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I ended up not going to the Christmas singalong. It sounded like it might be fun if you could get over how campy it’d be. I just couldn’t bring myself to leave Natalie for that long. Jake understood. He’s been here all day too. I guess it’s a good thing we both stuck around because the respiratory therapist and the PICU doc came in just a few minutes ago.
They’re going to extubate our daughter.
I know I said I was nervous when Jake stopped by yesterday, but that was nothing compared to this. I mean, everyone says Natalie should do just fine off the ventilator. She’s been holding her sats really well, and we haven’t seen even a hint of fever in days. Besides, if something does go wrong when they take the tube out, they can always put it right back in. Not that I hope that would happen. I’m just saying that logically, I know my daughter’s not in any real danger.
But still, I’m so nervous I’m dizzy. I mean, the room is literally spinning around me. I’m holding Jake’s arm. He probably thinks I’m being romantic, but I seriously have to cling to him just to keep from falling. I can’t watch when the tube comes out. Even when I turn away, I feel my own throat closing up just at the thought of what my daughter is experiencing.
And then I hear it.
At first, I think someone’s let a cat into the hospital room. I have no clue why. I mean, I’ve heard of therapy dogs, but who in their right mind would ever think of trying to train a therapy cat?
Except it’s not a cat. It’s my daughter who’s making that sound. I make myself a promise that I will never, ever complain about listening to my daughter cry.
It takes the nurses and tech another minute or two before they’ve got Natalie completely free and untangled, and that whole time she’s letting out this faint little bleating protest, no louder than a newborn kitten.
It’s the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard.
I glance over at Jake, my heart swelling. He doesn’t look at me. I don’t think he even notices me standing next to him, doesn’t realize he has a tear streaming down his cheek. He looks perfectly awestruck, as if our daughter just recited the Greek alphabet or something like that.
“Do you want to hold her?” the nurse asks. At first, I’m so focused on Jake I think she must be talking to him, except she’s looking straight at me.
“Um, is it safe? She’s ...”
“She’s doing great.” The nurse tilts her head toward the monitor. My daughter’s breathing on her own, and her oxygen levels are at a safe and stable 95%. The nurse holds my crying baby out to me. What can I do but take her in my arms?
Jake wraps me in a half hug. I’m so overwhelmed I have to sit down. Thankfully, there’s a chair to lower myself into. I don’t know if it was waiting for me all along or if Jake or one of the nurses positioned it there right in time.
Jake sinks down next to me. He’s on his knees, his forehead pressed against our daughter’s, his tears leaking down his cheeks. She lets out one more feeble wail and then stops. My heart’s too full from the sound of her first cries that I don’t believe what I’m seeing.
“Look at that,” Jake breathes in amazement. “Look what she’s doing.”
I bite my lip. It can’t be true. It’s too much all at once. Too much happiness. Too much joy. Too much, too fast. It’s more than I can bear.
Jake nudges me with his elbow, apparently dissatisfied with my lack of response. “Don’t you see it?”
I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment. I’m so scared when I open them again, it will all be gone. Except it’s not. My daughter is still here, awake and fully alert in my arms. I’m sure it’s my imagination, but I almost think there’s a hint of a smile on her face. And she’s staring right at me with those big almond eyes.
Chocolate skin and almond eyes.
So. Stinking. Gorgeous.
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Next up: Before the Dawn
An Orchard Grove Christian Women’s Fiction Novel Book 2
It wasn't supposed to turn out like this.
We had a storybook romance. So why am I hiding in a shelter for battered women?
Especially since he never hit me.
The worst part is worrying about my daughter. Does she know she still has a mommy? Does she have any idea how much I love her?
And will I ever see her again?
Read it today or sample the first two chapters below.
ALSO FROM ALANA TERRY
Kennedy Stern Christian Suspense Novels
Unplanned (Book 1): Kennedy’s pro-life worldview is shaken when she receives a mysterious phone call from a girl who’s far too young to be pregnant.
Paralyzed (Book 2): It’s hard to heal from the past when the past wants you dead.
Policed (Book 3): A rogue police officer can ruin a lot more than a perfect evening out.
Straightened (Book 4): Worldviews collide and body counts rise when a conservative politician finds out his son is gay.
Turbulence (Book 5): Kennedy’s arctic adventure might come to a crashing halt before it even begins.
Infected (Book 6): Isolated in a hospital lockdown during a global epidemic, Kennedy can only guess who will survive.
Abridged (Book 7): When the fight for women’s rights becomes a struggle for mere survival.
Choose a free book when you join the Alana Terry Readers’ Club!
***
Orchard Grove Christian Women’s Fiction
Beauty from Ashes: A baby was never part of Tiff’s plans. Especially not a sick baby struggling for life on a ventilator.
Before the Dawn: We had a storybook romance. So why am I hiding in a shelter for battered women?
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North Korea Suspense Novels
The Beloved Daughter: Behind North Korea’s closed borders, a young girl is dying for freedom.
Slave Again: She traded in her prison uniform for shackles of a different kind.
Torn Asunder: Hannah’s secret mission could rip them apart and cost them both their lives.
Flower Swallow: Join Woong on his journey through flood, famine, and a shaman’s curse to freedom and redemption.
Keep scrolling to read the first two chapters of Before the Dawn, book 2 in the Orchard Grove women’s fiction series or buy it today.