“Not me, Dad. Thank Mariah; she chose it. Come on, everybody. Let's take Lila back to her mother. I'm sure she's missing her.”
Chapter ELEVEN
Goodbye, I’m so sorry we never met.
July 8, 2018
Matthew reluctantly opens the door and releases the lock on the other. Hunt and Russell look inside the van, their faces full of sadness.
Russell fixes his eyes on me. “Marcus...” he starts in that tone doctors have when they need to give you bad news.
“No...” I whisper, staring at him.
“Marcus... the baby...” Russell says, lowering his head.
“What about the baby,” Ethan yells.
“Those sick bastards... they...” Russell stops then turns and sits on the van’s floor, weeping into his hands.
Matthew grips his shoulder. He looks at Hunt and asks, “What happened, Stacy? What happened to the baby?”
Hunt climbs in the van. Joshua moves to sit between Ethan and me and she sits in his seat. She looks me in the eye.
“Dr. Cannon... Marcus... because it was dark in the room, Dannie didn't see the entire bed at first. When he did, he noticed blood at Mrs. Cannon head, which he assumed was from a wound on her. The blood was from...” She stops and takes a deep breath, as a tear rolls down her cheek. “I'm sorry, Marcus. Your baby did not make it.”
I inhale sharply and shake all over.
“What happened to him,” Nathan croaks.
“It was a girl, Dr. James, and we don't know yet.”
“No, Mariah was having a boy,” Tom says.
“That is a girl fetus, Marcus. I saw her myself.”
“Something’s not right. You said Mariah was having another boy, Marcus,” Joshua accuses.
“Ethan... call Rob,” I rasped.
Ethan pulls out his cell and Rob answers immediately, his worried voice comes over the speaker. “Ethan! Any word?”
“Rob,” I rasp out again.
“Marcus? What is it? Is Mariah all right?”
“Mariah was having a boy, right? She's carrying another boy; that’s what she told me.”
He paused for what seems like an eternity and finally sighs. “Yes, but... it's another set of twins, Marcus. Boy and a girl.”
We gasp in horror as Rob's declaration penetrates our brains.
“B-boy and a girl,” I sob.
“Yes, Marcus; it was supposed to be a surprise,” Rob says calmly. “She was shocked, to say the least. She thought we were joking during the ultrasound.”
“Rob... she lost the girl,” Ethan says.
Rob gasps. “Fuck! Where is she?”
“They just found her, we're waiting for the ambulance to bring her out.”
“Somebody needs to find out if the other baby survived! Get them to bring her here! How far out is she?”
“Fifteen to eighteen minutes,” Matthew answers, pale and trembling.
“I'll be set up when she gets here,” he says then cuts the line.
“I need to go in there, Stacy,” Nathan says. Russell jumps up.
She shakes her head. “If you go in there, it will be questioned –”
“Let him go in, Stacy. He's a trauma physician,” Matthew says.
“Guzman can walk from this, Matthew. You know that.”
Matthew glares at her. “He’ll do something; I guarantee walking will not be it.”
“I did not hear that! Damn it, Matthew! I’m on duty now,” Hunt shouts, knowing full well what Matthew’s implying.
Matthew silently stares at Hunt as Ethan leans over and whispers in his ear. Matthew reaches in his pocket and hands Ethan a dollar.
“Officer, Mr. Cannon is in the middle of a meeting with his counsel,” Ethan says. “You’re interrupting.”
Hunt and Matthew continue to glare at each other.
“Go,” Hunt finally says.
Nathan and Russell take off running. As he gets to the door, the first paramedic appears cautiously carrying a paper bag. I immediately knew what… who… was in that bag and tightened my mouth, trying hard to hold it together.
Russell enters the building as Nathan says something to the paramedic and she takes him inside the ambulance. He comes out a few minutes later, pale and grimly follows her into the building. We sit in the van quietly, waiting.
“If you have no questions for my client, Officer, I'm afraid I have to ask you to leave, until you are no longer on duty,” Ethan says quietly. “I'm sorry.”
He’s probably feeling guilty about dismissing the woman who helped save his niece's life and her father was killed in the process but the last thing we need is Matthew getting arrested.
As Hunt climbs down, the paramedics and Nathan bring Mariah out on a gurney. Nathan is carrying her fluids. They get her into the ambulance, quickly and it takes off without sirens, only flashing lights.
Russell runs back to us and gets in the van's driver's seat. Hunt slams the doors and walks away.
“Strap up,” Russell demands, starting the van. He stays on the ambulance’s tail the entire way and drops us off at the emergency entrance. We run in, freezing at the trauma room watching the activity and hearing Nathan scream out orders, knuckling Mariah's chest. Her body reacts and we exhale sharply.
“QUIET,” Rob roars with a fetal monitor on Mariah's belly. Everyone falls silent. He tries for a few minutes and no beat is heard, and tears fall down my face.
“Get him outta here,” Rob shouts, looking at me. “All of them!”
“Mariah! Can you hear me? Squeeze my hand! No reaction, still... fuck,” Nathan yells.
“CT is ready for you, Dr. James,” a nurse shouts as we are led away.
I watch them run down the hallway to the elevators, rolling Mariah away. I still haven't seen her face.
“Call everyone,” I say. “Get them here now.”
“Marcus –”
“Now,” I shout as I am escorted to an elevator.
* * *
“Marcus.”
I hate that fucking tone of voice. I never want to use it again. I look up. Ira and Nathan are standing in front of me in scrubs. Rob comes in after them and sits next to me. The looks on their faces makes this conference room seem colder.
“What's happening with Mariah and the baby,” I ask, my voice hoarse.
Rob grips my shoulder. “Marcus, I'm so sorry. The other baby didn’t make it.”
My family gasps, some cry others loudly sob. I know my mother wailed. I put my hands over my face, weeping and leaning forward as pain shoots through my entire body.
“What happened,” Dad asks as his voice cracks.
Rob sighs. “There are several marks on her body, Stephen. I think Mariah was kicked repeatedly in the stomach. She was hemorrhaging when she was brought in, and because of her anemia, she lost a significant amount of blood. I was able to stop the bleeding, but her reproductive system is in question. At this point, I can't say if she’ll be able to have any more children.”
“And,” Thomas says with a shaky voice.
“Mariah has injuries that are...” Nathan says then quiets.
Ira takes over. “She lost her spleen, and if that were her only injury, I'm positive she'd be in stable condition.”
“But,” Tom demands.
“She has swelling on her brain. Dr. James suggests there may be a hematoma collecting. She's not responding to commands or pain anymore.”
“Is she breathing on her own,” Dad asks.
“She's on a vent,” Ira says quietly.
“Did she... was she...”
“What, Marcus,” Ira asks.
“She tested positive for fluids, Marcus,” Rob whispers. “Did you –”
“Yes,” I whisper. “The night before all this.”
“We need to get a sample from you,” Ira says. “There's a nurse here to take your blood.”
I walk to the table and prop my arm up. The nurse gives me tissue then swabs under the crook.
“Did she say someth
ing? Anything,” I ask, wiping my eyes.
“No, Marcus. She's been out since Daniels found her.”
I look over at Matthew. “Where are they? Are they all right?”
“They're with the responders. They have to file a report.”
I bend my elbow when the nurse withdraws the needle. “I want to see her,” I say.
Ira walks up to me and looks at me with a stern expression. “In a few minutes, Marcus. First...”
“What, Ira?”
“You should brace yourself. She was beaten, severely. She looks nothing like her usual self. I even... We cleaned her up as best we could but her face is bruised, swollen. Unrecognizable.”
“They hit her everywhere, Marcus,” Nathan whimpers. “I’m sure they showed no mercy. What she must have gone through...”
I watch Nathan walk out the door and several seconds later we hear hard thumps and things falling to the floor. Thomas runs out with Lisa. Matthew, Ethan, Joshua and Tom follow.
“Nathan,” Lisa shrieks.
“Stay here, Lisa,” Thomas orders.
I can't do anything but plop back in my seat and put my head back down as they try to calm Nathan. It sounds like he's giving them hard time. I understand. I want to rip the hospital apart; I want to rip the world apart, layer by layer.
Finally, the yelling ceases. I look up as Matthew and Joshua come back into the room and Lisa rushes out.
“Where is she,” Joshua asks, red and huffing.
“I’ll show you,” Ira says, emotionally.
“Get up, Marcus,” Tom orders. “No,” he says behind me as I stand. “Marcus needs to do this alone. Just for now, Mom.”
“No, you're right,” Rachel whispers. “I don't know if...”
I walk over to Rachel and kiss her cheek, silently thanking her. Tom’s right; I do need to do this alone.
Rachel touches my cheek. “Go,” she says quietly as Thomas and Mother hold her.
I nod. As soon as I left the room, I looked down the hall. Nathan is on the floor, on his back. Lisa tearfully strokes his head as he sobs and grips her to him. Ethan and Russell sit near them, numbly, as they watch over them.
Feels like it takes hours to get to Mariah's room. Matthew and Joshua walk behind me and one of them starts weeping. Rob and Ira walk on either side of me.
A nurse waits with gowns and masks. She can't look at me. I hear a monitor beeping in the room and sigh heavily.
“Why do we need these,” Joshua sniffs, holding up a mask.
“Precaution. I can’t have her catching so much as the sniffles,” Ira says.
I nod and instruct my brothers to put on the masks and gowns. I turn to make sure they put the items on correctly, and see Matthew crying. I hug him and plead with him to calm down. He nods his head swiftly, repeatedly. After a few moments he calms and quiets.
Joshua is still red, and hanging on by thread. They love my wife almost as much as I do.
“Are you okay,” I ask Joshua. “You sure you want to do this?”
He can only nod. We silently put the masks and gowns on.
Ira and Rob go in first, followed by Matthew. He takes a look at her and backs out of the room, sobbing again, walking fast down the hall. Joshua watches as he leaves then puts his head down. He takes a deep breath, goes inside, looks at Mariah and sobs quietly as he goes to the corner and sits in a chair. I stare at the floor, praying I could keep it together.
“Marcus,” Ira summons. “If you want to wait –”
“No... I just...”
Rob exits the room and stands at my side, resting a hand on my shoulder.
“Deep breath, Marcus. Then we'll go in together, when you’re ready.”
I turn to look at him and he nods at me, bracing my shoulder as my wedding vows repeat in my head.
For better or for worse…
I take a moment, have a deep breath then slowly walk to Mariah's bed.
February 24, 2018
I tapped on the bathroom door after hearing my wife being sick. “Baby? Are you okay?”
“No,” she whimpered. “Shit. I think...”
I frowned. “Think what, baby? Open the door.”
“Damn it! I knew it! Just... let me brush my teeth first, Marcus.”
I sat on the bed waiting, staring at the bathroom door. Sidra had just taken Alex, Donnie and Lila down for breakfast, after stopping at our room so Lila can play her new hiding game with me. It upset her when I don’t find her ‘right’ and it was beyond adorable when she tattled on me when I messed it up. Sometimes, whoever she told had to put me in timeout.
We'd had a peaceful, growing six years. Ethan confided that his wife, Alissa, was expecting their first and they were telling everyone at Sunday dinner. Aside from Matthew, all of our siblings were now parents and happily married.
Finally, the bathroom door opened and Mariah walked out. “Four,” she mumbled, stunned.
“Four what, baby,” I asked, quickly going to her side.
She thrust a white stick at me. “Kids,” she whined.
“Four,” I mumbled, confused. I stared at the stick; it was a pregnancy test. “Are you pregnant, again?”
“Yes,” Mariah yelled flopping down on the bed, face down.
A big grin spread across my face. I went to the bed and laid beside her. She looked up at me.
“Get that goofy grin off your face, Marcus. I thought we were done!”
“Who said that,” I asked, still grinning. “I say we go for an even dozen. A baker's dozen.”
“We?” She smirked then looked at me like she wanted to claw my eyes out. “Marcus, you cannot be happy about this.”
“Why not? We have to try to get another girl in the family. There's too much testosterone for Lila to be around, alone. Besides, I promised Rob and Elka we would let our next daughter marry their son.”
“Not funny, Cannon.” She frowned, then narrowed her eyes at me. “Who did you promise Lila's hand to?”
I smiled at her. “Bryan's son. He should afford my dowry demands when the time comes.”
Mariah playfully punched my arm. “Seriously, four kids are a bit much. We have to stop after this one.”
I stared at her, noting the exhaustion over her beautiful features.
“Baby, I know this wasn't planned and if you really want to stop after this then we'll discuss the options to make that happen. But let's not do anything... rash... too soon, all right?”
She leaned on my shoulder and I caressed her face.
“It's just... it's hard to keep up with them when I’m pregnant. There's three to chase after, now. And we just moved into this big house.”
“Let Sidra do more, baby. That's her job. And we've got Rosa. Delegate.”
She looked at me for a long time then asked, “Are you sure you're okay with this?”
I softly kissed her. “I’m ecstatic,” I whispered. “When do you want to tell everybody?”
“It's too early. How about at the twins’ sixth birthday party?” She sighed and shook her head. “Every three years, with you, Cannon. Every three years!”
I laughed and pulled her to me.
“I love seeing them grow inside you and everything from birth on. Then there's the breast milk...” I whispered in her ear, “I can't wait to taste that again.”
“Marcus! You are almost as bad as Matthew,” she blushed, getting up. “In 2021, I won’t let you anywhere near me. Better start exercising that hand now.”
Such bullshit. I laughed at that and got up, too. “Come on, baby, the boys will be late for soccer. I've got the van out,” I said as I held out my hand to her.
She took it and frowned. “Did you know Joshua talked the twins into ballroom?”
I laughed. “He did? That should be interesting.”
“I think interesting is too mild of a word, Cannon.”
She moved ahead of me, shaking her head. I wrap my arms around her waist, then rubbed her belly.
“Let's go out for dinner toni
ght and celebrate. Just you and I. Where do you want to go?”
She turned and laid her head on my chest. “We can't. Tonight's the karaoke thing again.”
“We can go out to eat before, alone. We'll meet the others there.”
“Okay. I don’t mind where we go but I don’t want fish anywhere near me, Marcus,” Mariah demanded as she led us out of our bedroom.
I grinned even bigger. Yep, she is definitely pregnant again.
April 29, 2018
At the twins’ birthday party, I was itching to tell the good news… and to have my wife again.
“Baby, what time is the party over,” I whispered to my beautiful wife, embracing her from behind while kissing her neck.
She blushed. “Didn't I take care of you earlier, boo?”
“Appetizer. I told you years ago I’ll never get enough of you, baby,” I whispered again. “Besides, you were willing before Sidra busted us trying to disappear. I’m still worked up from that.”
“Marcus Cannon,” she exclaimed. “Just greedy. Maybe if I just lie there you'd get bored!”
I smacked her ass. “It wouldn't matter, baby. I'd still be in you. I'll never mind doing all the work; eventually, you’ll do your share and so much more.”
“Marcus,” Sidra called before Mariah could respond. “Will you check on the boys? Lila got into the ketchup; I need to clean and change her.”
“No problem,” I called back, grimacing at my ketchup-soaked daughter. I turned to where I last saw the boys; they were wrestling with Joshua and two of his sons.
I ran over to them, laughing at their roughhousing.
“Hey, old man! Little old to wrestle with four, five and six year olds, don't you think?”
Joshua stood immediately. “Old man? Cramp, you do know you're seven years older than me, right? Or have you gotten so old that your memory is now shot to hell?”
“You ass!” I laughed and knocked him down. Our boys excitedly yelled, cheering us on as I tried to pin my brother down. I got him in a headlock and he tried to get loose. I tightened my grip. His arms wrapped around my chest and he twisted me. We fell to the grass.
“Oh, you remembered, huh? But you made one mistake, Twerp. You left my arms free!”
Marcus: The M Series, Book Three Page 24
