"Gripped with emotion, she sank her head into his chest. She wanted to see Gabriel play amongst his friends again. She wanted to see him grow, to mature and to hear him talk endlessly about the things that caught his interest. She wanted to see him get married someday and have children of his own. No matter what path he’d take in life, or whom he loved, she wanted to be there to see it."

"The sun painted the sky a dark red as Oliver arrived at his father’s estate. Carnations, roses, and daisies decorated the fence surrounding the property, acting as guardians against the pollution of the inner city. As he walked along the stoned path leading to the entrance, Oliver reminisced about the times he played in the garden with his mother. Her face was lost to him, but he remembered she’d been beautiful. Just as the flowers were."

"In his younger days, he’d seen how disease ate away at the men working in the city. Their bellies were swollen, their teeth were blackened and decayed. Ernest had feared the death that surrounded him, but now that he lay motionless, plagued with never-ending suffering, death was something he now welcomed."