“Colin cannot lose any of them.”
“I know.” I push the speed limit. I’m less than two miles from the hospital now.
“Oh, sweet Colin…” Holly sobs, looking out the window. He’s been through so fucking much. And this? This was his worst fear.
“Hol, you need to call the others. We need everyone.”
“Shit…okay.” She drops my hand and runs her fingers through her locks as she sniffles deep, composing herself. She bends and rummages through her purse, searching for her cell. I zoom through the green light, pushing my flashers on as I round a slower vehicle so they all know there’s an emergency. Holly is relaying things to Ava at the next intersection when lights flare in her window. I gasp, hitting the gas and laying on the horn just in time to grab the attention of the driver–they weren’t paying attention and were attempting a right on red without looking. I have the green light. Fuck, they almost hit us. I have to get us there. I have to get to Sydney. I have to get to Colin.I have to save them.
“Fuck!”
“They almost hit us!” Holly clutches at her chest, and I double check to make sure her seatbelt is fastened. I breathe in a sigh of relief. “Yeah, yeah, Ava, we’re okay. We’re almost there.I need you to get a hold of Jane. I’ll call Trys and Bryn. See you soon.”
Holly ends the call and looks over at me with big eyes full of fear as she connects the next call to Brynleigh. She doesn’t answer, so she calls Trystan. He picks up a few rings later. She’s ending that call as we pull into the ER’s parking lot. I notice Colin’s truck ahead in the pull-up lane.
“Holly, I need you to go park the truck. I’ll tell them you’re behind me.”
I pull in right behind Colin’s truck and park, leaning to kiss her quickly in reassurance–for her or myself, I don’t know–before flying out my door. Splatters of blood line the walkway from his open passenger door up to the entrance but stop there. Thank goodness someone met them here. I eye the head nurse I recognize, and she lets me in immediately.
“Where are they?”
“Bay two. Follow me.”
I look over at another nurse.
“Get someone to park Colin’s car and wipe up the passenger seat. I want the keys at the front desk. Holly, a close family friend, is parking my truck. Give her his keys.”
The nurse nods as I walk into bay two and am met with two pairs of eyes reflecting my own fear. I grab Colin’s shoulder, squeezing hard as he leans into me like he’s about to shatter, but my mind is on the woman in front of me. She’s in visible pain, and she’s freaking terrified as a nurse is hooking her up to the monitors.
“Hey, pretty mama. Holly’s coming. You’re blood type’s A positive, right?” I try to give her a reassuring tone while getting vital information as I shove my hands under water. It’ll have to be a quick scrub. Sydney nods, tears running down her cheeks as Colin grasps her hand and looks at her as if he’ll never see heragain. I hate that I can’t assure him that it’s not. Shit, I can’t even think it.
“Nurse, I need to see what we’re working with here. Please speed it along as best you can.” Her fingers stumble with the leads. She’s newer. Fuck. “Anesthesia here? OR being set up?”
“Yes, everyone’s running on this one.”
“Good. We don’t have time. I’ll finish that, go check on everything for me, and send in Katie. I saw her at the station. I don’t care what she’s doing. Send her.”
The young nurse nods, hands me the last lead, and scurries from the room. I take another deep breath.
“Sydney, I need to see what’s going on. That okay?” I ask as I hook up her last lead and glance at the monitors reading vitals for her and the babies. Three lives. Wideman better get here soon. I will never be able to live with myself if I destroy our circle tonight. If I destroy this man looking to me as if he’s putting his whole world in my hands. It’s heavy. I lift the sheet, seeing way more blood than I’m comfortable with and knowing I don’t even need to look closer or do an exam. I look at the monitors again. My heart skips along with those little lines.
“I’m here!” Holly busts through the curtain with a worried nurse on her tail. Holly rushes to Sydney’s other side and presses a kiss to her hair. She and Colin grasp hands on the stretcher’s mattress above Sydney’s head in solidarity.
“She’s with me and these two. She’s okay, Katie. Where we at with preparations? She needs to go now. See Wideman yet?”
Katie shakes her head, her shoulder-length brunette hair bouncing with the movement. She looks at the monitors and bites her lip, nodding in acknowledgement that she agrees with my thoughts. She’s got a lot of OB experience, so I’d trust her with any of my moms.
“OR’s ready.”
“Okay, I’m making the call. We’re moving.”
I look over at Sydney and nod.
“Let’s go get them out.”
Colin sucks in a breath as Katie pushes in and unhooks cords, moving Holly out of the way.
“Sydney, we’re all going to be right here. We love you. I–I love you.”
