“No one can decide this but you. We can give you our opinions and tell you what we would do, but the decision is yours. You only have a small window to decide if abortion is the right option, and that’s a decision that you can’t ever take back. Once the baby is gone, the baby is gone. You have seven months to decide between the other three options.”
“Take time to think about it. Come home. You’ll know what to do. We love you.”
“I love you too.” Sarai hung up, feeling a little better. Mickey hadn’t returned, so she remained seated waiting for her. At last, Mickey came back with the water.
“Here, drink this. I’m going to hunt down some coffee. I’ll be right back.” She rushed off again, leaving Sarai to sit there drinking her bottle of water. So many thoughts were swimming in her head.If she did reach out to Alistair, what would he say? What would he do? Would he leave the other woman for her, to be the father of their child? Would he throw money at her and tell her he’d support it financially, but she was on her own for raising it? Would he insist it share in his strange traditions and customs? Sarai had no idea what exactly they were, just that they were old fashioned and outdated.It had been a few months, he very well could be married. She wondered how his wife would feel about Sarai and her child encroaching on their life. Would she even let Alistair be a part of their life even if he wanted to be?
Wanting to get out of her head and away from her own thoughts, Sarai focused on the room she was in. The chairs were wood with green cushions, the carpet was thin and gray. The walls were white and had various prints of fine art everywhere. It looked like it was trying too hard to be cheery. There was a chalkboard for kids to write and draw on, and a table with various old wooden toys. Toys she once played with in waiting rooms while waiting for her mother to come out of yet another doctor visit. There was a TV facing the kids’ section that was playing some sort of silly animal cartoon, while the grown-up TV had the news on. The weather report came on. They would be expecting snow soon.
She suddenly realized Mickey had been gone for a long time. How far did she have to go to get coffee? She contemplated getting up and going out and looking for her. She didn’t want to get lost in the hospital, so she stayed put. She focused on the news to keep herself from thinking. They were on the traffic report now. It would be a nightmare getting out of downtown till rush hour was over, so she was glad that they were stuck there. The traffic report ended, and it went back to news coverage. There were some hikers missing. A common occurrence in Colorado. Hopefully they were foundbefore the snow came and the frost set in. Then the news changed to a story about a guy who swears he found proof that there are werewolves in the woods.
Sarai laughed and shook her head at that one. Though when he held up a picture of a footprint that was half man and half wolf, she wondered if it could be true.I mean, there had to be some truth to all those legends and stories, right?
Chapter 16
Alistair
Alistair was helping his clients when his phone rang. He caught a glimpse of the number and couldn’t believe it. It was Sarai, she was finally calling him back. “Sarai?”
“No, this is her friend, Mickey. From the flower shop.”
‘Oh, hi! Where is Sarai? Is everything ok?”
“She is going to kill me if she finds out I called you, but I felt it was the right thing to do. Don’t get too alarmed, but we’re at the hospital, and I think you need to come.”
“The hospital? Is she ok?”
“Just get here, soon.” She said and hung up without any more explanation. She sounded really upset.
“Sorry guys, I have an emergency to take care of. I will be back soon. Jason, watch my guys for me. I’ll be back soon.”
“Everything ok?”
“I don’t know. I’m heading to the hospital to find out.” He ran to his car, jumped in and sped away. He headed downtown and hit rush hour traffic. “Shit!”
To calm his nerves, he put his favorite CD in the player.
When he came to a complete stop, he called Mickey back, but she wouldn’t pick up. He panicked that Sarai could be seriously hurt. What happened? Worst-case scenarios started playing in his mind. Was she in an accident? Was she sick? Would she be alive when he got there? Mickey had sounded frantic. “Come on!” he screamed into the nether. A time like this, he wished he could just ditch the car and fly. After all, what good were wings if he couldn’t use them to fly? He was half tempted to risk it, but he was already in deep water with the dragon council; one more infraction and they might take his head. Then he would never get his chance to reconcile with Sarai, and he couldn’t risk that.
As he sat stuck in traffic, he rehearsed what he was going to say to her. He wished he had a bouquet of orchids for her. “Sarai, I love you. I can’t get you off my mind. I tried, for months, but you’re the love of my life. I am so lost without you. There’s so much I need to tell you, but first, I am no longer engaged to be married. I don’t want anyone except you. Love, what do I need to do to prove my love for you is true? I will do anything, just name it and say that we can be together again. We were good together; we were made for each other. Sarai, I’m a dragon shifter. I’m a dragon. I’ll tell you the history of how dragon shifters came to be, and I’ll even show you my dragon. My parents are elites. That’s why they have so many demands of me. That is why we are steeped in tradition and old values from long ago. It is the elites’ responsibility to preserve these ways of life; the dragons are afraid of going extinct. We’re not alone either, there are shifters of all kinds, and if you give me a chance, I’ll introduce you to a bunch of them. Sarai, magic is real, just because humans have forgotten that, for some reason, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. I can show you a whole new world right here in Colorado. Let me open your eyes to it.” That sounded stupid to him. He shook his head and tried again. “Sarai, I’m a dragon shifter. What is a dragon shifter, you ask? Well, let me show you.” He shook his head. “Can’t show her your dragon in the hospital. You must get her to believe you so you can take her back to the gym where you can show her. You must get her to trust you. No, get her to like you again first, then get her to trust you. Then you can explain everything, in extreme detail, and hope it’s all enough to win her over again.”
The traffic was moving at a snail's pace and the fear that he would arrive too late shook him to the core. “Hang on Sarai, I’m on my way. Just hang in there. Please, please hold on.” Worst-case scenarios took over his thoughts again.
Twenty minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot and got out. He spotted Mickey waiting for him by a water fountain. It was beautiful, and he couldn’t help but admire the blue marble spout where the water came out. It fell over the blue marble to pool at the base in a deep hexagon shaped pool. The floor of the bowl was covered in shiny coins that caught the reflection of the sun. It distracted him for a moment, and he felt his dragon stir. He had the urge to snatch the shiny coins from the fountain, but the urge passed, and he was able to stay in control. “Where is she? Is she ok?” he asked as he turned to Mickey.
“Follow me.” Mickey got to her feet, lead him inside to the elevator, and pushed the button to go up.
“Traffic was a nightmare out there.”
“Yeah, I saw the traffic report. Everyone is trying to get home before the first snow.” The elevator arrived, and Mickey pushed the fourth floor.
“Where are we going? Was she admitted?” Alistair asked.” Mickey tell me what we’re doing here.”
She didn’t answer. At last, the elevator arrived and they stepped off. Mickey lead him down the hall and opened a door. “Sorry I took so long.” Mickey said. “This hospital is huge.”
“I don’t understand,” Alistair said, seeing Sarai sitting in a waiting room. She wasdrinking a tall bottle of water. He looked her over. She looked fine.
“What the hell, Mickey?” Sarai asked when she had finished the last swallow of her water. She glared at her best friend, refusing to look at Alistair. “What is he doing here?”
