Page 76 of Rescued By Four Alphas
"Why isn't he crying?" I gasp, "He should cry..."
Marianna quickly turns him over and rubs his tiny chest. The seconds stretch like hours as we wait with bated breath.
"Come on, baby," Leo whispers. "Come on."
Then, like a miracle, the smallest, most beautiful sound fills the room. A weak but determined cry.
"There we go," Marianna says, tears streaming down her face. "He just needed a moment to figure things out."
All four of my children are alive and fighting in their incubators. The monitors show their heart rates and oxygen levels, and those numbers mean everything to me. They're here. They're breathing. They're mine.
"They're so beautiful," Evan whispers, standing between the incubators with wonder written across his face. "They're perfect."
"Where's Onyx?" I ask between pants.
"He's securing our exit route," Evan replies, as his radio crackles to life.
"Blackthorn, you need to move now," I hear Onyx's voice through the static. "Reid's bringing in heavy artillery. We've got maybe ten minutes before this whole level is compromised."
"We can't move her yet," Marianna protests. "She's too weak."
"We should..." My words slur, and I can't seem to articulate myself. Something is wrong with me. The room spins slightly when I try to sit up, and there's a strange ringing in my ears.
"Evan," I say, but my voice sounds far away, even to my ears.
He turns immediately, his expression shifting from joy to concern in an instant. "What is it?"
"I feel..." The words won't come. The ceiling above me blurs and shifts, and I can't seem to focus on his face anymore.
"Dahlia?" His voice sounds like it's coming from underwater.
I try to answer, try to tell him something's wrong, but the words dissolve on my tongue as the alarms begin to scream from the monitors attached to my body.
Chapter 23 - Axl
Iwatch Dahlia's face drain of color as her eyes roll back. The monitors surrounding her bed explode into a symphony of alarms, each beep more urgent than the last.
"Dahlia!" I lunge forward, grabbing her hand. Her skin feels clammy and cold beneath my fingers.
"What's happening to her?" Evan demands,
Dr. Marianna moves quickly between the monitors, her face grim as she checks the readouts. "She's bleeding internally. The accelerated pregnancy and trauma from the deliveries have caused severe complications."
"Fix it," Leo growls, his eyes wild. "Whatever you need to do, fix it."
"I need to operate immediately," Marianna says, her hands already moving to prepare equipment. "Without proper surgical intervention, she'll bleed to death within the hour."
After everything we've been through, after finding her, after our babies are here breathing in their incubators, we could still lose her.
"Then operate," Evan snaps. "Do whatever you have to do."
Marianna shakes her head. "You don't understand. This isn't a normal delivery room. I need surgical instruments, proper lighting, and anesthetics. I'd be performing major abdominal surgery with improvised tools."
"What are the chances?" I ask, my voice hoarse.
She meets my eyes directly. "Without surgery, she dies. With surgery using what we have here... maybe fifty-fifty."
The building shakes again from another explosion, this time closer. Dust rains from the ceiling, and the lights flicker ominously.
