Jimmy processed the girl’s rambled speech and the question she directed at Hunter, who lifted his chin for Jimmy to respond.
“You sure are, Catherine,” Jimmy said. “Welcome to Independents, your new home.”
“Hooray! Home, home, home!” The blonde girl sang and danced.
Jimmy stood and brushed his knees off. He arched a questioning eyebrow at his brother.
“This could take a while,” Hunter said, stepping over and grabbing a couple muffins.
The door to the delivery room crashed open against the wall. Scout ran into the waiting room with wide eyes and an open mouth as if he’d lost something and needed to find it in a hurry. Then he locked onto the little girl. “Catherine, I need you in here. My sister-”
Catherine stopped her dance; seriousness falling over her like rain washing away the playful little girl. She took Scout’s hand and the door closed again.
This time Jimmy raised both eyebrows at his brother.
Hunter waved off the occurrence. “She’s complicated,” he replied around a mouthful. “These muffins are tasty. Do you think Brittany would bring over some scrambled eggs?”
Scout held Catherine’s hand-her firm grip somehow reassured him-and guided her through the door. The window blinds had been lowered a quarter-fraction of their length, allowing sunshine to fall across Vanessa. Scout fought the mental image of his sister’s soul rising in the light. She looked so close to death. Strands of damp hair were plastered to her head and her eyelids fluttered like a moth that had flown too close to the flame.
Luis paced, checked Vanessa’s pulse and listened to her heartbeat, but mostly shook his head and mumbled to himself.
Mark wiped Vanessa’s brow with a damp washcloth and spoke soft words to her; or maybe he was praying. When Vanessa first started seeing Mark, Scout doubted whether the guy would be good to her. Now he was ashamed the thought ever entered his head.
Catherine pulled him toward the baby.
“Wait, I need you to help my sister,” Scout said, tugging her toward the bed.
“Don’t worry. We have time, I promise.” She almost yanked him off his feet.
The baby was absolutely beautiful, with a dark, curly patch of hair. He stopped crying and stared at Scout with eyes big enough to capture his heart. In that moment, Scout knew he would do anything for the little guy.
Ginger handled the baby like a registered nurse in a pediatric ward, folding a blanket around him as he squawked underneath the lamp that kept him warm. The generator outside powering the lamp provided a soothing background hum.
“He’s so tiny,” Catherine said. “Look at his little nose.” She touched his head and the baby smiled at her. Catherine closed her eyes.
Ginger looked up at Scout. “We have a visitor?”
“This is Catherine. Hunter found her.”
Catherine pulled her hand away and smiled at Ginger. “The baby is perfectly healthy. He says he’s happy and you’ve been very helpful. Oh, and he’s getting hungry.”
“How do you know that?” Ginger asked.
Catherine regarded her like she was simple. “He told me, silly.”
Ginger appeared mystified as she held up a bottle. “I was just about to give him some of this baby formula.”
Catherine looked at the baby and nodded. “He says that will be fine for now.”
“What’s wrong with her, Luis?” Mark asked, jerking Scout’s attention back to his sister.
Vanessa’s eyes were closed and her chest barely moved with each shallow breath she took. Scout hadn’t heard a peep from her since he’d arrived.
“She’s still hemorrhaging,” Luis said. “I can’t stop it. I’m not a surgeon.”
“What does that mean?” Mark asked, his voice rising.
“She’s bleeding internally because her uterus hasn’t contracted yet.” Luis nodded at the confusion on Mark’s face. “The area inside her where the baby has been growing is supposed to shrink back to its normal size after delivery. If it doesn’t, she could bleed to death. Back before the plague, a doctor would perform surgery in this situation, but I’m just not equipped or experienced to do that. I’m sorry.”
Luis went to a desk and leafed through one of the big black books from his piece-meal medical library that Hunter and Scout found and put together for him. His finger traced rapidly over the lines he read, but still he shook his head and mumbled, swatting over page after page in frustration.
Scout squeezed Catherine’s hand. She slipped free and walked over next to Vanessa. Mark stared at her in shock before turning angry eyes on Scout.
“Scout, get this little girl out of here! Your sister may be dying!”
Scout flinched from the strike of the harsh comment. He wanted to yell back, but quickly put that reaction in check. “This is Catherine. Trust me. She can help Vanessa.”
Catherine laid her hands on the white sheet that covered Vanessa’s stomach. After a moment, Catherine almost collapsed; she lifted her hands and looked at Scout. “I’m going to need your help,” she told him.
“What can I do?” he asked, stepping up beside her but afraid to gaze down at his sister.
“Put your hands on her,” she told him. “She needs your strength and love. Mark, you can help, too.”
Mark appeared too scared to move. Scout nodded to him before placing his hands on Vanessa’s shoulder. Mark sighed and cradled Vanessa’s hand. Without being asked, Luis joined the group, gently pressing Vanessa’s other shoulder, while Ginger remained with the baby.
Catherine returned her hands to Vanessa’s silent body.
Bright yellow light flooded from the open palms of Catherine’s hands. The light conformed over Vanessa’s body, warping like a vibrant field of energy.
Mark and Luis stared with wide eyes at the little girl. From their contact with Vanessa, yellow light pulsed up their arms. Mark closed his eyes tight, his lips moving. Scout knew he was praying this time.
The light crept up Scout’s arms, too. A startling tingle worked inside him, pulling at his inner essence. The weird sensation continued for another minute and then, as if someone punched the throttle, the pull converted into a forceful wrenching.
There was life in that light. A static connection furrowed through his arms, transferring part of Scout to his sister.
Scout’s knees began to buckle but he bridled his resolve, forcing himself to go all the way. He wished he’d grabbed a chair when he remembered what happened after Catherine’s healing of Hunter had ended.
Vanessa contorted and arched above the bed, then inhaled a deep breath and released it with a mighty exhale. The yellow energy field flowed from her body and the boys’ arms straight through Catherine’s hands and into the little girl’s mouth. Just like with Hunter the night before, the light disappeared down inside of her to who knows where and everything went completely dark, despite the sunlight Scout assumed still streamed through the top of the windows.
Catherine’s eyes snapped opened. The yellow light exploded into the room, immersing everything and everyone before simply fading away.
The baby giggled from his heated corner.
Vanessa sank back with a calm smile traced upon her lips.
Catherine panted, covered in sweat as though she’d just played a mean one-on-one pickup game with the devil. Suddenly, she rolled to the floor like a sheaf of paper, Mark slumped over in his chair and Luis collapsed on top of him. Scout regarded his sister one last time before his eyes glazed over and he crashed to the floor beside Catherine.