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“I don’t know how to tell her the rest...I can’t do it, Mom.”
She kissed the back of his hand. “Ye can and ye must. It has te come from ye, Leo. Not her parents or yers, not some doctor she doesn’t know. It has te be ye, son.”
Standing, she pulled him to his feet and pointed to the bathroom. “Go clean up. I put things in there ye need. Then eat the food I brought and get yer feet under ye. No one is as strong as ye’ve always been, son. This too shall pass.”
Shuffling across the room, Leo did as she told him. He quickly showered, changed his clothes, and brushed his teeth.
Staring at his reflection, he whispered, “Don’t let her down. No matter what happens, you cannot let her down.”
Somewhat energized, he returned to Amelia’s bedside and lowered into a chair. His mother kept him company, reminding him to eat bite by bite until he finished a full meal.
Terrified and heartsick, he settled in to wait for his girl to wake up...so he could give her more awful news. Once it was all out of the way, she could start healing.
He imagined the road would be rocky in the coming months.
* * *
As Amelia opened her eyes, she turned her head. Leo was dozing fitfully in the chair a few feet away. He looked uncomfortable, exhausted, and thinner.
Placing her hand on her abdomen, she remembered their talk and let the pain wash over her.
Her baby. Leo’s baby. Gone.
Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes but she cried silently. She could only imagine how scared Leo had been for her and knew he needed rest. When he professed to love her more than his own life, Amelia knew he meant it.
Just as she meant it.
For almost an hour, she watched the expressions on his face and knew he was having a bad dream.
Suddenly, he startled awake and shook himself. His eyes met hers and he said groggily, “I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I’m sorry, Amelia.”
She shook her head. “You need it.” Pausing, she took a deep breath. “You’ve been here the whole time. I know you.”
Scrubbing his hands over his face, he admitted, “You wouldn’t have left my side either. I wanted to be here. Watching you breathe reminded me that I still had what matters most, Amelia.”
Searching for the remote to the bed, she raised herself a bit. Smoothing the bedding, she raked her fingers through her hair with the hand that wasn’t attached to an IV.
“How long have I been here?”
“Almost two days,” he answered softly.
“Tell me everything you remember, Leo. Every second.” She hesitated and then added, “Then tell me the rest.” He closed his eyes. “I know there’s more because you’re vibrating with stress. First, tell me what you know about that night. I have flashes but...nothing makes sense.”
He told her about the phone call she made, visiting her father, and finding out where Augusta had taken her.
“Abortion is legal in Illinois and other states. Why take me to some rundown clinic in the middle of the night?”
Resting his elbows on his knees, he explained, “You’re eighteen. Any legitimate clinic would have required your consent. They certainly wouldn’t have performed the procedure on someone who was clearly drugged.”
“She knew I never would have agreed to it.” He nodded and stared at the floor. “I-I almost died?”
Pulling the chair closer, he reached out to take her hand. “You were hemorrhaging and they couldn’t stop it. You ended up needing several pints of blood…”
She smiled tiredly. “You and your mom?” He nodded. “Thank you.” For almost a minute, she focused on breathing so she could find the strength to ask the question she needed an answer to. “How did they stop the bleeding, Leo?” He blinked against tears that didn’t stop. “Tell me the rest.”
He swallowed hard and she could tell it hurt. “The-the way that person...did what he did…” His voice trailed away and she knew he was trying to be strong for her. “The p-procedure damaged your uterus. Punctured it in several places so badly that...they had to remove it.”
Outside the room was the sound of carts rolling down the hall, the buzz of patients calling the nurse’s station, and visitors looking for the right room.
