When Jimmy got back to the ward, Kate was asleep again. Betty, who was watching there, stood up and told him about Kate's status. And then she left to make a call.

Jimmy sat down on the chair she left. He unbuttoned the top button near his collar and relaxed a little bit.

Kate's hair was spreading around the pillow. Her face was pale and fatigued. She was frowning as if she had something to worry about even in her dreams. However, she still gave out an air of peace and warmth. Perhaps that was the air of maternity.

He had once told her that she gave people around her a feeling of relaxing and made them have a d.e.s.i.r.e to talk. Now he could no longer talk to her about his heart, but he still could feel relaxed from inside to outside when he was in the same room with her.

The room was too quiet.

Her breathing was audible. It was rhythmic, slow, and lasting each time, and it assuage his anxiety. Jimmy had not slept much in the past few days. He stretched his legs and rubbed his temples, and dozed off leaning on the back of the chair.

The vibration of his phone in the pocket woke him up, and he jerked forward. He took out the phone and saw the number and pressed it off. It was from Roger.

He sighed and looked to the bed and met Kate's eyes.

No surprise, no resentment. Her eyes were as peaceful as still water.

He said apologetically, "I woke you up?"

"How is he?" Her voice was low but revealed her nervousness.

She had no more surprise or resentment because her mind was occupied by that man's safety. He felt at a loss and said seriously, "Kate, you have to be prepared…"

Kate turned anxious and said with a trembling voice, "Did he…" She didn't dare to say that word.

"He is still alive, but he is in a deep coma." Looking at her puzzled expression, Jimmy added, "He is vegetable now."

Her expression was still, in a mixture of lost and surprised. She said, oh, after a long time, and sighed.

Jimmy frowned and said solemnly, "It is my mistake to have that kind of situation there. I owe you an apology."

Kate didn't respond to his words but just asked, "Where is he now?"

"He is still in this hospital. Some procedures have to be done. If nothing unusual happens, he will stay here for some time."

Kate felt relieved a little at his words.

So he was with her and her baby. The three of them, though on different floors, different wards, were still together, at least in the same building. And she got comforted and started to have a little hope. This shred of hope gave her the courage to live on.

Jimmy watched the change of her expression and was amazed that she didn't collapse in this disaster. Instead, she had new hope now. He was touched by her toughness.

After a moment of silence, he heard Kate said, "Jimmy, can I tell you something?"

"OK. Go ahead."

It was autumn, about over 20 years ago.

In a farmer's family, a baby girl was born.

When she was still using a baby's short eyesight to watch the world, on the same day and in a city thousands of miles away, a thirteen-year-old boy was having a cruel day…

When she was held in her father's arms, that boy was holding his father's ashes urn.

When she was playing with her playmates, he was hiding somewhere because of his burned face.

When she was having a simple dinner with her family, he was working hard with his schoolwork and part-time jobs. What accompanied him was his own long shadow on the lonely street when he got back home at a depth of the nights.

When she was still troubled by the math problems in junior high, he had pointed the gun at the foe that broke his family. He must have other feelings besides the delight for revenge. Probably fear, disgust, or regret…

Jimmy was shocked by the story.

Everyone knew a young man started his business after receiving education abroad. Nobody knew the sad story behind it. He thought of himself at thirteen. He was concentrating on losing weight. His family business started to boom. His families wouldn't have less love for him no matter how busy they were.

"If he could take the legal way to get justice for his father, he would not have to use the extreme means. If he had not been through the disaster at such a young age, he could be a nice and upright person like you."

Kate raised her head and looked at Jimmy, "I want to say sorry for your Uncle Jack for him. And also say sorry for what he did to you."

"In the past, I might not be able to say this to you, but now he had died…" She sniffed and said chokingly, "at least in my heart, he had died once."

"Could you please forgive him a little?"

Her sincerity and apology could not be ignored. Jimmy kept silent for a while and didn't reply to her question, "You love him so much."

After Jimmy left, Kate was still in a trance.

She didn't know what it was to love a person. She just knew that when she saw him bleeding, she felt the blood was flowing out from her heart. The more he bled, the emptier her heart was. Her heart was withering.

Jimmy walked out of the hospital and dialed the number of the missed call.

Roger sounded gloomy, "I didn't plan well enough. I underestimated the corruption of the government officials. And I also put you in danger again. Now they are desperate, and the task followed would be more urgent and dangerous…"

After he hung up the phone, Jimmy sighed to the sky. The sky was crystal clear and seemed not to tolerate any dirt. But in this world, sins and filth were everywhere, and people were incapable of removing them.

In the evening, Betty took Kate to ICU to see her daughter.

Outside the glass wall, Betty pointed to one in an incubator and said, "That is her."

Kate looked at it and exclaimed, "She is so small."

Inside the clear box, the little thing had not opened her eyes. She could not tell if she was pretty or ugly. She was like a weak kitty.

"The doctor said she had to stay here for two months until she grew bigger." Betty comforted her.

Kate's fingers drew the outline of her daughter on the glass and said, "How I hope I can hold her!"