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“Hold on, let me go to my room.” I could hear her moving across the house. “Okay, I’m back. I’m guessing Vance told you what happened?”
“Yeah, he did. I’m so sorry, honey.”
“It sucks so badly, ya know?” she sobbed. “One minute you’re making all these plans, and the next…you’re not. I can’t stop thinking about all the things that could’ve been. Her first words, her first steps, her first date. She never even had a chance.”
“She? Did the doctors say it was a girl?”
“No,” she sniffed. “It was too early for that. But I felt it. I know that sounds crazy, but I felt it. I know I had a daughter, Karli. And now…now, I don’t.”
“Honey, I’m so, so sorry. I wish I were there.” I tried keeping my tears at bay but wasn’t succeeding very well. “What happened? How did you know that she was gone?”
She took a moment to compose herself. “That’s the really fucked up part. I sensed it right before it happened. I was fast asleep, and all of a sudden, I woke up. I was instantly wide awake just lying there in bed. No more than a few seconds had passed when I felt a bunch of blood gush out. I ran to the bathroom and I...just knew. There was no mistaking it, Kar. I fell to the floor and started bawling. Vance was already at work, so I just sat there with blood soaking through my clothes, crying for hours. He found me like that when he came home for lunch and rushed me to the hospital.”
“Oh, God,” I breathed.
“I’ve known several women over the years who have miscarried. I always thought it was sad, but I never really
understood how heartbreaking it was until now. You’re not just losing a baby; you’re losing an entire lifetime of possibilities.” She took a deep breath. “I just feel so broken, Kar. First Jake, then this happens. I feel like there are so many missing pieces of me that I wonder if I’ll ever be able to find them again.”
Okay, my decision was made. “Eri, I’m coming home. I’ll be there as soon as Leo can get a flight for me.”
“What? No, you can’t. You need to find that portal.”
“Honey, the portal can wait. You’re way more important.”
She blew her nose. “No, K, it can’t. You need to figure out how to control your powers. Besides, I think I’m going to stay with my sister, Shanna, for a while.”
“The one in La Jolla?”
“No, that’s Amy,” she corrected. “Shanna’s in San Clemente, right outside the base. She’s the one who married the Marine.”
“Ah, now I remember.” Erica had twelve sisters, so it was a little hard to keep track of them sometimes. “How long will you be staying with her?”
“I don’t know. I’m still trying to figure things out at work; I don’t have much time off left.”
Erica and I both worked for a popular bar located on the Las Vegas Strip. Lucky for us, Leo happened to own it. Normally, I would adamantly refuse any special treatment, but desperate times called for desperate measures. “Eri, I’ll talk to Leo. I’m sure your job will be waiting for you when you’re ready to come back.”
She sighed with relief. “Thanks, Kar. Really. Look, I know we’ve had a rough time lately, but I really do love you. You’re my family. You know that, right?”
I smiled. “Yeah, I do, but it’s still nice to hear. Are you sure you don’t want me to come back?”
“I’m sure. Hey, I’m going to let you go so I can go lie down for a bit. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Okay. Get some rest. I love you, Eri.”
She yawned. “Love you too.”
“Shh, it’s okay, my love,” Leo cooed.
It took me a moment to gather my bearings. I was in bed, circled in Leo’s arms, and my eyes felt like sandpaper. When I rubbed them, I found fresh tears on my face. “What’s going on?”
“I sensed your distress. I came in here and found you crying in your sleep. Bad dream?”
I thought about it for a minute. “I guess…I don’t really remember.”
He stroked my hair. “Go back to sleep. I’ll be right here.”
I stretched and felt the stiffness in my muscles. “What time is it?”
