3
MERCEDES
Something jolts me from my sleep, and my heart ices over in terror as I drag the blanket from my face.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The knocking on the front door comes again, and my phone buzzes on the coffee table beside me. When I glance at the screen, I see that I've missed a few calls from Solana. But it's the time on the display that reminds me I was supposed to be up and ready for my appointment.
"Shit." I drag myself upright and stagger toward the door, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.
There's a wicked kink in my neck from sleeping on the couch, and my entire body feels achy and stiff. I can already tell this isn't going to be a good day, and the nausea swirling in my stomach really doesn't help either.
With the morning light comes the clarity that I didn't imagine the events that transpired yesterday. I'm not dreaming but instead trapped in a nightmare I can't seem to escape. I have no money. Very few resources. A man who undoubtedly wants to strangle me for leaving, not to mention one who really does want me dead. And then there is the matter of The Tribunal and the consequences awaiting me should I be recaptured.
All these thoughts weigh heavy on my shoulders as I schlep my way to the door. It doesn't get any better when I open it to find an unfamiliar face staring back at me.
"We're late." The woman huffs at me. "We have to go if you want to make the appointment."
Crap. I'm not in any sort of state to be presentable, but I know Georgie and Solana went to a lot of trouble to set this up. With my current circumstances, this might be the only chance I have to visit the doctor for a while.
"Give me five minutes," I tell her apologetically.
She smacks her gum in annoyance, her eyes moving over me. "Rough night, huh?"
The way she says it makes me think she has no clue that I'm pregnant and not hungover. Whoever she is, it's clear she doesn't know Georgie or Solana. She's just a hired driver.
"Yeah, something like that," I mutter. "I'll be right out, okay?"
She nods and traipses back to her car, and I shut the door and dash into the bathroom. Luckily, Georgie thought of everything, so I have some toiletries to use and some of Solana’s clothes. I change into a pair of leggings and a T-shirt. Then I make quick work of washing my face, brushing my teeth, applying deodorant, and pulling my hair back into a ponytail. It's not the best I've ever looked, but it will have to do.
When I head for the door, I grab the house key Georgie left sitting on the console table and meet the driver out at her beaten-up Kia. She's propped against it, smoking a cigarette while she waits, but quickly snuffs it out once I approach.
She even opens the door for me, which is almost laughable, but when I arch a brow at her in question, she just shrugs. "I'm getting paid good money for this gig. Expect high-class service."
I smile despite my grim mood and lower myself into the passenger seat.
The driver, whose name I learn is Nikki, fills me in on her obsession with K-pop for the duration of the journey. Meanwhile, I check the rearview mirrors and scan the road for a black Rolls Royce. When I don’t see anything, I skim through Solana’s messages from this morning and read her instructions for the doctor’s appointment. It’s all very spy-like, and they seem to have thought of everything. I would be more impressed if I wasn’t slightly hyperventilating at the thought of getting caught any second.
Nikki’s car screeches to a halt in front of a private doctor’s office, and she wrinkles her nose when she reads the obstetrics and gynecology sign.
“I guess this is the place, huh?” She pulls a cigarette from her pocket and shoves it between her lips. “Have fun in there. I’ll wait outside.”
“Thanks.” I get out of the car and walk inside in a daze.
I’m not convinced Solana’s instructions are actually going to work, but when I reach the front desk and tell them I’m here to check in under the name of Kelly Williams, the receptionist doesn’t question it.
“We’ve already received all your paperwork,” she tells me. “And it looks like you’re cash pay… and that’s been taken care of too. So you can go ahead and have a seat.”
I do exactly that, and while I’m sitting there, a few of the other women in the waiting room glance at me like I just crawled out of a drug-fueled rave. I can’t exactly blame them because I know I look like hell, but their judgment really isn’t helping my nerves.
Luckily, it doesn’t take long for a nurse to come and retrieve me. In the privacy of the exam room, she goes through the motions of getting my vitals and asking me a few questions while she types my responses into a tablet.
Once that’s finished, she instructs me to get on the table and get comfortable, as if that’s possible, informing me the technician will be in shortly.
I’m lying there staring at the ceiling when the tech comes in and greets me. I have another moment of panic as she gets to work, applying gel to my belly and explaining what she’ll be doing today. I don’t hear much of it. I’m just trying to focus on breathing because things are getting way too real.
It comes over me as the wand starts to move, and the noise becomes background to my racing thoughts. I’m going to be a mom to an actual baby, and I have no idea how I’m going to take care of either of us.
“It’s okay to be nervous…” The tech’s words drift off as I drag in a hollow breath.
Jesus, I have no idea what I’m doing with my life. There’s going to be a tiny human relying on me. And truth be told, I don’t have the faintest clue how to be a good mother. My mother was decent, but she didn’t have a clue either, if I’m being honest. I know this because our housekeeper Antonia was the one who practically raised us.
“Oh, fucking hell,” I curse as tears spring to my eyes.
“Hey, it’s okay.” The tech pauses, and I feel like an idiot for crying in front of her. “It’s a very emotional time. I know it’s a lot, especially for a first-time mom, but you’re going to do great. I always joke that it’s better to get it out of the way with two babies in one go. Sink or swim, right?”
I stop, blink, and stare at her as I sniffle. “What do you mean two babies?”
“Twins.” She furrows her brow as if she’s wondering if she needs to call in a psych eval. “You’re having twins.”
My eyes snap to the screen, and for the first time, I realize it’s not just static I’m hearing in the background of my thoughts. It’s actual heartbeats.
“Oh, my god,” I whisper.
“Oh, my god, yay?” she asks hesitantly.
I take a moment to absorb the news, and my head feels like it’s in a cloud, but at the same time, warmth expands from my chest, slowing my breathing and bringing me back to earth.
“Can you show me?” I lean up on the pillow to get a better look.
She smiles way too big and then nods enthusiastically, moving the wand around to show me. After a moment, when I blink away the tears, I can see the outline of two heads and two vague body-like shapes.
My heart stops. And then it starts again. And I’m crying in earnest now, but for a whole different reason.
“Twins,” I murmur in disbelief. “I’m having twins.”
“Yes, ma’am,” the tech chirps happily. “And it looks like you’re just shy of four months along.”
Holy crap.
Four months. Has it already been that long?
I look down at my belly, and from this position, the protrusion is way more obvious than it’s been hidden under my oversized dresses. If anyone were to see me in a pair of pants and a regular shirt, there would be no possibility of hiding it. But honestly, I don’t want to. Not anymore.
I understand that as my hand hovers over what will be my babies’ home for the next five months. God, that’s way too soon. Yet it’s not soon enough.
My emotions are high when the doctor comes in and gives me the confirmation that I have two healthy babies growing inside me. She hands me a list of guidelines for pregnancy, and the tech gives me a towel to clean up. Then with the photo evidence in hand, I’m sent back out into the world with the undeniable truth hanging above my head.
I’m carrying not one but two of Lawson Montgomery’s stubborn little monsters inside me.