Chapter 3 - THE HOSPITAL
Labor did not stop.
By the time the ambulance reached Riverside Methodist Hospital, my contractions were close enough that the doctors immediately admitted me.
I kept asking about the baby.
A nurse named Claire stayed beside me.
“Her heartbeat is strong.”
“Her?”
Claire smiled.
“You didn’t know?”
Daniel and I had decided not to learn the sex.
We wanted one surprise left in the world.
I laughed and cried at the same time.
“A girl.”
“A very determined girl.”
That sounded like Daniel.
My phone buzzed again.
Margaret.
I answered.
“Tell me something good.”
“I can tell you several things.”
I heard papers moving on her end.
“The recorder rejected the deed transfer.”
I exhaled.
“The bank froze the estate account before any money left.”
Another breath.
“And the police found a signed purchase contract on Daniel’s desk.”
My relief disappeared.
“What purchase contract?”
“Richard was attempting to sell the house.”
“He can’t.”
“He apparently thought he could.”
“To who?”
“A company called Blackridge Residential Holdings.”
I had never heard of it.
Margaret continued.
“We’re tracing ownership.”
Something in her tone bothered me.
“Margaret?”
“There’s more.”
I waited.
“Blackridge was formed four months ago.”
“So?”
“The registered manager is Kelsey Hale.”
I stared at the hospital wall.
My stepmother had planned to buy my house through her own company.
Margaret continued.
“The proposed purchase price was less than half the property’s appraised value.”
My hand tightened around the blanket.
“So they were selling my house to themselves.”
“That appears to be the plan.”
The anger came slowly.
Not wild.
Not explosive.
Cold.
Precise.
My father had not thrown me out because Daniel left debts.
There were no mysterious debts.
There was simply something Richard wanted.
My home.
My money.
My company shares.
Maybe all of it.
“Margaret.”
“Yes?”
“Do not negotiate with him.”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
“Do not let him apologize his way out.”
Silence.
Then Margaret said quietly, “Daniel would be proud of you.”
My eyes burned.
Before I could answer, Claire stepped closer.
“Emily, we need your attention now.”
I put the phone down.
The next hour became a blur of nurses, monitors, doctors, and fear.
Then at 3:18 that afternoon, my daughter entered the world six weeks early.
She was tiny.
She was furious.
And she was alive.
When the nurse placed her near me, I touched one finger against her little hand.
She immediately wrapped her fingers around it.
“Hi,” I whispered.
My voice broke.
“I’m your mom.”
May you like
I looked toward the empty chair where Daniel should have been.
“And your dad loved you before he ever met you.”
