until the men finished handling whatever was occurring outside the fortress. I withdrew the phone from my pocket, dialing Eliran as I stepped outside the bedroom door and stood in the narrow hallway. I silently prayed the reception would work well enough to reach him in the infirmary.
“Syn? Everything okay?” his deep, soothing voice came through the receiver.
“Icelyn is in labor,” I answered, somehow keeping the fear from my tone.
“She isn’t due for two more months.”
“I’m very aware of that, but her water broke, and we’re locked in the tower. I don’t know how long it will be before Ryder opens the door, and from the way she is wincing, her contractions aren’t that far apart. What do we do?”
“This isn’t good,” he muttered worriedly. I could hear him moving around in his medical ward through the phone. “Is there a lot of blood?”
“Just a little, but it looks thin. There’s no gushing or anything like that.”
“That’s good,” Eliran sighed in relief. “It’s Icelyn’s first pregnancy, so it won’t be a quick labor. The fact that she is having twins is going to complicate the situation, which isn’t good news. I’ll get the staff ready to meet me outside the tower door, so we can get to her as soon as it opens. I’ll get a message to Ryder stating we have a precarious medical condition in the tower. Keep her rested and be sure she drinks enough fluids. I need to prepare the incubator since the babes are premature; they will need help. If I’m not there when they come, you need to be ready to deliver them.”
“Let’s just plan on you doing that part.” I expelled a breath, listening to the women, who were keeping the conversation lighthearted in the room behind me.
“Was the fluid clear?” he asked gently.
“Yeah, it looked like water on the floor, but there were some traces of blood. I have Icelyn resting on my bed, but she’s not happy about her children being born early.”
“That’s good; that’s really good. Just keep her calm and rested. If it comes down to it, and she feels as if she needs to push, don’t stop her. Trying to stop her labor would do more harm than good at this point. Thousands of babes are born every day. It’s natural, and her body will do what it’s supposed to do. Just be there to clean out the babies’ mouths and find something to clamp the cords if they do come quickly. I’m here, too; if anything changes, call me and I’ll walk you through it.”
“If the babes are born this early, do you think they’ll survive?” I asked, hating to pose the question that no one else would.
“No. The odds are against them,” he stated honestly. “If the twins are born this early, they may be stillborn. I need not point out the other complications of having children in this world since you know it better than most.”
“Thanks for being honest,” I snapped.
“I can’t lie; besides that, you need to prepare for the reality of what is happening. Keep her hopeful because if she gives up, we may lose her too.”
“Eliran, I can’t do this. What if I mess it up, and they suffer because of it, or something worse happens?” I whispered, voice trembling as a tear rolled down my cheek.
“You can because you must. You are one of the fiercest women I have ever had the pleasure of meeting, Synthia. If anyone can do this, it is you.”
I hung up the call, entering the bedroom with a smile in place, wincing as Icelyn released a pain-filled shriek. Darynda lifted the thin sheet, peering between Icelyn’s legs, and frowned, shaking her head. Righting the material back over Icelyn for modesty’s sake, she walked to me, urgency filling her stride.
“Something is wrong. The babies are coming faster than they should be.”
“They’re tiny and very early,” I admitted. “Get water for her to drink, please. Check on my