Chapter 37 She’s Watching
Chapter 37 She’s Watching
The next three weeks were a blur. Every day was a battle. My body was slowly healing, but my heart felt like it was living in the NICU, two floors below my room.
The hardest part was the empty space in my arms. When you are pregnant, you get used to the constant weight. You get used to the kicks and the hiccups.
"You're doing great, Serena," Edward said.
He was sitting on my bed, helping me put on a fresh pair of socks. He had not left the hospital since I woke up. He had a laptop on his knees most of the day, moving money and talking to lawyers, but he always stopped the second I looked at him.
"I don't feel great," I said. I looked at the clock. "It's almost four. Is it time?"
"Almost," Edward smiled. "Let's get you into the chair."
Going to see Arthur was the only thing that kept me moving. At first, I could only stay for ten minutes. But now, I could sit by his incubator for hours.
Edward wheeled me down the long, quiet hallways. We passed the same security guards. They were always there, dressed in plain clothes, looking at everyone who walked by.
When we reached the NICU, the nurse, Maria, gave me a big smile.
"Someone is having a very good day," she said. She was standing by Arthur's bed.
I leaned forward in my wheelchair. Arthur was still small, but his skin was no longer see-through. It was a healthy, soft pink. The tube under his nose was gone. He was breathing all on his own.
"Can I...?" I stuttered.
"Yes," Maria said. "Today, you can hold him. We call it 'kangaroo care.' It's good for his heart."
Edward helped me stand up and move to a big, comfortable rocking chair. Maria carefully picked up Arthur. He was wrapped in a very thin, soft blanket. He looked like a little doll.
She placed him against my chest, tucked inside my hospital gown so his skin was touching mine.
He was so warm. He was so light, but he felt like he weighed a thousand pounds of pure love. I felt his tiny heart beating against my chest, thump, thump, thump. It was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard.
"Hi, Arthur," I whispered. He smelled like baby powder and hope. "It's Mommy. I've been waiting so long to hold you."
Edward sat on the chair next to my chair. He reached out and touched Arthur’s tiny foot. We did not say anything for a long time. We did not need to. For the first time since the warehouse, the world felt right.
"He's going to be okay, Serena," Edward said softly. "The doctor says he might be able to come home in another week."
"Home," I repeated. The word felt strange. "Which home, Edward?"
"I found a place," he said. He looked up at me, his eyes bright. "It's a house about two hours away from the city. It’s near the ocean. It has a big porch and a garden with old oak trees. No gold leaf on the ceilings. No giant gates. Just a house."
"Is it safe?" I asked.
"It's the safest house in the world," Edward promised.
I closed my eyes and imagined it. I imagined the sound of the ocean and the wind in the trees. I imagined Arthur growing up in a place that did not know the name Lily Vance.
But as I rocked back and forth, a nurse I did not recognize walked into the room. She was wearing a mask and a blue cap. She began checking the monitors on the other babies in the room. She was quiet, but I noticed her looking at me.
"Is there a problem?" I asked.
The nurse stopped. "No, Mrs. Vance. Just doing my rounds."
Her voice was muffled by the mask, but it sounded familiar. It sent a chill down my spine. I gripped Arthur a little tighter.
"Edward," I whispered.
Edward stood up immediately. He noticed my face had gone pale. "What is it?"
"That nurse," I said, pointing.
But when Edward looked, the woman was already moving toward the exit. She did not run, but she moved fast.
"Wait!" Edward called out.
The woman did not stop. She pushed through the double doors and disappeared into the hallway. Edward started to follow her, but he stopped when he saw me shaking. He could not leave me alone with the baby.
"Mark!" Edward shouted.
Within seconds, Mark was in the room. "Sir?"
"The nurse who just left. Blue cap, black mask. Find her. Now!"
Mark did not ask questions. He went after her immediately.
Ten minutes later, Mark came back. He looked frustrated.
"She’s gone," Mark said. "She went into the stairwell. We found the mask and the cap on the floor. She must have had a different outfit underneath. She slipped out the side entrance."
"Did you see her face?" Edward asked.
"Only on the security camera," Mark said. He pulled out a small radio. "The footage is grainy, but it was not Lily. It was a younger woman. But she was definitely watching you, Serena."
Edward walked over and put his arms around both of us. I was crying now. The peace of the afternoon was gone.
"We're leaving," Edward said.
"But the doctor said Arthur isn't ready," I sobbed.
"I don't care," Edward said. "I’ll buy the hospital equipment. I’ll hire ten private nurses to stay at the new house. We are not staying here another night. If she can get into the NICU, she can get anywhere."
We spent the next six hours preparing to be discharged. Edward made sure everything was in place. He bought a medical van. He hired a transport team. He called the local police to escort us.
As we drove away from the hospital, I looked out the back window. The city lights were bright, but the shadows between the buildings looked deeper than before. I looked down at the tiny boy in the seat next to me.
"We're going to the ocean, Arthur," I whispered. "We're going to be okay."
I tried to believe my own words. But as we drove into the dark, I could not stop thinking about the woman in the nurse's mask.
Lily Vance was not just running away. She was waiting. She was waiting for us to get comfortable. She was waiting for us to think we were safe.
I reached out and took Edward's hand. He squeezed it tight.
We had escaped the warehouse. We had escaped the hospital. But as the road stretched out in front of us, I realized that the war was not over. It was just moving to a new place. And this time, I had something much more precious to lose.