Love That Defies Us (The Devil's Dust #2.2)(18)

“What happened?” Doc questions, placing a stethoscope to Dani’s chest.

“Her water broke, and she got real dizzy and nearly passed out on the way here. Then she did pass out a few minutes ago.”

“She’s breathing; lay her down,” she instructs, pointing to the white linen bed. I slowly lay Dani down, my hands shaking as I slide them from underneath her.

Doc and three nurses run her to a room, me following closely behind.

When I walk into the room, they are hooking her up to machines, putting an IV in her arm, and yelling things I can’t understand to one another.

“Call the OB floor, find out who her doctor is!” Doc yells above the chaos. A guy in blue scrubs runs out of the room with the order. I run my hands through my hair, pacing the doorway.

“Dr. Jessica, her blood pressure is 170 over 110!” the young nurse yells, looking at Doc.

“That’s not good,” Doc replies.

“What’s going on? What does that mean?” I question, stepping up to the bed.

I look at Dani and see her move her head, her eyes barely opening.

“We need to get her upstairs and get this baby out of her quickly,” Doc says. The team of nurses grab cords off the wall, hook her IV to a post attached to the bed and start pushing her toward the door.

“Is she going to be okay?” I ask frantically.

“Shadow, go to the waiting room on the OB floor. I will have someone update you as we go along,” Doc informs me, rushing after the bed. I run forward and grab Dani’s hand, holding it tightly as they rush her toward an elevator. I’ll never forgive myself if I lose her, not having near enough time on Earth with her being all my fault.

“I’m here, Dani!” I yell as they pull her from my grasp. I turn and feel my eyes fill with tears, scared to death of what will happen. When I look up I see two police officers standing by the hospital doors, their arms crossed as they stare me down.

“Shit,” I whisper.

“I need to get upstairs,” I say, walking past them.

“That’s fine. We will be here waiting,” an officer responds.

I scoff and head toward the stairs.

Sitting in the chair, I call Bull and tell him what had happened. He, of course, freaks and says he will be here quickly.

“Is there a S-Shadow?” a young blonde nurse asks the waiting room. I immediately stand and walk toward her.

“That’s me,” I reply.

“Dani is stable and is being prepped for a C-section,” she informs.

“What happened? What’s wrong?” I ask.

“She has high blood pressure which can be caused by pregnancy, but her blood pressure is so high it has caused her to go into labor early,” she explains. “The baby is showing signs of distress, so the doctor thinks a C-section is our best option right now for Mom and baby.” I lower my head and rest my hand on the back of my neck in defeat.

“Her chart shows she had a touch of high blood pressure with her first pregnancy, is that correct?” she asks.

“Yes, she had to be induced because it was getting too high,” I inform her. “But nothing like this.”

“I collected her charts from her primary OB, and it looks like her blood pressure has been fine with this pregnancy. It has to have just spiked in the last week or so,” she remarks. “I will be out shortly for another update.” I nod and head back toward my chair.

“Is she okay? Is the baby alive?”

I look behind me to a frazzled Bull who’s looking at me with wide eyes.

“They said she is stable, but the baby is in distress,” I respond.

“Shit,” Bull mutters, looking at the double doors leading back into the hospital. “You okay? I saw your parking job,” he remarks, his thumb pointing over his shoulder.

“Yeah, and I got two boys in blue waiting downstairs for me, too,” I reply.

“I saw them,” Bull adds, sitting in the chair next to me. “Bobby told me about Charlie, what a f*ckin’ mess,” Bull grumbles, shaking his head. I nod in agreement, my mind only focusing on Dani.

I lower my head and nervously run my hands back and forth through my hair.

“If I had been around more, I would have noticed things weren’t right,” I mumble.

“Yeah, that’s my fault. I haven’t been around much taking my responsibility as President. I appreciate everything you have done for me. I promise I’m getting my shit together, that things are different,” he remarks, leaning back in his chair. I hope he’s right and not feeding me a line of shit.

“Shadow?”

I stand and look toward the door, a nurse standing with a bright smile on her face.

I walk over to her quickly, my heart beating through my chest.

“Are you ready to meet your daughter?” she asks, her face cheery.

“Wh-what?” I stutter.

“Your daughter is ready to meet her father,” the nurse continues.

“She’s okay?” I ask with a sigh of relief.

“She is beautiful,” she replies.

“What about Dani? Is she okay?” I question quickly.

“She is fine; her blood pressure is already coming down,” she remarks.

A sob escapes my mouth as I close my eyes and look upward, thanking the Lord. He and I talk frequently since I have been with Dani.