Page 73 of Pieces into Place
I can do this.
Chapter 25
Isla
Seeing any of her babies in pain was hard on Isla. It didn’t matter if it was a broken arm, the flu, or labor. Her heart went out to each of them as she desperately wished she could trade places with them. Especially when it came to her kids being in labor. Watching Mason give birth was beautiful and an experience Isla would never forget, but she hated seeing Mason in so much pain. She even had physical reminders of the pain for a few days after that on her arm where Mason had grabbed onto her and squeezed as she birthed Silas. Not that Isla minded. She was a mom, and that was what moms did for their kids.
Just like they dabbed a washcloth onto their daughter’s forehead as she labored.
Blake had made it to six centimeters, and Isla was so proud of her. Her contractions had been intense. More intense than Isla ever remembered witnessing before. Vera assured her it was normal with Pitocin, but that did little to ease Isla’s concerns over Blake’s pain level.
“You’re doing so good, Blake,” Isla encouraged as Blake squeezed onto her hand tightly through the contraction.
The two of them were alone in the room together, as Vera and Alexis had gone down to the cafeteria for something to drink. They had been trying to eat and drinkoutside of the room as to not do so in front of Blake. She’d had to reassure Alexis and Vera that she was more than capable of staying with Blake as they went downstairs for a few minutes. Besides, it was nearing eight-thirty, with Blake probably still hours away from delivery.
Isla desperately needed another Diet Coke.
As Blake’s contractions continued, the monitor beside the bed began to loudly ding. Blake looked up at her, fear plastered across her face.
“Mom? What is that?”
Isla had no idea, but she didn’t want to tell Blake that. She tried to figure out what the numbers and lines on the screen meant, but they were all foreign to her. What wasn’t foreign to her was how quickly Melanie ran into the room. Melanie was all work and no play as she studied the screen and Isla studied her. Having known Melanie for years, Isla could read her fairly well. But her poker face was one that Isla hadn’t encountered before.
“Blake, it looks like the baby isn’t loving this position, so let’s get you flipped over to your other side, okay?”
“Is the baby okay?” Blake’s voice was shaking as Melanie helped her flip over to her right side.
“She is. Her heart rate is just dropping with each contraction and it’s taking her a bit to get it back up.” Melanie put her hand on Blake’s shoulder and smiled softly at her. “We’ll try this position for a another contraction or two and see if that helps her, okay?”
With Blake now facing away from her, Isla moved to the other side of the bed so she could hold onto her hand. She tried to stay out of Melanie’s way as she kept clicking buttons on the computer and studying a chart Isla didn’t understand. Isla was about to ask Melanie what it meant when Blake had another contraction. Blake squeezed Isla’s hand as the monitor began dinging again.
“Mel,” Isla’s voice got stuck in her throat as she realized the dip in the chart she was watching was the baby’s heartbeat falling.
“Blake, let’s get you onto your back while I raise the head of the bed a little more, okay?” Melanie worked quickly as Isla stepped out of the way. She felt so helpless watching Melanie adjust monitors on Blake’s stomach as Blake worked through the contraction alone. “I’m going to page Dr. Jacobs, okay? We may need to turn off the Pitocin to keep baby girl’s heart rate stable.”
Her stomach fell to the floor as Melanie paged Avery to the room. She squeezed Blake’s foot, unable to hold her hand without being in Melanie’s way. Vera and Alexis rushed back into the room as Alexis ran to Blake’s side as Vera checked in with Melanie.
“We need to stop the Pitocin.” Vera pressed a button that Isla assumed did just as she had said. Isla almost reminded Vera that Blake wasn’t her patient, but she stopped herself. If anyone knew how to help, it was Vera. “Shit.”
“What?” Isla and Alexis asked in unison. The panic was clear on both of their faces as Isla reached out and took Alexis’s hand.
God, I know we don’t talk a lot. But please let everything be okay with Blake and the baby.
“That was such a reflex.” Vera took a step back from the bed. “I should have let Avery make that call.”
“No, you did the right thing.” Avery hurried into the room. She stood between Melanie and Blake as she looked at the monitors. “I’d have done the same thing. Thanks, Vera.”
“You’re welcome.”
Stepping out of doctor mode, Vera went back into mama mode as she checked in with Blake. Isla watched from the edge of the bed as Vera pressed her forehead against Blake’s and whispered to her. Every few seconds Blakewould nod and Isla knew Vera was telling her it was all going to be okay.
Isla wanted to believe that. But the truth of the matter was the baby’s heart rate kept dropping with each contraction. And each time the monitor went off, Blake’s heart rate would increase more than normal. She wasn’t a doctor, but she knew what was happening wasn’t ideal.
And her anxiety shot through the roof at what the implications were.
As three more contractions came and went, the baby’s heart rate took a nosedive each time. Isla desperately looked from Melanie to Avery to Vera to figure out what their plan was. She tried to read them, but they all had poker faces she couldn’t decipher. The three of them seemed to have an entire conversation without words as Avery looked at Vera, then Blake.
“Blake, Alexis,” Avery took command of the situation, “the baby’s heart rate still is not tolerating the contractions well. I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but I’m recommending a cesarean. I strongly feel that’s our safest option for mama and baby.”
