Chapter 5 - The Tipping Point
Back at the hospital, alarms blared in Operating Room 4.
Rachel lay motionless on the table, kept alive by machines. The surgical team moved with frantic precision. The baby was in severe distress, the sedative having slowed her tiny heart to a crawl.
“Scalpel,” the lead surgeon commanded.
In the waiting room, Ethan leaned against his father. “Dad?”
“Yeah, buddy?”
“If Rachel dies… is it my fault? Because I didn't warn her about Grandma?”
Mark pulled his son into a fierce, crushing hug. “No. Listen to me, Ethan. No. You are a child. Grandma lied to you. She manipulated you. None of this is your fault. Do you hear me? You saved Rachel. You called 911.”
A sharp cry echoed in Mark's memory of Ethan’s birth, but the waiting room remained silently oppressive.
Finally, the doors opened. The surgeon walked out, stripping off his surgical cap.
“Mr. Cole?”
Mark held his breath.
“You have a daughter,” the doctor said, a faint smile breaking through his exhaustion. “She’s small, and she’s in the NICU because of the sedatives in her system, but she is breathing on her own. She’s a fighter.”
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“And Rachel?” Ethan asked, his voice trembling.
The doctor’s smile faded slightly. “She survived the surgery. But the lack of oxygen before the paramedics arrived took a toll. She’s in a medically induced coma to let her brain heal. The next twenty-four hours will dictate everything.”
