After the divorce, I was about to throw away my ex-wife’s old pillow—until I found what she had hidden inside and broke down in tears, finally understanding why she let me go.

Inside were receipts, medical documents, and a small blue notebook.

My fingers went numb.

The first page I lifted carried a hospital stamp.

St. Luke’s Medical Center
Department of Oncology

For a moment, my mind refused to process it.

Then I read the name.

PATIENT: KARLA MAE SANTOS
My chest felt like it had been struck.

Oncology.

Cancer.

I sat upright on the bed, only then realizing my knees were shaking. Papers slipped from my hands and scattered across the floor.