Page 102 of The Devil's Torment

“Early days.” I put the glass on the small table beside her bed.

“How’s Beth?”

“She’s fine, darling.” Laura leans over and kisses her forehead. “She’s fast asleep.”

“It went okay, then?”

“Perfectly. The surgeon said it was textbook.”

Unlike yours,I almost blurt.

“Oh, that’s good. You should be with her when she wakes up.”

I glare at Laura, daring her to leave. Whatever Victoria says, it’s about time her mother gave her priority.

“Joel is with her. We thought we’d sit with you for a while.”

My wife’s smile is tinged with gratitude that simultaneously breaks my fucking heart and makes me want to smash things. Gratitude because, for once, her mother hasn’t pushed her aside in favor of the younger sibling. I’m itching to punch the wall.

“Okay.” She winces as she turns to me. “You should get some sleep. You didn’t sleep much last night. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m going nowhere. I arranged to have a bed put up in here a few days ago.”Against policy, the registrar told me when I insisted.Don’t give a bloody tosswas my reply. Recognizing an entrenched husband when she saw one, she conceded.

“Nicholas, no. You need a proper night’s sleep.”

“And I’ll get one. Right here with you.”

Her jaw flexes, but I know my wife well enough by this point to tell she’s comforted and reassured by my continued presence.

She sleeps on and off throughout the day, and as the evening closes in, Laura and Phillip leave to go check on Elizabeth. I’m glad they’ve gone. I’m sick of Laura’s continuous pleading glances. If she wants to make things right, she’ll show me Victoria is a priority for more than a couple of days. Try a few years and then we’ll see. Whether it’s instinct or skepticism, I’m not buying what she’s selling.

That night, as I lay down on the rollaway bed, with my feet sticking out the end, and Victoria’s quiet breathing next to me, I close my eyes and drift off.

* * *

“Nicholas.”

Victoria whispering my name wakes me from a restless sleep. I’m out of bed a second later. “You okay?”

“I don’t feel well.” A shudder runs through her. “I’m freezing.”

I place my hand on her forehead. She’s burning up.

“You’re okay,” I lie, stabbing the button above the bed to call the nurse. “I’ve got you.”

Several seconds later, a nurse arrives. I repeat what Victoria’s told me, desperately trying to squash the ball of anxiety rooted in my stomach. I’ve lived my entire life relying on intuition to guide me, and it’s blasting me right now. Something’s wrong. I feel it in my gut.

She takes Victoria’s pulse and her temperature, then fastens on a blood pressure cuff. I’m no medic, but a systolic of less than one hundred is not good.

“What’s wrong with her?” Even I can hear the terror in my voice, and I curse when Victoria stares at me with wide eyes.

“Nicholas?” Her voice is weak, like it’s too much effort to talk.

God, please, don’t let me lose her. I… I can’t.

I brush damp hair off her forehead. “It’s okay, Half-pint.” My stomach plummets as I lock eyes with the nurse. Without saying a word, she whips around and almost runs from the room. Ten seconds later, three doctors enter, as well as a different nurse. I’m pushed out of the way, my view blocked by a wall of medics.

“What’s the matter?” Panic claws at my throat. I try to muscle my way in, but one of the doctors places his hand on my chest and pushes me back.

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