😱 CHAPTER 5 — The Midnight Emergency
"Ethan Carter?"
"Yes."
"This is Labor and Delivery."
His heart skipped.
"We need you to bring Olivia in immediately."
"What happened?"
"The blood work from today's appointment has just been reviewed."
"The doctor wants to monitor both mother and baby tonight."
Within five minutes they were in the car.
Rain poured across the windshield.
Olivia held her stomach tightly.
"I don't want anything to happen to him."
Ethan reached over and squeezed her hand.
"It won't."
But inside...
He wasn't sure.
Forty minutes later they arrived at the hospital.
Doctors immediately connected Olivia to monitors.
The room filled with quiet beeping.
Then one of the nurses frowned.
"The baby's heart rate is dropping."
Everything seemed to stop.
Doctors rushed into the room.
More machines.
More voices.
More urgency.
Ethan stood frozen.
"Sir, we may need an emergency delivery if his heart rate doesn't recover."
Olivia looked terrified.
She reached for Ethan's hand.
"If something happens..."
"Don't."
She smiled weakly.
"Promise me you'll protect him."
He couldn't even answer.
His throat closed.
Minutes felt like hours.
Finally...
The baby's heartbeat slowly became steady again.
The room let out a collective sigh.
The doctor smiled.
"You were lucky."
He looked directly at Ethan.
"Another week of extreme stress could have ended very differently."
Ethan glanced toward Olivia.
Then at the tiny heartbeat flashing across the monitor.
He silently made himself a promise.
No one...
Would ever threaten his family again.
Not even blood relatives.
But while Ethan sat beside Olivia's bed...
Someone quietly walked into his empty house.
May you like
Using a spare key.
Diane.
