She was home, in bed. Again.This needs to stop happening.Her stomach still hurt, a painful reminder.
No… no, it can’t be. Her brain and heart instantly shut down the moment the wordmiscarriageentered her head. She couldn’t deal with it.
It also felt so damn wrong.
Her new doctor told her it was still too early to tell anything. She even suggested it could be her period.Useless!Unless temporary birth control had really fucked with her, Alicia could safely say that she never had a period come that hard and heavy in her life. Not even when she was a teenager, jacked up on so much estrogen that her cramps lasted days.
Useless, useless, useless.
“Period. Scare. Miscarriage.”Stupid. “Come back in a week or two, and we’ll do an ultrasound and take another test. Until then, try to wait.” Wait for what? For her baby to die?
Alicia was greeted by a soft light shining on her nightstand. Beside her, a head of curly red hair moved. Julia?What was she doing here?
“Good evening,” Alicia’s mother-in-law said with a faint smile. It was hard to tell how purposely faint it was, though. The burns had killed more than a few nerves across her face. “Are you feeling any better?”
Alicia said the first thing to come to her mind. “Danica told you, didn’t she?”
Ah, now she was truly sad. Julia looked down at her hands in her lap, fingers twiddling. “She told me after you went to the hospital last week.”
So, someone else knew about Alicia’s pregnancy. “Where is she? What time is it?”
“It’s about seven in the evening.” Julia sat back in the seat she had dragged to Alicia’s bedside. “Danica… she’s holed up in one of the guest rooms. She’s taking this hard.”
Alicia slumped back down against her pillow. Her memory was a bit fuzzy, but she clearly recalled her overprotective wife shouting for a doctor before hauling Alicia to the other office.She raced through the whole floor of the building with me falling against her.More than one person had turned to watch, whether from their cubicles or from the waiting area. Abby was gobsmacked when she heard what might have happened. The only one to keep a neutral expression throughout the spectacle was Sarah Clayborn, who called the doctor on the Moreaus’ behalf. Alicia was wrapped in her wife’s jacket on one of her couches when the doctor entered. Only then did Alicia find out why she had been carried to Danica’s office instead of stayingin her own. The walls were so soundproof that nobody outside could hear her rage in disbelief.
“Thank you for coming.” Alicia wondered if she should phone her own mother. Ah, Candice could get there more quickly, couldn’t she? But the phone was still in her purse, wherever that was. “You didn’t have to.”
“When Danica called me, I knew I had to come. I don’t know how emotional she usually gets, but my daughter was losing her mind over the phone.”
Was she?Alicia rubbed her stomach. Had the bleeding stopped yet? Or would this be an ongoing process from hell? What did her gut say? Her intuition had exploded in power since becoming a Moreau.I feel like I’m siphoning it from my wife.
Alicia put both hands on her stomach and pushed down.You still in there, little fighter?First, she had to convince herself she was pregnant. Now, she had to convince herself that she was still pregnant? Did that make her delusional or desperate?
“She’s usually in control of her emotions.” Alicia couldn’t help the uniformity of her voice. Speaking of being in control of emotions… “While I have you here, can I ask a question?”
Julia raised one eyebrow.
“Forgive me. I’m trying to take my mind off things.”
“I see. Of course. Ask me anything.” Julia’s eyes never left the wedding ring on her daughter-in-law’s finger.She’s remembering when she used to wear this same ring.
All part of the plan.
“Do you know anything about Clarissa Livingston? The woman who raised my wife’s father?” Like she was going to refer to him as anything more familiar.
Julia did not react, aside from taking her daughter-in-law’s hand. “I met her, of course. She was the only one in Russell’s family still alive when I married him.”
“I knew that much. So, she arranged the marriage?”
“No, his parents did, before they tragically died.” Whether Julia was moved by the passing of her in-laws was not certain. She probably never really met them. Either that, or she hates all Moreaus that she didn’t beget. “She saw it through, though. I don’t doubt that they had consulted her on the matter when the arrangement was initially made.”
“I see.” Alicia’s wedding ring grazed Julia’s fingers. Her mother-in-law snatched her hand back. “Do you know anything about their relationship?”
“Whose? Clarissa and Russell’s? Hm. I suppose it was fine. I never saw them together much. Why are you bringing her up? She died long ago.”
“Call it a hunch. I have a feeling she has to do with his extreme hatred toward women.”
“Ah. At least you call it what it is. So many people want to dance around that fact.”
