Chapter 2 - The Heartbeat
The ambulance doors shut before Ryan could reach them.
Maya climbed in beside me.
"He's not coming," I said.
"Good."
"He's my husband."
"He just watched his pregnant wife get loaded into an ambulance and worried about his mistress. Right now he's a problem, not a husband."
Another cramp tightened across my belly.
The monitor under the paramedic's hand chirped faster.
"How bad?" he asked.
"Seven. Maybe eight."
At St. Anne's, everything became lights, hands, questions, and the terrible wait for a fetal heartbeat.
Then the room filled with a rapid, steady thump.
I started crying.
"There she is," the nurse said. "Strong heartbeat."
Dr. Patel ordered monitoring, an ultrasound, blood work, and medication to calm the contractions.
"The placenta looks intact," she told me later, "but you took a serious fall. We're admitting you overnight."
Maya sat beside the bed with my phone.
"I saved every picture you took of the messages to my cloud drive."
"Thank God."
A knock came at the door.
Ryan stepped in carrying flowers.
I almost laughed.
"Get out."
"Emily, please."
Maya stood. "You heard her."
Ryan ignored her.
"Vanessa panicked. She says you lost your balance when she reached for you."
"She shoved me."
"You were upset. You'd just read private messages."
"Private messages about your affair."
His jaw tightened.
"If police turn this into something criminal, it becomes a circus. Think about the baby."
I stared at him.
"I am thinking about the baby. That's why you're leaving."
He lowered his voice.
"Tell them you aren't sure what happened. That's all."
"Why?"
For the first time, he looked scared.
"Because the camera won't help you."
Maya stopped moving.
I felt cold spread through my chest.
"What did you do?"
Ryan backed toward the door.
"Nothing. The porch system has been offline since this morning."
"How do you know?"
He didn't answer.
He left.
May you like
Maya looked at me.
"Emily... how did he know the camera was offline before anyone checked?"
