Page 49 of Sin and Seduction

I blow out the candles on the dining table and walk to the second family room, which is more of a reading room. I grab an old copy of Jane Eyre and head to the pool hall to sit and read for the evening. It is quiet and peaceful here, easing my tension from both traveling and worrying about the Flores operation. After a couple of chapters, I set the book down to walk back to the kitchen to refill my glass of wine. Just as I am walking through the foyer, I hear a crash from upstairs and freeze.

“Emmie!” I hear Gabriela cry, and I set my wine down on the foyer table and rush up the stairs and to her suite.

I run through her red bedroom and rush to her bathroom, finding her on the floor, her hands covered in blood. I rush to her side and begin checking her for wounds.

“My god, Gabriela, what happened?” I ask, panic lacing my voice.

“The baby, it’s the baby, Emmie! There’s so much blood. God, it hurts,” she weeps in agony, and I freeze.

I look down at her legs and see that her white nightgown is covered in bright, red blood.

“My baby. Not my baby,” she cries, rocking back and forth.

I snap out of it and begin wiping her hands clean.

“It’s going to be fine, Gabriela. Just breathe. I’m going to lift you now. Can you stand?” I ask, and she nods, tears in her golden eyes.

“All right, let’s get up and change your clothes. We need to go to the hospital.” I hand her a fresh set of clothes from her walk-in closet and call Dante from her cellphone.

“Dante, please get up here quick and have Sergio get a car ready. We need to take Gabriela to the hospital right now!” I say into the phone, trying my best to control my panic for Gabriela’s sake.

I hang up the call and rush back to the bathroom, helping Gabriela into her clothes and walking her to the door.

“Is my baby going to be okay? Did I kill my child, Emmie?” She sobs, her lips trembling and her hands cold as I hold them.

“Everything is going to be fine, Gabriela. Just breathe.” I say as I walk her out of her room and down the stairs, praying the entire way.

* * *

The ride to the hospital is quick since Sergio drove like a bat out of hell. Dante and I hold Gabriela close as we walk her inside and check her in. They put her in a wheelchair, and we follow the nurses to her room as they sit her in the bed and hook her up to the machines to start running tests. We sit with her, and I try to calm her as she shakes with sobs. Hold her hand the entire time, and the nurses announce that the bleeding must have stopped on our way to the hospital.

We wait there for nearly an hour until a doctor comes in with a clipboard.

“Hi there, Gabriela. I’m Dr. Shwartz. We ran some tests, but I want to do an ultrasound,” he says, and Gabriela nods.

He gets the ultrasound ready, grabs a wand, and puts some gel on it before pressing it around her stomach. We hear static, and then, sure enough, a little blip appears on the screen, and we hear a heartbeat. We all breathe a sigh of relief, and Gabriela’s eyes are wide and glued to the screen. She sheds a few more tears but smiles wide.

“And there, Ms. Moreno, is your very healthy and active baby. You’re almost six weeks along. It seems the bleeding was due to a subchorionic hemorrhage. It’s not incredibly common and can cause a potential miscarriage in the first trimester, but most women end up having very healthy pregnancies and babies as well. I advise you to take it easy and rest as much as possible during this first trimester. Do you have a doctor?” he asks, and she shakes her head.

“Here’s my card. I work in the maternity ward here and am able to take on new clients. Call me this week, and we will set up your next appointment.” He hands her his card, and we all give our thanks before he leaves.

Dante’s phone rings as the nurses unhook her from the machines and sit her up. He nods and hangs up the call before turning to me.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, looking at his strange expression.

“We found Rowen. He’s on his way to the warehouse downtown. I have to go. I have Ben on the way to take you both home.”

So much for taking it easy.

20

Esmeralda

It is the next morning,and I stretch and yawn in the large bed in our new bedroom.

Dante woke me up a few hours earlier to let me know that he was on his way back to the warehouse to meet with James again and try to negotiate a deal. I must have dozed off again after the long day we all had yesterday. I wish he would get some rest, too, but I know until Diego is gone, that will not happen.

I get up and shower quickly before brushing my hair and teeth and changing into a green wrap dress and flats. I walk down the stairs to Gabriela’s suite and knock on her door. She tells me to come in, and I stop and admire her room, something I did not have the time to do during her scare last night.

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