by eclampsia, so they’re delivering the baby.”
“Isn’t it too early?” Darcy asked.
“The doctors will have to tell you that; I’m sorry.”
Trace walked to the far corner of the waiting room, leaned up against the wall, and lowered his head.
Over the next hour the waiting room filled up and, though it was standing room only, the voices were only a soft hum. Through it all, Trace stood alone in the corner.
Trace’s head lifted as Ember’s father approached. “How is she?”
“There’s no word yet.”
“She’ll pull through this. You know Ember, she’s tenacious.”
The room was so silent that Trace’s next words hung in the air hauntingly, “I can’t live without her.”
“You can. Believe me, son, you can, but you aren’t going to have to.”
Two hours after Ember was brought into the ER, Dr. Cole came out into the waiting room. “Trace?”
He lifted his head and moved to her. “Yes.”
“The baby’s fine, a few weeks early, but she’s very strong.”
“And Ember?”
“She lost a lot of blood and, unfortunately . . .” She looked down at the chart before she returned her gaze to his. “I’m sorry, but we had to give her a full hysterectomy to stop the bleeding.”
“Is she okay?” Trace demanded.
“The seizure was brought on by eclampsia and it isn’t uncommon for the patient to slip into a coma. However, with the blow she took to her head, we’re unsure if the coma is from the eclampsia or if it’s a result of brain trauma. If the trauma to her brain was significant enough to render her unconscious . . .”
“What, damn it?”
“Well, there’s a possibility, though unlikely, that she may never regain consciousness. The next six hours are critical.”
“And if she doesn’t wake up within six hours?”
“There are rare cases that the person can be out for days and regain full function, but, like I said, that is very rare.” Dr. Cole reached for Trace’s hand. “Ember is young and strong. She’ll pull through this.”
“Can I see her?”
Trace walked down the long corridor, but didn’t see anything, didn’t hear anything. His feet moved him, but he wasn’t sure how. When he reached her room, he stood outside of it for a moment, battling what was raging inside him. He needed to be strong for her even if he felt as if he were being ripped apart, his body being eviscerated by the doctor’s words.
She looked like she was sleeping. Her hair had been washed, and he thought how fucked it was that even though she may be lost to him forever, her hair had been shampooed. He moved to the chair next to her bed and reached for her hand and, when he felt its warmth, a tear slipped down his cheek because he had feared it would be cold.
“We have a daughter. You need to wake up, sweetheart, so we can meet her together. Everyone’s here, waiting to celebrate with us, but you need to wake up first. I know you’re tired, love, you’ve been so tired, but you can sleep later and I’ll hold you for as long as you need. But right now, I need you to open your eyes so that I can see inside you. I need to see inside you, Ember.”
He rested his head on her stomach and his next words tore from his throat with his anguish. “Please don’t leave me. You promised me forever.”
Lucien sat in the waiting room with Darcy curled up in his lap because there wasn’t another available seat; people were on the floor, leaning against the wall. Everyone that Ember knew, everyone that had been touched by her in some way, was here, including Lena and Dane. Brandon and Seth were getting food and coffee for people. Kyle was keeping regular tabs with the nurses and passing on any news. Rafe was passing around boxes of tissues, comforting while being comforted. Charles Michaels stood with Horace and Nathaniel, all silently waiting. Lucien couldn’t put into words how it made him feel to see them there, knowing that the Carmichaels didn’t even know Ember; but Lucien was now a part of their family, and Ember was a part of his.
Lucien couldn’t imagine what Trace was going through, but it nearly broke him to think about Darcy going through this very same thing all alone.
Trace would survive the loss of Ember. He had friends and family that would help him through it, but why the fuck should he have to? Ember’s dad, Shawn, had finally convinced Trace to go see the