Page 84 of Love Resurrected
I shove my feet back in my shoes, grab a jacket, and am locking the front door as Brad pulls up. I run to the truck and get in.
“What’s wrong? You didn’t sound happy,” I ask.
“I don’t know. Ethan said it was bad. She’s bleeding.”
“Ohmigod!”
“He was crying, Tenley. I’ve only heard Ethan cry once before.” He looks at me. I can only guess it was when Kat passed away.
Brad’s tires squeal slightly as he takes each corner down the hill. This time it doesn’t bother me.
The only thing that matters is getting to Sadie.
* * *
They aren’t able to give us much information at the hospital arrival desk, other than the floor Sadie will be on once she’s out of surgery.
Ethan is pacing the hall when we get off the elevator. He looks like he’s aged thirty years in a day. His face is gaunt, and any lines look to run deeper than before. I run to him and wrap him in my arms. “What happened?”
He chokes back a sob and holds me tight. “I can’t lose her, Tenley. I can’t.”
“It’s okay. She will be okay. Sadie is tough. Tell me what happened?” I pull away and look at him. The devastation he’s feeling is clear in his eyes, his gaze looks hollow.
“I don’t know. I went out to get her ice cream. I was gone maybe ten minutes. When I got back, there was blood everywhere. So much blood.” He steps back and covers his face in his hands.
I look to Brad for guidance, but his eyes are closed and his face is tight with pain. I’m just not sure if it’s pain he’s feeling for Ethan and Sadie, or if he’s remembering what it felt like before he lost Kat. Or, shit, maybe his hand still hurts. Either way, he’s not feeling well.
I steer Ethan over to a chair in the waiting area and force him to sit. Then I return and do the same with Brad. Once I have them both seated, I turn to Ethan and take his hands in mine.
“What have the doctors said?”
“Placental abruption. They don’t know if either she or the baby will make it.” His voice breaks. “God, Ten, there was so much blood.”
I’d held off crying but couldn’t do it any longer. My chin quivers as my eyes water, and tears stream down my cheeks.
How did this happen?
She’s pregnant and people have babies every day.
It’s so . . . normal.
“Thank fuck there was an ambulance close or she would’ve died on the way. Fuck, they both would have.” He stares in front of him at nothing. I place my hand on his shoulder, lamely, not knowing what else to do. Brad comes to from whatever fog the news sent him into and pulls Ethan into a hug. I’m not surprised to see tears on his cheeks either.
I researched pre-eclampsia when Sadie was first diagnosed; well, as much as I could on the internet. One result, and possibly the worst one, is a placental abruption. The placenta detaches from the uterus and there is no way to reattach it, putting both mom and baby in immediate danger. Mom loses too much blood and baby then can’t get oxygen or nutrients. The window is small for saving them once it happens. And delivering the baby must be emergent to avoid loss of life.
Sadie is at thirty-six weeks, so the baby is technically full-term already. That should allay any fears of issues regarding prematurity.
Assuming they both survive.
Which they will.
They have to. Sadie can’t die. Baby Audrey can’t die. The universe can’t be so cruel as to take a baby from this world that will be loved so much. Can it?
Of course it can. Happens all the time.
My thoughts continue to turn dark as I imagine how life will look without Sadie or baby Audrey in it. I can’t even fathom such an existence. It was hard enough to live in Texas without Sadie after she stayed in California, and I still got to talk to her every day. Not having that option would be devastating.
Which must be how Brad felt when Kat passed.
