When Cynthia turned her back and walked away from him, George had a serious sharp pain in his left shoulder and arm, and for a short second, he thought that he was about to die.
He drew firsthand experience from that time when he had lost her to another man.
Back then, after not being able to face her because of that one night they spent together, he watched her walk away from him, then he watched as she threw herself into Henry Green's arms. Henry was always lurking behind the corners of their lives, waiting for an opportunity to present itself and then pounce to snatch Cynthia away from George.