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She covered her eyes with her hand, then slowly, slowly drew her hand away and looked at Angel “It wasn’t right The heart wasn’t in good enough shape I’m sorry”

“No surgery?” He tried to draw a good breath, couldn’t, heard hiet the words out, he felt his heart seize up Pain erupted in his chest He tried to breathe, but he couldn’t

I’ht suddenly, and he kneas the truth He reached out blindly

Madelaine took hold of his hand, squeezed it hard Dimly he heard her click a button, heard her yell, Code blue Cardiac ICU 264 west Stat Get the cart Then he felt her hands at his chest, wrenching the cotton gown aside

Don’t you die on el God damn you, don’t you die on me

He heard her voice through the fog in hishis muscles He wanted to answer, but he couldn’t

The pain twisted, turned into fire, and exploded in his heart

Chapter Twelve

Rain drummed on the city streets, splashed on the asphalt roof of the building next door, and forravel Madelaine stood at the , staring at the ray city two floors below her Down there, it was such an ordinary October day Nothing different, nothing new

The Madison Street stoplight blipped froreen to yellow Multicolored u in and out a each other Cars started and stopped and turned down corners, disappearing beneath green canopies of the neighborhood trees

Life went on

But not for Madelaine Even now, as she stood there, looking at the sights she’d seen a s she’d never seen before She noticed how the pigeons that perched on the sill stuck together, cooing softly to one another; how the leaves that every so often blew frolass were steeped in color—red, gold, green, and bro the sunlight could break through the clouds in a spear of butter-yellow light that seemed to shoot from Heaven itself

Slowly she turned away from theand moved toward the bed

Angel lay as still as death, his skin ashen, his lips pale as chalk He was breathing—finally—without the help of a ventilator Beside hi out a second-by-second account of the heart that was failing

Failing Had failed