Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 104729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 349(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 349(@300wpm)
He’s holding a clipboard, and right behind him, a nurse is wheeling in a machine.
What the fuck is going on?
My heart starts to race frantically in my chest.
“Hello, Phoenix. I’m Dr. Reynolds.”
“What did you find?” I blurt out, my heart and brain not able to take the wait any longer. “You found something, right?”
“Well, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. We did.”
“Just tell me. I can handle it.”
“I wanted to ask you, when was your last period?”
My eyes grow wide. Why would that matter? All of a sudden, my limbs feel weak, and I’m sure I will pass out. “I-I …” The blood in my veins throbs as I try to think back. My periods are less frequent since getting the shot. “I’m on the shot,” I say forcefully as if that should make a difference.
“I see that in your records. Were you up to date on your shot?”
It feels like my stomach is hollow as I realize I’m not. I was supposed to get another shot … but when I got back, I was sick and forgot.
“I know this might come as a shock, but both the urine test as well as your blood sample reveal … you are pregnant, Phoenix.”
He speaks, but I can’t hear a word he says because it sounds like I’m in a wind tunnel. My heart hammers in my chest, and the sound is so loud that I can barely make out what he’s saying.
“What?” I whisper, shaking my head.
“I’m going to give you an ultrasound. I’m not sure how far along you are, so to make sure I’m thorough, I’ll be doing a transvaginal one. We will measure the baby and see how far along you are. How does that sound?”
I don’t know if I even answer, but then the ultrasound technician walks closer to me, wheeling the machine next to my bed. The sound of the tires is loud against the quiet of the room. Next, she pulls out a wand and places something over it.
“Now just lie back. This might feel a little weird.” With my legs spread open, she places that thing inside me. Tears well in my eyes. I can’t believe this is happening. I can’t believe I’m pregnant with Alaric’s baby. This has to be a mistake. But as the doctor points at the screen, I know without a measure of a doubt that there is no mistake.
There amongst the dark screen is a little something flickering.
“That’s your baby.”
All the tears I was holding at bay start to fall.
That’s my baby.
* * *
Sitting in my suite, I feel so alone. I have no one to talk to about what is going on. I know I need to tell Alaric, but can I? He’s the father of the baby, but he’s in a war with my father. Another person I can’t talk to. He would never understand.
Standing, I start to pace the large living room with my phone clutched in my hand. I don’t even have a way to reach him.
Even after the party, I never got his number.
What do I do?
Looking down at my phone, I open it and scroll through my contacts.
That’s when I realize how selfish I’ve been. Hannah. My one friend. My best friend. I still haven’t called her.
She probably doesn’t even know I went missing. I just left when my father called and never looked back.
She probably hates me.
Before I can second-guess myself, I’m dialing her number.
“Where have you been?” she answers, and hearing her voice feels like a warm blanket being draped over me when I’m cold.
“I’m so sorry,” I blurt out. I can already feel moisture gathering in my eyes.
“Are you crying?”
A sob breaks through my mouth, confirming that yes, I am, in fact, crying—more like having a nervous breakdown.
“I am,” I hiccup.
“Talk to me. Nix, what’s going on?”
My hand reaches up and wipes the tears from below my eyes. “My dad needed me.”
“And you couldn’t call to check in?” There is no mistaking the doubt in her voice.
How do you tell someone that everything they thought they knew about you is a lie? Do you just blurt out, My father’s an arms dealer, just as we always suspected. I guess that’s what you do. “Everything we thought about my dad was true.”
The line goes quiet.
“Hannah?”
“Everything?” she whispers into the line as if someone’s listening.
“Everything. I left to help him …”
“What does that mean?”
Taking a deep breath, I sit down on the couch because this might take a while. Over the next thirty minutes, I tell her everything. I tell her about the plan to seduce Alaric to find the guns. I tell her about the island, and then I tell her the last part. The most important part.
“I’m pregnant.”
Once again, she’s silent. I know she’s still on the line because I can hear her breathing.