by Taylor Lee
“Hmm. I dunno, Bai, she is having twins. I guess, to be safe, a better estimate is fourteen hours. But to be fair, twins are gonna double the agony, so it’s probably gonna seem longer.”
With that, Wyatt pulled his hat brim down and settled back in the chair.
Bai stood beside him staring at him mumbling under his breath.
“Doux Jésus, douze heures? Quatorze heures? Non, non. C’est impossible!”
He took a deep breath and kicked Wyatt’s foot—hard.
“I wonder, Wyatt, if perhaps it would give Elena comfort if she saw you. You seem most relaxed. It might be useful, oui?”
Wyatt looked up from under his hat with a questioning frown.
“You asking me to come in there, Bai? Hmm, I understood this was a solo mission.”
Bai considered for a moment if it was shortsighted to strangle Wyatt, but made the executive decision that murder was not the best choice at the moment.
Instead, he swallowed his pride and said with a sheepish grin, “Oui, I need you, Wyatt.”
Wyatt tipped his hat back and uncoiled himself from the chair, a big grin splitting his face.
“Oh, hell, Bai. Did you really think I’d leave you alone in there? I thought it would take you about another hour before you caved. Damn, it didn’t even take you that long. Not to worry. The midwives Elena hired are waiting in the infirmary. We just need to give them the signal and they’ll join us.”
He put his arm around Bai’s shoulders and headed to the door. He stopped and went back to his chair. Reaching down by the side he pulled out two bottles of Bai’s best brandy.
“Don’t want to forget the most important supplies, right? C’mon, Bai. Let’s go birth us some babies.”
~~~
Wyatt walked over to Elena’s bed and leaned down and kissed her. She opened her eyes and smiled up at him.
“Hello, Father. I wondered when you were going to join us. You’re here a little sooner than I thought…”
“Hi baby. How’s my darlin’? Yeah, Bai decided it might be a good idea to call in the reserves. He hasn’t thrown up on you yet, has he, honey?”
“Not yet, Father. Although it was a close call when my water broke.”
Bai tried not to act affronted, but it was hard not to show his annoyance.
“If you two have finished amusing yourselves at my expense, perhaps we can get on with the birth of my children.”
“Uh, oh. I think your husband is pissed, darlin.’ Hell, Bai, it isn’t as though you didn’t ask for it. But, I tell you what. We’ll keep this among the three of us.”
Wyatt went to the cabinet and took down two glasses.
“Here you go, Bai. If I’ve ever seen you need a drink, it’s now. Let’s put together a little work plan. Madam Huang and Madam Wu will be here shortly. We’ll let the ladies do the heavy lifting, okay, Bai? My job will be oversight. I’ll make sure that everything is on track and spot any potential problems. Bai, your job is to grab hold of that infamous control of yours and become the Frenchman birth partner extraordinaire. That means you need to guzzle that glass of brandy. Then come and sit by your beautiful young wife and tell her in every way you know that she is doing great. Got it?”
Bai relaxed for the first time in hours, but he couldn’t shake his regret or his concern.
“Damn, Elena, I’m sorry. I never knew this process would be so… so physical. Are you all right, cherie? Christ, if there was any way I could take over this pain for you…”
“But you can’t, Bai. Just don’t leave me. If I get scared, hold me, promise?”
“Ah, bebe, I promise. I love you, Elena.”
Elena nodded, then groaned. Bai jumped to his feet but sat back down when Wyatt put his hands on Bai’s shoulders, easing him back in the chair.
Wyatt said, “Breathe.”
When Bai closed his eyes and took a deep breath, Wyatt said with a wry chuckle, “You, too, Elena.”
Ignoring Wyatt, Bai smiled gamely at Elena, who blew out several puffs of air, then settled back against the pillows and closed her eyes, her face screwed up tight with pain.
Wyatt let her ride out the contraction and checked his watch.
“Okay, darlin’ that was about forty-five seconds. That’s good. It means the little devils have every intention of joining us tonight.”
Bai quirked an eyebrow, trying to imagine what could possibly be good about forty-five seconds of pain for Elena, but was heartened by her smile at her father.
Wyatt moved over next to her and smoothed back her hair.
“You know, honey, I haven’t seen you naked since you were about eight years old. We’ll let the midwives do the internal exams but I need to get the lay of the land here. That okay with you?”
Elena laughed.
“It’s okay, Father. You can pretend I am one of the dozens of mares you and I birthed together or when you taught me to birth babies when I was nine years old. It’s amazing how things that are usually problematic fade in importance in the face of what really matters.”
“Damn right, honey. First I want to take a look at your tummy. Both Bai and I need to feel around a bit and make sure the little fellows are headed down the right track. Gotta make some use of those five months of book learning you did, right, Bai?”
Bai rolled his eyes grimacing at Wyatt.
“At least on an intellectual level, if not a practical one, I am conversant with the birth process.”
Wyatt raised an eyebrow and said in a dry voice. “Let’s see if you feel that way ten hours from now.”
Wyatt pulled down the sheet, then stepped back, startled. He pointed to the sapphire bosom rings on Elena’s breasts.
“Jesus Christ, Elena. And you too, Bai. What the hell are these?”
Elena smiled and her eyes danced.
“Aren’t they beautiful, Father? Bai gave them to me as a wedding present. He wanted to give me something that you and Grandfather hadn’t already given me.”
“Well, hell. I gotta say, these were a safe choice!”
Bai chuckled and winked at Elena.
“I suggested she not wear the jewels for the birth, but Elena insisted that she wanted the babies’ first glimpse of her to be ‘fancy.’”
Wyatt stood still pondering the extraordinary sapphire rings. He pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and lit it.
“Can you nurse with those on?”
Elena smiled at her father’s chagrin.
“Apparently, I can. At least that is what Chou Li assured us when he pierced my nipples. You have to pierce them correctly or they can interfere with nursing.”
“Christ, honey. Be careful the little tykes don’t swallow them.”
Elena gave him a prim smile, but her eyes were dancing.
“To date, Bai hasn’t swallowed them and he is probably more energetic than newborn babies.”
Wyatt shook his head and muttered under his breath something about “damn foolery,” but continued probing her distended abdomen. Bai stood at her side and held her hand. He marveled at the relief he felt. Christ, he should have insisted that Wyatt was with them from the beginning and hell, he was going to get another bottle of that brandy.
At that moment, Wyatt let out a string of curses. Both Bai and Elena jumped startled.
“Elena. Comstock. McManus. Chang. What the Goddamn hell is this?”
Wyatt pointed to the clitoral ring that was barely visible at the top edge of the sheet.
Elena blushed and said in a slightly quavering voice.
“Diamonds?”
Wyatt looked flabbergasted.
Bai laid it on thicker.
“Actually, most expensive diamonds.”
Bai squeezed Elena’s hand and gave her a wicked grin. It felt good to be turning the tables on Wyatt after he had enjoyed himself so thoroughly at Bai’s expense.
“I didn’t think it was possible to make your father speechless, Elena, but I believe we have.”
Deciding that now was the tim
e to drive in the knife Bai took a drag off his cigarette and said nonchalantly, “Before you get too interested, Wyatt, there is a reciprocal element to this intimate jewel wearing.”
“What the hell do you mean by that?”
“Have you ever heard of Prince Albert?
Wyatt gave him a quizzical look, then understanding flashed over his face. He turned bright red.
“Jesus fucking Christ, Bai. You can’t mean what I think you mean,” he said with a pointed glare at Bai’s crotch.
Bai threw back his head and roared. He got control of himself, then grinned wickedly at Wyatt.
“You’re showing your age, Wyatt. Where’s your spirit of adventure?”
Wyatt muttered, “I’m showing a hell of a lot more than that. It’s called common sense.”
He stood back and ran his hands through his hair, shaking his head in disbelief. Looking at the two of them smiling at him and at each other, he shook his head and gave a little shrug. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth and the legendary twinkle lit up his eyes.
“On the other hand… Lei does like diamonds. The bigger the better.”
Their frivolity was cut short by Elena’s contraction. For the first time, she cried out, startled by the intensity of the pain. Wyatt immediately went into coaching mode, setting an example for Bai.
“Okay, honey. Now the little guys are letting you know they are serious about this venture. Hang in there while Bai times this contraction and we’ll get ready for the next one.”
The midwives arrived shortly after the contraction ended and were able to check the babies’ progress in the birth canal before the next contraction began. A long night became longer as Elena’s labor began in earnest.
~~~
Bai looked at the clock, startled to see that Elena had been in labor for seventeen hours. Her contractions were coming every minute now and Bai fought to keep from screaming when she did. His body was as damp with sweat as hers was. He brushed her hair back off her forehead and twisted the wet curls up on her head once again. He held her hand, rubbed her back, fed her sips of water, murmured comforting words and promised himself that, as God is his witness, he will never allow her to get pregnant again.
If there was some way he could stop the process midstream, end the fucking mess, he would do it. Why had no one told him that his wife, the woman he loved more than anything in the world, would endure countless hours of torture? How the hell could Wyatt have put Lei through this twice, one time with fucking twins? Jesus, what selfish bastards men are. And claiming ignorance didn’t cut it. Even if the cowardly assholes didn’t participate in the birth, they couldn’t pretend they didn’t hear the screaming. He’d never considered joining the women’s suffrage movement, but given their drive for birth control he was damn well going to become their biggest contributor. Hell, he’d not only donate money, he’d march in the streets. Anything he could do to stop this barbaric practice. Goddamn men implanting their seed, impregnating women, all to demonstrate their manliness, forcing their women to go though this hideous torture. Christ, it had to stop! And he was going to make it his life’s mission that it did.
Looking at Elena’s swollen face, he prayed to a god he was sure had abandoned them. Please, God, let these babies come now. My Elena can’t take much more.
Elena’s body was slick with sweat her eyes large and black with pain. She looked at him imploringly.
“Bai, Father, I think something is happening. I… I… need to push!”
Wyatt and the two midwives moved into action. And Bai did, as well. His tormented thoughts were things of the past. His only focus was Elena and their babies. For the next five minutes he held her, encouraged her, praised her, and loved her. When he thought there was no way she could continue, there was a sudden rush of activity. Wyatt’s voice roared through his ears like wind through a tunnel.
“I see the head, honey. That’s the way darlin.’ Now baby girl, now. Now, you need to push that baby out.”
Miraculously, a tiny blue body slithered out after the head and Wyatt called out in a gruff voice.
“You have a son, Bai. A beautiful little boy, Elena. Christ, I’m not joshing. This is one beautiful baby.”
The midwives’ aides came out of nowhere and took the wailing baby to the bassinet table to clean him and keep him warm. Bai stayed at Elena’s side, painfully aware that they were only halfway through. But the gods had mercy and in a blessedly short period of time Wyatt’s triumphant cry declared that Bai also had a daughter.
Later Bai would try to reconstruct those miraculous twenty minutes, but try as he would they were a blur, lost in the exalted agony of the moment.
The first focused memories he had were when the midwives delivered the after birth and he worked with them to clean Elena’s blood stained body. After he had washed and dried her body, he helped her put on a clean nightgown. All the while, he held her and praised her as astonished as she was at the miracle that they had wrought. He waved off her concern about the bloody indentations from her fingernails on his arms and chest. They wept together in relieved joy.
Oblivious of the wailing babies he heard in the background, he focused entirely on Elena. When he added a fourth pillow behind her back and had brushed her hair off her face and kissed her for the hundredth time, he finally allowed himself to hear the infants’ cries.
He looked up to see Wyatt standing in front of them, holding a tiny buddle in the crook of each arm. Wet tracks that he hadn’t bothered to wipe away marked Wyatt’s face. His eyes were shining, as though he had seen a miracle. A moment later, Bai knew that he had.
“Are you two ready to meet your children?”
Until Wyatt put the babies in his arms, Bai had thought it impossible to love more deeply or more intensely than he loved Elena. He knew he would love his children, but he didn’t know where he would find that additional love. He held the sleeping babies in his arms and Elena leaned against him, peering over his shoulder, cooing in delight. At that moment, Bai knew the love he and Elena shared had miraculously expanded and now instead of the two of them their love encompassed the four of them.
~~~
They had agreed to give the babies both a Chinese and European name as Lei and Wyatt had done. With Wyatt and Lei’s blessing, they planned to name a girl Vivian Ming after Elena’s mother and Bai’s grandmother. A boy would be Joseph Dewu after Elena’s great grandfather and Bai’s grandfather.
Bai and Elena marveled at the precious creatures they held in their arms.
Elena stroked Joseph Dewu’s hair.
“Look, Bai, his hair is as black as yours.”
She touched his soft face and he opened his eyes squinting at the bright light.
Bai laughed in delight.
“Why Dewu, you look like your grandfather.”
Bai grinned at Wyatt.
“He has your eyes, Wyatt, and yours, Elena. Goddamn, he is beautiful. You were right about that, Wyatt.
“Look at Vivian Ming’s hair. I think I see a little red, what do you think, Elena?”
Elena smiled, running her fingers over the few sprigs of hair sticking up on the top of the tiny head.
“Most definitely. At least I hope it will be red.”
At that moment, Vivian Ming opened her eyes and Bai gasped in shock. Her eyes were amber; no, they were bright yellow. He thought to himself, if he had never seen a she-wolf in the wild, he saw one now.
Bai looked up at Elena with a hopeful smile.
“Mon dieu, but perhaps they will turn; become green or blue, oui?”
Elena sat straight up and threw him a fierce look.
“No. They better stay exactly the way they are.”
There was a knock at the door and Wyatt opened it to let in the excited crowd. With a rush of oohs and aahs Lei, Wan, Nianzu, Alex, and the boys came rushing over to the bedside.
Bai stood before them, holding a baby in each arm.
He laughed and bowed to them all.
“May I
present Joseph Dewu and Vivian Ming?
“Lei, your first grandchildren. And Father – well you are in a unique position as you are both their grandfather and great grandfather.
Wan’s eyes filled with tears. He bowed low to both babies then reached for Elena’s hands and held them in his.
“Thank you, Elena.”
She smiled with tears in her eyes and pressed his hands against her cheek.
“You truly are a great grandfather.”
Wan turned to Bai.
“You are a lucky man, son. “
“Oui, that I am, Father.”
Joseph Dewu gurgled and opened his eyes.
Gabriel’s eyes widened in surprise and he looked up in wonder.
“He looks like Deshi. Look, Deshi. He really does look like you.”
Deshi looked at the baby then blushed with pride.
Bai agreed.
“Yes he does, Deshi. He also looks like Wyatt and he has his mother’s eyes.”
Jacob pointed to Vivian Ming.
“Look at her. Her hair looks kinda red like Elena’s.”
As if to introduce herself and in contrast to her peaceful brother, Vivian Ming took that moment to let out a fierce shriek.
Jacob jumped back in shock.
“What’s wrong? Why is she screaming? What’s wrong with her?”
Bai said protectively, “Nothing! Nothing is wrong. She is… she is a woman with something to say.”
Elena rolled her eyes in mock dismay.
“Good grief, Father, does it happen this fast between a father and a daughter?”
Wyatt shook his head and chuckled.
“Hell, he was a goner from the minute he laid eyes on her.”
Bai nodded and shrugged. “Mais oui, what can I say? She is her mother’s daughter.”
At that moment, Vivian Ming opened her eyes and they all gave a collective gasp.
Gabriel spoke first. “Uncle Bai, she… the baby’s got yellow eyes just like you.”
Bai grinned and didn’t try to hide the pride in his voice.
“That she does, Gabriel. That she does.”
