Beth shook her head. “I can’t. I just can’t. I’m too tired.” She collapsed onto the pillows. “I need to rest. Only for a bit.”
“No, you can’t rest. You’ll rest after. Now you must push.”
She let out another long cry of agony. “Something isn’t right. Maybe you’ll have to...”
“No. The baby is ready. You must be ready, too.”
“Please... I can’t...”
“Listen to me. You can do this. You can do anything. Now, this baby wants to come out. Let’s take a few deep breaths...”
Beth tried to focus, but it was hard. The pain was excruciating, and she was tempted to start yelling all her frustration at Kinna and tell her she was a lousy mage. But it didn’t make sense, because Kinna had cured her sister’s cancer. She was just scared to give her anything that was too strong, in case it might affect the baby. This was probably the first baby the mage was delivering, and she was just as terrified as everyone in the room.
“Too much stress,” Sonya said. “With everything that happened lately, it’s understandable.”
“You can do this,” Abby whispered in her ear. “I know you. You are strong, and you never give up. Come on. And then you can rest.”
Beth cried, breathed, and pushed. She yelled at the top of her lungs and squeezed Sonya’s hand. But even with all the effort and determination she put in, it was hours before the baby finally arrived.
She heard the sharp cry of the newborn but didn’t have the strength to lift her head off the pillow. Her vision went blurry, and she could barely breathe from the exertion.
She closed her eyes and allowed her mind to shut off.
“Beth? It’s a boy,” she heard Abby’s voice coming from far, far away. “Beth?” She felt her slap her cheeks gently. “Kinna, something’s wrong. Did she faint or...”
Her sister’s voice faded, and silence enveloped her. Blessed silence.
* * *
She felt like she was underwater – a dark, cold ocean. She couldn’t open her eyes, couldn’t breathe. Waking up meant swimming to the surface, except she didn’t know which way was up. She moaned in her sleep, wanting to come back to full awareness. Her dreams were starting to turn into nightmares, and she was cold... so cold.
“Beth...”
A hand on her forehead. She tried to use its gentle touch as an anchor, as a guide. She imagined herself latching onto it and dragging herself up, up, up, until her head broke the surface, and she could drag in a huge gulp of air.
She opened her eyes, her whole body jerking after feeling like she’d been paralyzed for hours.
“You’re awake,” Abby whispered. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m cold.”
“You’re running a fever. You’re actually burning hot, and Kinna has been trying to lower your temperature.”
“Where’s my baby?” She tried to sit up, but pain shot through her lower region. She saw Sonya standing at the foot of the bed. Her clothes seemed to be stained with blood. “Where’s Kinna? Where’s my baby?”
“Shh... Kinna is taking care of him, making sure he’s fine before you see him.”
“What? There’s something wrong with my baby? How long was I out?”
“You were only out for an hour,” Sonya said. “Don’t worry. Everything is fine.”
“Then why can’t I see him?”
She was losing her patience. She’d slept for an hour, and they didn’t want to give her the baby. That could only mean bad news. Bad news they didn’t want to tell her.
“Uthar?”
“I will go get him,” Abby said, standing up. “He wasn’t allowed in here while you... I mean...”