Chapter 66
The midwife--Mary, Rain had heard Esther call her--was eyeing the piece. “What in the heavens is that for?” she asked.
With no time to respond at the moment, Rain went about correcting as much of the damage on the inside of Mist as she could. She used the same wand that had healed her gunshot wound to cauterize the tears and cuts inside of Mist, as well as to alleviate as much of the pain as she could. It took her several minutes to make sure she’d gotten everything sealed up so that her friend wouldn’t continue to pour blood like a water tap left unattended.
Once she was satisfied that Mist was put back together, she pulled out the speculum and dropped that and some of the other tools she’d borrowed from Mary into the bowl of water. It definitely wasn’t the most sanitary operation she’d ever performed, nor was it at all high-tech, but she thought she’d managed to save enough of Mist’s womb that she would be able to heal nicely and hopefully carry a child someday--someday well into the future.
Satisfied that she was done, Rain began to clean Mist up. “Let me do that,” Esther insisted. “You need to go rest. You’re pale again. How is your shoulder?”
A realization that her entire upper chest and shoulder felt like it was on fire hit Rain with the question. Had she reinjured herself? She checked her own wound to see no blood, but that didn’t erase the pain. “Okay,” she said, not willing to admit that it hurt again.
“Go. Lie down.” Esther meant it this time.
Knowing it was impossible to argue with her, Rain stood. As she removed her gloves, her eyes settled on Mist’s face. She seemed to be asleep, but she may have passed out from the pain. Streaks of pink tinged her blonde hair where her own blood had touched it, possibly from Walt’s hands. Seeing her strong, brave friend lying there helplessly, so ashen, made tears come to Rain’s eyes. What in the world had made her think to pull her IUD out without even asking Rain to help?
And then she remembered the trouble. “Esther, we need to find the other piece,” she said as the mother finished cleaning mist up and slid the bloodied bedclothes from under her. Mary was in the process of bringing over a fresh blanket to cover her with.
“Why is that?” Esther asked, turning to look at her. “Will it tear a hole in my floor?”
“No,” Rain replied quickly, not sure whether or not Esther was trying to be funny. A wave of nausea washed over her, and she took a step back. It was almost as if she were the one who’d lost too much blood. Her forehead felt warm. When she attempted to brush aside a loose lock of red hair, it stuck to her skin.
“Rain--go lay down,” Esther insisted.
Mary’s arms were around her now. Rain tried standing up but didn’t feel as if she could keep her footing. “The tracker,” she mumbled, hoping to make Esther understand before she lost consciousness.
Whose voice it was that shouted for Adam, she wasn’t sure, but the next thing she knew, Rain was being lifted off of her feet again. She looked up through blurry eyes to see Adam’s face, his eyebrows knit together, his lips pursed, as he hurried her down the hallway to the bed she’d claimed a few days earlier. “Adam…” she whispered, wishing she could get her mind and her mouth to cooperate long enough to remind him of what he already knew.
He pushed through the bedroom door, slightly ajar from when Rain had sent him running down the hallway earlier to get the bag, carrying her quickly to the bed and placing her so that her head rested on the pillow. “I know, Rain. The tracker,” he said with a nod. “Do we need both pieces?”
Relieved that he remembered, she nodded. Her eyes felt heavy. There was more she needed to tell him, so much more. But she couldn’t seem to find a single word.
“I’ll make sure we’re safe. You rest.” He slipped his hands from beneath her and started to pull away, obviously in a hurry. He’d need to find the piece Mist had pulled out. The moment it disengaged from the other piece, it had sent a signal to the Mothers, letting them know exactly where Mist was. The other piece also contained a tracker that was activated at separation. That way, the Mothers would not only know one of their devices had been tampered with, they’d know exactly who the culprit was, so they could find her quickly, and punish her. The signals would continue until the Mothers turned them off, which wouldn’t happen until they were found, along with the rebels.
“Adam,” Rain said again, her fingers latching around his arm. He needed to know something. What was it? Oh, she remembered now. “Adam… I could be her.”
He stopped, his eyes narrowing again, not with concern this time, but with confusion. “You could be who?” he asked. “You didn’t remove your tracker.”
“No.” He didn’t understand, she tried shaking her head, but it just made the room spin. “Her. The wife. I could be her.”
“Oookay,” he said slowly. “Rain, get some rest. We have a lot to figure out, but we can’t do that while you’re still feeling poorly.”
Irritated at his lack of understanding, Rain tugged on his arm again. If she couldn’t find the words to tell him what she meant, that she could be the woman he married, that she hadn’t meant to exclude herself when she’d spoken those words at Dafo, maybe she could show him. Pulling him closer and leaning up the best she could in this new, off-balance world, she pressed her lips against his.
She didn’t quite hit her mark. Her mouth was off a little to one side. Her pucker was so weak, it could barely be categorized as a kiss at all, and it only lasted a fraction of a second before she could no longer hold her own upper body off of the pillow and collapsed backward.
Adam stood upright, her fingers loosening their grip as he moved. He took hold of her hand and lay it gently on the bed, then he moved to pull the covers up over her. She’d gone from clammy hot to beginning to shiver, so she was thankful for the gesture, though there was no way she could say that to him.
“You’ll be all right, Rain,” I promise,” he said, looking her in the eyes. “I won’t let anything happen to you. Ever.”
Rain nodded, and then, knowing a battle she could not win when she saw it, she closed her eyes, praying he understood everything she was trying to tell him--about the tracker and her feelings. At the moment, the first part was the most important, but as she began to doze off, it was the second part that lingered in her mind. What if he didn’t understand?
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