Chapter 137

Skylar,

I held onto Miles’s hand and began crying, "This can’t happen now." I went to use the washroom; I didn’t really need to—I went in just to calm myself down, and I broke down crying. I missed him; I missed his body, heart, and soul. It wasn’t until I was halfway out the door when I felt it; all I could do was whisper his name.

When Samuel pulled up to the emergency entrance, Dr. Crawford was waiting with a wheelchair. Miles helped me out and put me in the wheelchair. I heard the cars screeching and car doors slamming. “We’ll take care of her,” Dr. Crawford said, and they pushed me away. After they rushed me into one of the rooms, the nurses helped me onto the bed, and Doctor Crawford checked me.

“Mrs. Rhys, you’re going into labor,” he said, and I almost passed out.

“Get her to the delivery room,” he said, looking at the nurses.

“Freya and Miles,” I said.

He nodded that he understood. After they got me to the delivery room, the pain kicked in. I almost hit one of the nurses. A while later, Freya came in with Miles and Lana. Miles came over to me and held my hand. “Baby girl, I know you want me here, and thank you, but I can’t, okay? Lana and Freya will be with you. You’re strong, baby girl; you got this,” he said, then walked out, and I began crying. Lana came over and held my hands.

“He wants to be here with you, but he says the only man that should be here is Asher, and he’s not taking that away from him. He’s happy enough that you considered him, but he’ll let us be here for you,” Lana said, squeezing my hands.

“It’s okay, Sky. We’re here for you,” Freya said, squeezing my other hand.

“Okay, Mrs. Rhys. Here comes a contraction. I need you to push for me.”

“I can’t,” I said through tears.

“Yes, you can. You’re stronger than most women I know. You can do this, for you and for your son, for Rhys,” Lana said.

“Soon the pain will be worth it,” Freya said.

“We’ve got crowning; it seems like he wants out. Here comes another one; push.”

When I heard the first cry, I broke and cried. He was supposed to be here; he promised he would always be with me, beside me, and he wasn’t. He promised he wouldn’t leave me, and he left me. My heart wouldn’t allow me to believe he was dead and that I would never see him again.

“It’s okay. You’ll be fine. You’ll both be fine,” Freya said through tears.

“He’s really gone, isn’t he?”

“He is, I’m sorry, Sky,” Lana said, and I saw the tears.

He was gone; he turned my life upside down, he ruined me, and he left me. I didn’t stop the tears; I let them go because this was the end of our happily ever after. After the nurses cleaned me up, they took me up to one of the VIP rooms.

After a while, Dr. Crawford came in pushing an incubator.

“All in all, he’s okay; no jaundice, but his breathing is a bit labored. He’s a bit big, but we’re keeping him in check to make sure he’s okay. It will take a while, but I’ll personally make sure he pulls through and goes home with you; he doesn’t need to be in the NICU,” he said as he stopped by the bed.

I sat up and looked at him and couldn’t help it; the tears came. “I am so sorry, Mrs. Rhys. Should I let the others in?” he asked quietly, and I nodded. When they came in, Miles and Olivia came straight to me and hugged me.

“I’m sorry, love. We’re here for you, whatever you need,” Olivia said, and I nodded. They all trudged over to look at him. I didn’t want to believe he was gone, that he left me just like this, without any explanation, without a word, just gone. The last thing we said to each other was “I love you,” and then, our happy reality, was shattered.

I stayed in the hospital for two weeks. In that time, Miles and the others came to visit me. I was sitting there when Miles and Lana came in. “Hey, baby girl,” he said, putting the bag down.

“You’re his godfather. That is your right,” I said, looking at him.

“Thank you, baby girl.”

“Lana, you’re his godmother,” I said, and I could see the shock on her face.

“Sky, are… are you sure?” she asked quietly.

“Yes, I’m sure,” I said. After a while, I said it.

“Adriel,” I said quietly.

“What?” Miles asked.

“Adriel Tate Rhys is his name,” I said.

“That’s a good name for him. Time to go home,” Lana said, and I nodded.

When we left the hospital, I saw the reporters. Someone put it online that I gave birth. Samuel and the others were waiting for us. Lana had her security detail also. Samuel shielded us, making sure no one saw him, and got us into the car. When we got home, reporters were outside. They tried coming into the compound but were stopped.

When I walked into the house, they were all here. I left Adriel with Lana and the others and headed upstairs. When I got upstairs, I took a deep breath. I passed the second door and realized it was different. When I opened the door and walked in, I stopped. They did the nursery for me. That night, I sat on the bed looking at him asleep in his crib. I began speaking out loud.

“I don’t know how to do this, Asher. You were supposed to be here. I miss you. Every day, I’ll keep going because I have to; our son needs us.” When I woke up the next morning, I grabbed a shower, then took care of Adriel and went down. When I walked into the living room, Olivia came to me and took him.

“What’s going on?” I asked, looking at Eli and the others.

“It’s the end of the month,” he said, and I knew what that meant. They were going on the search.

“Guys…”

“No. You’re accepting that he’s dead because that’s what everyone else feels and thinks, but not you. We’ll keep searching as long as we need to,” Eli said, and the others nodded.

“We know you don’t think he’s dead, and honestly, sometimes I feel that way too. We’ll keep expanding the search; we must find some clue,” Mateo said. “Thank you.”