Then the ward swallowed the sound.
The nurse transferred me onto the bed while the consultant reviewed the scan again. She asked about the pain, the tightening, the pulling around my abdominal dressing, and whether I had noticed any change before my husband dragged me out of the room.
I told her everything I could remember.
The answer was simple.
I had been uncomfortable, but I had not been in this kind of pain before.
She nodded.
“We’re going to monitor you closely.”
A nurse checked the reopened IV site and started working on it again. Another adjusted the fetal monitors across my abdomen.
Four separate heartbeats filled the room.
Fast.
Steady.
Alive.
I stared at the ceiling and finally let myself breathe.
Outside the curtain, I could hear people moving quickly. A phone rang. Someone answered it. Footsteps crossed the corridor.
Then the consultant came back to my bedside.
