Moirai (18 page)

“Hi, Drezden.” Chloe smiled reassuringly as she walked
over to the mother. Her husband sat next to her in a chair beside the bed.
“Tristan.” She nodded, acknowledging him. “How is the mother doing?” She turned
towards the nurse who had been with Drezden, monitoring the baby and the
mother.

“She's only about four centimeters dilated,” the nurse
informed Chloe. “So far everything looks good.”

Chloe smiled. “That's good, Drezden. Slow progress right
now is good. We have something we'd like you to try. There's an experimental
hormone we've developed. It's still in its very early stages but we think it
might save your life.”

Tristan frowned. He looked frustrated, worn. “Are there
any risks to Drezden or the baby?” Chloe pulled the vial from her pocket and
the nurse handed her a syringe. “There are side effects to any experimental
drug. We've discussed before about the rate of mortality, and we think this is
your wife’s and the baby's best chance at survival.”

“Do it.” Drezden agreed. “If you don't think it'll hurt
our baby.”

Chloe made no promises as she filled the syringe with the
hormone before injecting it into the IV line. “It may make no difference at
all,” she reminded them both. “But we've spent time studying Olivia's hormones
and synthesized what we hope to be a cure.”

I was surprised by the news. We'd barely spent any time
in Torv and though I knew in Shadow they were running tests and trying to
create a cure, I hadn't thought they'd come this far. I found the whole ordeal
unsettling. I hadn't proven to anyone that I could carry a pregnancy to term
and survive. They were assumptions Chloe and Elsa had made. The tests confirmed
I was capable of conceiving but beyond that, they couldn't predict the future.
They couldn't know without a shadow of a doubt that I wouldn't be in the same
position as Drezden, fighting for my life and the life of my child.

I did my best to assist the nurse as she asked for tools
and a fetal heart monitor reading from the screens. I had no idea what tools
were needed and seemed to take three times as long as necessary when given
instructions.

Elsa gathered towels and blankets, preparing everything
for after the baby was delivered. I walked over to Drezden. “How are you
feeling?” I asked her, resting a hand on her arm.

“Tired.” She smiled through heavy eyes. Sweat coated her
skin and her cheeks were flushed. The nurse again checked to see how far along
she was dilated.

“Six centimeters.”

“Soon,” I assured her, doing my best to keep her calm.

Drezden nodded, her red hair sticking to her skin, and I
gently pushed the hair back from her face. I grabbed a cool, wet washcloth and
applied it to her forehead. Staring at her, the bright red hair and green eyes
reminded me so much of Jacqueline. Of course, Jacqueline was younger by about
seven years, but there was a strange familiarity I recognized.

“Thank you,” Drezden whispered, her hand gripping her
husband's as another contraction took hold. Each one came closer in time and
Elsa did her best to time them, relaying the information to Chloe.

The night slowly edged to morning, and I grew tired on my
feet. I needed sleep, but it wasn't going to happen anytime soon. Drezden was
fully dilated, which meant the baby would come soon. Each second felt as though
it were a lifetime as she pushed and the baby slowly inched out. “Wait!” I
glanced at the fetal monitor seeing the baby in distress. The heart rate had
dropped.

Chloe glanced at it but ignored it. “She's almost done.
You need to push, Drezden. Everything you've got,” she encouraged as I held
Drezden’s hand and felt her tremble.

Sweat covered her body, and I focused my attention on
Drezden. My mind went to a calm and peaceful place, trying to bring her there
with me .Then she made one final push, and we could hear the cries of the
newborn baby.

Her skin grew pale and Elsa handed Tristan scissors to
cut the cord before she wrapped the baby and looked it over and cleaned it.
“You have a beautiful baby girl.” Elsa glanced back at Drezden, seeing her
ghastly white. “Olivia, come here,” she instructed, showing me how to finish
cleaning the baby as she rushed over to Chloe to offer assistance.

“She's beautiful,” I told Drezden. “You can hold her in a
minute. Just hang in there.” I finished with the newborn as quickly as
possible. She was covered in filth but was breathing and screaming on her own.
That had to be good. I swaddled the baby in a blanket as I approached the bed.
Drezden had turned gray, the color gone from her face. “What are you going to
name her?” I asked with a smile as I brought their baby girl over and placed
her into Drezden's arms. My fingers brushed against clammy skin and I could
feel a strange sensation pass through me. Drezden's eyes were dull, her gaze
struggling to reach her newborn.

Chloe and Elsa exchanged an unsatisfied glance. The nurse
rushed to get another medication to inject into her IV, but every moment it
took was one too many.

I wanted to help Drezden. I didn't know how. Was it
possible to heal someone when they were bleeding to death? Her skin had now
turned ashen gray and her eyes stared down at her daughter. “I love you,” she
breathed, her last dying breath as I reached out, careful to make sure the baby
was supported.

No. I couldn't let her die. I didn't care about the
repercussions or what it meant, this child needed her mother. “Not today.” I
stared down at her, my eyes welling with tears as I gripped her arm, my fingers
digging into her cold flesh. “You will not die, Drezden,” I commanded, my voice
trembling as my heart rate soared. I could feel my stomach lurch and I
swallowed the bile. My eyes slipped closed, my focus entirely on this young mother,
breathing every ounce of energy and life force, if possible, back into her.
Come
on, damn it!
I felt the slightest movement in her arm and heard a shallow
breath as my eyes flashed open. “Drezden?”

Slowly, her eyes opened. She was pale and coated in sweat
but alive. Glancing down, she smiled at her baby girl. “Lexia,” she whispered
before turning her head towards Tristan. “What do you think?”

Tristan smiled, clearly relieved Drezden was all right.
“I think it's a beautiful name for a beautiful little girl.” He glanced at
Chloe. “Thank you for saving my wife's life.”

Chloe's face was all smiles. “I'm glad it worked,” she
confessed, glancing at Elsa. “That was amazing, a close call but unbelievable.
We should contact the other pregnant women and start preparing their dosages.”

I felt Elsa's eyes on me. She didn't say a word. I took a
step backwards and removed my scrubs and headed for the door. Had she known
what I'd done?

“Olivia?” Chloe called. “Where are you going? We should
celebrate, this is great news!”

I didn't answer her as I slipped out the maternity ward
and past Kelvin. “Can you take me back to my room?”

Kelvin nodded. “Sure. How'd things go in there?”

“I don't want to talk about it.”

“Fair enough.” He led me outside. The sun was beginning
to rise in the east, enveloping the city in a beautiful golden glow. “We'll
have to take the monorail to get back to your room.”

“Monorail?” I asked, confused, following Kelvin across
the cobblestone street and up the cement stairs towards the platform.

He motioned towards the approaching train and we waited
for it to stop and the doors to open. Together we stepped inside. I grabbed an
empty seat and sat down, Kelvin coming to sit beside me. “We'll have to walk a
few blocks to get back to your place but the monorail is quicker than walking
from the hospital.”

“That's fine,” I nodded, glancing out the window,
watching as we sped by different parts of Torv. Graffiti coated the sides of
buildings, some old and some newer as we slowed towards the next stop. “Now?” I
asked standing up.

Kelvin shook his head no, gesturing for me to sit back
down. “It'll be a few minutes. I'll let you know when it's time to get off.”

“Okay.” I sat back down in my seat. A few passengers came
on the monorail but no one got off. After a minute, we took off again. I
reached for the window, gripping the edge as best I could for leverage. I
wasn't used to this type of transportation. The train rushed on for several
minutes before we slowed to the next stop.

“This is the financial district,” Kelvin explained. “The
wealthy move in to this area. Most of them work down here as well.”

“The wealthy from where?” I didn't understand what he was
talking about.

“You don't know.” He laughed. “I shouldn't be surprised,
I mean you're obviously not from around here.” He nodded twice and then relaxed
in the seat beside me. “Don't you wonder where the population of Torv comes
from?” I had been wondering but I hadn't known who I could trust to ask.
“People travel from around the world to come here,” Kelvin explained. “They
make a new life in Torv, settle down in hopes of starting a family.”

“A family?” I repeated.

“That's the hope everyone has, wanting children. They
travel the world to come to Torv at the chance they may be able to start one.”

“Is it like in Genesis? Do you get selected by lottery?”
Even with the odds stacked against most women, I wondered how many signed up.
It explained the increase in population.

“Families volunteer. Both parties have to sign consent
forms because the scientists still consider the treatment experimental. My
sister signed up last year: the waiting list is long but if it works, it's
worth it.”

I wasn't sure it was worth it, after what I'd witnessed
and done today. “What if it doesn't?” I whispered, glancing out the window
again. I was astounded people would risk their lives for children they may
never have. Even more shocking was that they were disobeying Cabal's government
by coming to Torv. It wasn't just risky, it was insane!

“There's no guarantee but it's the only chance they have.
We have scientists and doctors from around the world who come here. The best
and brightest, hoping to discover a cure,” Kelvin explained.

“Around the world? Where exactly?” I hadn't read what had
happened in the history texts to the rest of the world while I was in Haven.
The most I'd learned was about the Red Plague and the repercussions it had but
nothing further.

“There are pockets of civilizations—those we have found
the means to communicate with —that are struggling in much the same way.
Society is dying out. The only reason our town of Torv has grown is because of
our success rate with the fertility program: people flock here.”

I shifted in my seat, turning to face Kelvin. “What do
the doctors and scientists ask for in return?” There had to be a catch,
something making them want to be here. It wasn't that Torv was a horrible
place, I just couldn't understand how someone could leave their home willingly.

“Food, housing, clothes—they're provided with
necessities,” Kelvin explained. “I know, it sounds a lot like the promises
Cabal has made, but they don't do it for a physical reward. If we ignore the
situation, let it continue as it has been, the human population will cease to
exist.”

“That's not entirely true,” I pointed out. “Cabal has
found a way to assure a one hundred percent survival rate.” Kelvin paused for a
long moment, contemplating his answer. “What?” I asked, waiting for him to
respond. He stood up and gestured for me to do the same. I grabbed the pole to
hold on as we shifted with the train until it stopped. Kelvin stepped off first
and I followed, walking alongside him.

“You don't question how they can ensure a healthy
pregnancy, each and every time?” Kelvin asked as we descended the cement
stairs, walking back down to the ground floor.

I grimaced. “I do,” I acknowledged. “But why can't we
demand they tell us?”

A deep throaty laugh emitted from his throat. “And you
think they'd listen?” He shook his head. “That would be something else, the
government listening to
us
. Besides, even with Cabal's perfect rate of
reproduction, they'll be the only nation left in existence in the next hundred
years.”

“Not true,” I countered. “You said it yourself that
children are being born, right here in Torv,” I reminded Kelvin.

A faint smile etched to his face. “Yes, but not enough
children, and if we continue at the current rate where only thirty percent
survive childbirth, in a few hundred years, Cabal will be all that's left.
They'll easily be able to wipe us out.”

“That's why I'm here,” I whispered. “Why Jaxon told the
high council who I was: he wanted to help and wasn't sure Collins would've
agreed.” I began to make sense of the situation. Douglas, or someone in the
high council, must have entrusted Jaxon with the information about the
fertility program.

We walked six blocks on cobblestone pavement before
turning right and walking into our building. Heading for the elevator, I pushed
the up button and waited for it to stop on our floor. The technology here felt
so foreign and new. It was actually old technology—electricity, elevators, even
tall buildings had been around for a long time—but not being around it my
entire life, it felt weird. “How many floors in this building are living
quarters?” Chloe hadn't been specific, and I wondered if it was because she simply
didn't know or she was being elusive.

Kelvin stood beside me in the elevator as we headed up.
“Most of the building is housing. A few floors are research facilities and the
top levels are for the committee.”

“You mean the high council?”

Kelvin shook his head. “Not exactly. Though the members
of the high council reside on the top floor as well.”

Stepping out onto our floor, I glanced at Kelvin. “So who
is the committee?” I still had a plethora of questions. I wondered at what
point he'd get annoyed with me.

“The committee is the board that chooses members of the
high council. Douglas suggests who he wants in his high council, but the
committee is responsible for choosing the delegates. They also make the laws in
Torv; however, the council pushes them through.”