AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Fourteen
Arianna arrived in the PICU the next morning in time to witness the nurse removing many of the tubes and the oxygen cannula from the baby’s nose.
“G’Morning, Joanne. How’s she doing?”
“Great. Dr. Cody ordered a few of these removed. We’ll observe her until noon. If she’s breathing well on her own, we’ll move her out of intensive care.”
“Wow, did you hear that, sweetie pie?” She sat next to Annabelle’s bassinet, held her hand, played with the little fingers, and caressed her cheek.
The baby smiled and opened her eyes. “Look at those baby blues. You’re a beauty, Annabelle. Let’s sing together.” She bent over the baby, holding her gaze, smiling, and singing.
Cody arrived around eleven and greeted Arianna with a broad grin. “You’ve performed a miracle here.”
He studied the monitor and examined the baby. “She’s improving. Would you like to hold her?”
“I would love to.” She tingled with excitement.
“Joanne, can you get her an armchair, please?” Slowly, he picked up the baby. “Arianna, moved to this side.” He placed the baby in her arms. “Wait until I disconnect the IV bag from the bassinet and hook it onto a pole.
Joanne brought the chair, and Arianna sat, holding Annabelle’s tiny body close to hers. Her heart melted. A baby in her arms again.
“Arianna, are you comfortable?” Cody asked.
“Very.” She frowned. “Does she need to be covered?”
“The room is quite warm,” Joanne said. “But here’s a blanket. If you feel her hands or feet getting colder, cover her up.”
“Keep doing what you did yesterday. I’ll see you in an hour,” Cody added and left.
Arianna hugged the child to her, talking to her, caressing her, her heart overflowing with love for the brave little girl who’d suffered so much in her short life. An hour later, when Cody returned, he smiled satisfied and discharged Annabelle from the PICU to a room on the nursery floor.
Within a matter of minutes, Joanne had transferred the infant to a crib. Arianna followed as the nurse pushed it to the hospital’s nursery.
“Can she receive more than one visitor at a time in this room?” she asked, watching the nurse settle her tiny patient.
“Yes, but they shouldn’t hold her. You should be the only one to do that for today.”
Arianna nodded, her arms aching to have the child in them once more.
“As a matter of fact,” Joanne continued, “this little lady will be receiving her first visitor at two-thirty this afternoon. The CPS caseworker wants to see her. I told her I might be in surgery at that time.” She cocked her head. “Aren’t you working today?”
“No. I took the day off to be with Annabelle.”
The nurse narrowed her eyes. “Are you thinking about...”
“Becoming a foster mother? Yes.” Arianna smiled and looked longingly at the child.
“If you have time, why not? This baby responds well to you. She’ll require a lot of attention and monitoring.” The nurse made a few more notes on the chart before stepping back. “That’s it. She’s all settled. Her regular nurse should be in to check on her shortly. Enjoy your day with Annabelle. I’ve got to run now. See you again sometime.”
Arianna took the opportunity to step out into the hall and call Rafael with an update.
“That’s great news. I’ll be there around three. See you then.” He ended the call.
She hurried back to Annabelle’s room and was pleased to discover a wicker rocking chair. “Can I hold her again?” she asked the nurse fussing near the crib.
“You sure can, just as soon as I change her.” A moment later she wrapped the baby in a blanket and handed her to Arianna. “I’ll bring you a bottle. See if she can sip some.”
Annabelle took a few sips and fell asleep in Arianna’s arms, but awakened a half hour later and whined. “Here’s your meal, sweetie pie. I’m not letting you sleep this time.” She kept cooing to the baby who almost finished the bottle.
