In front of the doctors, he put on a perfect act of grief: he hunched his shoulders, lowered his head, and sobbed so convincingly that a young nurse secretly wiped away her tears.

“Please, at least let me say goodbye to her…” he begged in a trembling voice. “I’m going to lose the love of my life…”

The doctors agreed.

He entered the room alone. His wife lay motionless on the bed. She looked peaceful, almost alive—as if she were simply sleeping. Only the tube in her throat revealed the truth.