I scrunched my eyebrows, unsure of what I was supposed to be looking at. All I knew was it appeared to be a camera feed of a man chained to a wall and surrounded by a bank of monitors and computers.
“Looks like Richard has this guy locked away somewhere,” he explained.
“Who?”
A satisfied smile crossed his face. “I ran a facial scan on him and we got a hit. That is Damian Mills.”
“Damian?!” I exclaimed. “Mackenzie’s Damian?” I had all but given up hope we’d ever find him alive.
He nodded. “Benson and Maxwell are doing their best to trace the source of this feed right now.”
I exhaled and collapsed into a chair. “That’s a relief. I was so worried with everything that just happened, we’d all have more questions than answers. Maybe Damian can fill in some of the blanks we’re left with right now.”
Eli placed his hand on my arm in a comforting manner. “Don’t think that way. She’s a fighter. She’ll get through this. I’m sure she has all the answers you need.”
“I hope you’re right,” I said solemnly.
Over the next few hours, people began to trickle into the waiting room…other members of my team anxious for any news about what happened this evening; Mackenzie’s co-workers at the restaurant; Brayden and Jenna, who seemed to be in a daze as she was now faced with the reality of who the man she married truly was. Despite the scratches and bruises on her face, she remained strong, vowing to stay at the hospital until Mackenzie was well enough to walk out of here with her. I knew she saw the truth in my eyes, that there was a strong possibility that would not happen, but I didn’t want to dampen her spirit. In fact, it was her positive attitude that gave me hope everything would be okay.
I had no idea how much time had passed and I was getting anxious for some kind of news about Mackenzie and the baby…good or bad. The waiting was eating me up. Finally, the doctor who had met the paramedics when we arrived appeared in the waiting room, her expression blank.
“Mr. Burnham,” she said, looking at me. “Will you come with me, please?”
Standing up, I hesitated briefly, glancing at the full waiting room, everyone else just as anxious for news as I was.
“Go,” Eli said, gesturing. “We’ll be here if you need us.”
I nodded and followed the doctor. “How is she?” I asked quickly as she led me toward an elevator.
“She’s in surgery right now,” she replied, getting into the elevator and pressing a button for the fourth floor. I scanned the directory, seeing that the fourth floor was the labor and delivery unit. “We had to be careful when we delivered the baby, but he made it. We gave him a thorough exam because of all the trauma he had endured, but he’s doing wonderfully.”
I remained somewhat in shock as I followed the doctor down a hallway and into a room, a nurse sitting on a chair in the corner and rocking a little blue bundle. I’d had months to prepare for this moment, but it wasn’t supposed to happen like this. Mackenzie was supposed to be here so we could celebrate the birth of our child together. Instead, she was undergoing surgery to save her life.
The nurse heard us enter and looked in our direction, a warm smile crossing her face. “You must be the father.”
I remained still, in awe. Even though I felt our baby kick and move around in Mackenzie’s stomach on a daily basis, it was still just an abstract thing. But as the nurse raised herself from the chair and walked toward me with the little bundle, it dawned on me… I was a father.
As I stood there and held my son for the first time, I knew why Mackenzie made me make that promise to her. This moment was what life was all about. A year ago, I never saw myself settling down for long enough to even have a wife, let alone actually want to have kids. Now, as I stared into his hazel eyes dotted with speckles of gold and green, I got it. He was only hours old, yet I saw so much of myself and Mackenzie in him.
Too mesmerized by my son, I barely noticed when the doctor left, promising to come find me when she had any news of Mackenzie’s status.