Chapter 3 - THE DOCTOR'S FACE
Dr. Patel didn't smile when she entered the room.
That scared me more than anything.
Doctors usually try to reassure you first.
She didn't.
She pulled up a stool beside my bed.
"Emily, I need you to listen carefully."
Daniel tightened his grip around my hand.
The monitors around us kept beeping.
Our son's heartbeat filled the room.
Fast.
Unsteady.
Dr. Patel spoke calmly.
"The trauma appears to have caused part of your placenta to separate from the uterine wall."
My throat closed.
"Can you stop it?"
"We're monitoring you closely. Sometimes the bleeding stabilizes."
"And if it doesn't?"
She paused.
"We may have to deliver your baby tonight."
Daniel stood.
"He's eight weeks early."
"Thirty-two weeks is premature, yes, but many babies born at this stage do very well with neonatal care."
I looked at the ceiling.
I had spent weeks worrying about crib colors.
Car seats.
Baby names.
Whether Daniel would remember to install the changing table correctly.
I had never imagined seeing my son for the first time through the window of an intensive care unit.
Another nurse entered.
"Doctor."
Dr. Patel looked toward the monitor.
The baby's heart rate dropped.
Everything changed.
"Emily, roll onto your left side."
Nurses rushed in.
Daniel was pushed backward.
"What is happening?"
"Sir, give us room."
My heartbeat hammered.
"Is he okay?"
No one answered.
"Is my baby okay?"
Dr. Patel leaned over me.
"We need to move quickly."
The next ten minutes happened in pieces.
Consent forms.
An anesthesiologist.
Bright lights.
Daniel in hospital scrubs.
Someone saying "emergency C-section."
I started shaking.
Daniel touched my face.
"Look at me."
"What if he doesn't make it?"
"Don't."
"What if—"
"Emily."
His forehead pressed against mine.
"He is our son. He's fighting. You're fighting. I'm right here."
I cried.
Then the doors opened.
Just before they rolled me toward surgery, Officer Harris appeared at the end of the hallway.
Daniel saw him.
The officer held something inside a clear evidence bag.
A small bottle.
He motioned Daniel over.
"I need to ask you something."
Daniel hesitated.
"Now?"
"It's about your mother."
Daniel walked closer.
Officer Harris lowered his voice.
"This was found in the kitchen trash."
Daniel looked at the bottle.
"What is it?"
"It appears to be medication."
"So?"
Officer Harris glanced toward me.
"The label has your wife's name on it."
Daniel went still.
I had never seen that bottle before.
And suddenly Margaret's strange words echoed in my head.
You don't understand what she'll lose if that baby is born.
The operating room doors opened.
May you like
Before Daniel could ask another question, the nurse pulled my bed through.
And I realized the kick might not have been the first thing Margaret had done to me.
