Page 77 of Unexpected Pass

Images of the masked man pushing me down and hitting me in the head flooded my memory, and everything came rushing back to me all at once. The masked man had hit me. He’d pulled a gun. Then there was blood. I looked down at my stomach. The tears already started to fill my eyes.

“The baby? Is the baby okay?” I cried. Before Kellon could respond, the door burst open.

“She’s awake?” One of the nurses gasped as a team of nurses and doctors entered my room.

“That’s a miracle,” another doctor murmured, and they exchanged shocked glances. “We weren’t expecting consciousness this soon after that amount of blood loss and the trauma to the head. This is good.”

My eyes bounced between them, trying to process what they were saying. I’d lost a lot of blood.From where?

“You’ve been in and out since it happened,” Kellon said gently, his thumb brushing across my hand. “You lost a lot of blood from the gash on your head.”

That answered my question.

“Phileigh, you have a mild concussion and some bruising. You’ll need to rest and be monitored for the next few days as this type of trauma can cause developmental or physical injuries to the baby.”

My heart sank, and more tears fell from my eyes.

“Hello, Phileigh, I’m Dr. Walters, the lead OBGYN on duty. We’re going to do an ultrasound now.”

The lead physician stepped forward, sliding on gloves. “You’ve experienced significant trauma and bleeding to your brain. Baby seems to be doing fine, but we want to take a look to make sure.”

I nodded quickly, and Kellon’s hand tightened around mine.

“It’s going to be okay,” Kellon whispered, bringing my hands to his lips. “It has to be.”

Dr. Walters lifted my gown and smeared cold gel across my belly before pressing the wand against it.

“Please, God,” I whispered, focusing my eyes on the ultrasound screen, hoping that my baby was okay. The room fellsilent for what felt like forever until the sound of a heartbeat filled the air.

“There he is.” The doctor smiled. “Heartbeat is strong. Baby looks good. You have a little fighter in here.”

Kellon joined me in letting out a shaky breath of relief.

“You’re both okay. You made it, baby. Thank you for not leaving me.” Kellon placed a million kisses on my forehead, just as the Lolo peeked in from the doorway.

“Oh my God. She’s awake!” she yelled. Happiness replaced the worry in her eyes.

“Give us a second before you come in,” Dr. Walters informed her, and Lolo nodded.

“I was just checking in. I’m going downstairs to give my statement to the cops,” she said, and Kellon nodded. “I’ll be back, bestie.”

She shut the door behind her. I was happy to see that Lolo was okay, but my thoughts immediately went to my parents. They needed to know about this before the blogs.

“My parents...”

“I already called them. They’re on their way. I sent the jet,” Kellon informed me, taking the words right out of my mouth.

“There are no signs of distress to your placenta or uterus,” Dr. Walters confirmed. “You both got lucky today. We’ll give you two a moment.”

The medical team shuffled out, the door clicked shut behind them, and the room was quiet. I blinked at him, overwhelmed by everything—his care, his presence, the fact that I was still here, that our baby was still here.

For a long moment, we just sat there, holding each other together, making each other feel less broken.

“I was so scared,” I said barely above a whisper. “Not just of dying. But what might happen to the baby... to you... to us.”

He rested his forehead against mine.

“I know. And I put it on my life that nobody is ever going to hurt you again.”

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