funeral. He didn't even want my name on his tombstone. Even Zachary and Mom, the two people who used to love me most, treated me like strangers by then. Thinking about Mom made my eyes start to burn. I wondered what they'd all think if they knew the truth. That Adrian and Rachel were the ones who destroyed my life. Adrian's hand shot out and stopped me from closing the door. "Don't be too hard on Zach," he said quietly. "He's in a tough spot." "Mom's been sick ever since Dad passed. Zach's been handling everything on his own and taking care of her. It's not easy for him." He pushed his glasses up his nose and sighed. "Look, I know I didn't handle things well back then. I've been trying to make it up to you all these years." "If you need anything... I mean, if there's anything I can do..." I didn't let him finish. I slammed the door shut. Voices drifted through the gap, loud enough to hear. "Who does she think she is? Does she seriously still think she's still the 'Doctor Miracle'?" "The director came here himself and she can't even be grateful." "Stop it. If she doesn't want to see me right now, we'll go." That was Adrian's voice, calm as ever. "We've got plenty of time."
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