Chapter 115

In a coma

Chapter 115

I stand rooted in my spot as the words keep ringing in my ears.

A baby girl.

Ava has a baby girl. She has a little daughter. Noah is going to be so fucking happy. He has been praying

that he gets a sister, and his prayer has been answered.

“Can I see her?”

“I know you’re eager to see your daughter, Mr. Woods, but you’ll have to wait a bit until we’re done

checking her,” he says.

At first, his words don’t make sense to me, but soon enough, I realize that he assumed that I was the

baby’s father. I don’t mind it at all; it just came as a fucking shock.

“She’s premature since she’s only twenty–six weeks old, and given the trauma she faced when Ava was

shot and fell to the ground, we’ll place her in an incubator. She’ll be in NICU until we feel she’s healthy

enough to be with family.” O

I notice that he has not mentioned anything about Ava. Does that mean they have no hopes of her

surviving?

My heart rate increases at that possibility. She has to survive. She just has to. Otherwise, how are we

supposed to live without her?

“You have to be prepared though. We will do everything in our power to make sure she survives, but you

have to know that she may not. If she does, she may have severe disability such as cerebral palsy,

learning difficulties or hearing and vision problems”

“But that is just a probability, right? It is not something that is set in stone.” I ask him, already feeling sorry

for the little girl.

She came into the world too early, and already she’s faced and will face more than most people will ever

face in their entire lives.

“Yes. It’s just a possibility, but it doesn’t always happen. We just prefer giving parents all the angles in

case something happens.”

I nod my head.

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“What about Ava?” I ask before he can turn and walk away.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you anything right now. Her situation is delicate, so as of now we aren’t sure

how things will turn out.” He doesn’t give us time to process anything before he walks back into the room.

I stand numbly as his words hit me like sharp shards of glass. They pierce my heart and soul and cause

a load of pain.

Minutes later, a nurse comes to let us know that Ava is now in surgery. I thought I would see her before

they took her to surgery, but she told me that they used a different door.

She said that her wounds, especially the one on her head, wasn’t pretty. They couldn’t allow her family to

see her like that.

After she leaves, I take my seat and continue praying to a God I have lost touch with. I bargain with him,

I threaten him, and finally, I fucking beg him. Beg him to listen to my prayers. Beg him to save the woman

I love.

“Can I get you something to eat, Ro?” My mom asks me.

I shake my head. I couldn’t even stomach the thought of food right now, let alone eat it. I was a nervous

fucking wreck. Food was the last thing on my mind.

Gabe takes the seat next to me when mom vacates it. With dad sitting on my other side. I don’t like

admitting weakness, but in this moment, I am. I am weak and helpless, and I didn’t know how to stop

feeling that way.

Time passes with no word from the doctors. Before I know it, the waiting room door opens, and Noah

comes running to me. His body collides with mine and I take time to just breathe his scent in. It calms

me, but not by much.

I spot Calvin entering with Gunner. I give him a nod to say thank you, which he reciprocates. Emma

freezes upon seeing them, but Kate’s eyes fill with tears when her eyes land on her grandson.

“Dad, where is mom? I asked Cal why he was picking me up instead of mom, but he said, You’ll explain

everything,” he says, a mask of concern firmly on his face.

Damn this was hard. I had time to come up with a way of delivering the news, but words fail me.

“Is she having the baby? Is that why we are at the hospital?” he pushes.

I take a calming breath before opening my mouth to speak.

“Your mom was hurt really badly, Buddy. The doctors are with her right now and they’re doing everything

to make sure that she’ll be fine.”

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15 BONUS

My heart breaks at seeing the tears that fill his eyes. He shouldn’t be going through this. He shouldn’t be

here worrying about his beloved mother.

“What about the baby?” His voice is hoarse when she asks that

I smile at him. “You have a baby sister, Noah. Just like you wanted ”

His eyes widen, and wonder fills his face, right before a smile takes over his features.

“Can I see her?”

“Not yet. Not until the doctors are done checking her out to make sure she’s fine”

The smile stays in place for a while until it starts slowly slipping. The tears that he had controlled, start

falling down his cheek. He doesn’t make a sound though. He silently cries.

“Will she die like grandpa? I don’t want her to leave me, dad.” His voices catches at the end and I pull

him

into my arms.

I hug him to my chest while fighting my emotions and trying to be strong for him.

That is a question he shouldn’t have to wonder. A possibility he shouldn’t have to consider.

Whoever did this to Ava was going to pay dearly. He or she messed with the wrong person. For the pain

they have caused they are going to feel it tenfold.

“No, she won’t. Your mom is strong. I’m very sure that she’ll pull through” I murmur in his ear.

We stay like that for a while before he lets me go and climbs on my thigh. He then lays his head on my

chest and holds me tightly. Noah is a strong boy, and the fact that he’s behaving this way shows just how

vulnerable he is.

We continue waiting. I stand up, pace, and then sit down over and over again. Noah never leaves my

side,

even for a moment. Every minute that passed without a word, I slowly die inside. I was afraid that the

delay meant that things weren’t going as was expected 1

It was hours after Ava had been taken in for surgery when her parents arrived.

“Where is my daughter?” Nora rushes in. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy.

This is the first time that I have seen Nora and Theo disheveled. They’ve always been put together. Even

when Ethan was sentenced. Yet today they looked like hell had frozen over.

It’s understandable, though. They lost more than twenty–five years with their daughter, and now they

face

the risk of losing her for good.

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+15 BONUS

Before anyone can answer, the door opens, and a doctor comes out. The look on his face tells me

everything I need to know. He didn’t have good news.

I turn to my mom “Could you take Noah and Gunner to get some snacks, I’m sure they’re hungry.”

She nods her head and calls the boys to her. Noah gives me a look, but I assure him that everything will

be okay.

I know I fucking lied, but I can’t have him here in case the doctor delivers terrible news.

“Mr. Woods…” he begins, but stops.

I grit my teeth and force my jaw to work.

“Fucking say it,” I snarl as I brace myself against what might be an announcement of a death.

“She’s alive, but she slipped into a coma during surgery,” he says calmly, delivering one more blow that

none of us were expecting.