Chapter 4 - SILENT VIGILS AND REVELATIONS
The emergency room was a blur of fluorescent lights, quick footsteps, and urgent orders. Nurses rushed tiny Leo into the trauma bay, while another medical team gently wiped Mia down, checked her vital signs, and treated the severe frostbite on her fingers.
Nathan refused to leave. He sat in the waiting room chair in his shirtsleeves, covered in dirt and faint smudges of soot from Mia's sweater.
By 3:00 AM, Dr. Evans, a senior pediatrician, walked out into the lobby. She looked tired but relieved.
"Mr. Fischer?" she asked, recognizing him from the news. "The baby has severe hypothermia, but you brought him in just in time. The skin-to-skin contact saved his life. Another twenty minutes in that box, and his organs would have shut down. He's stable now in the NICU."
Nathan let out a breath he felt like he’d been holding for years. "And Mia?"
"She's malnourished and dehydrated, but strong," Dr. Evans replied. "She refused to go to sleep until we assured her you were still outside."
When Nathan walked into Mia’s room, she was sitting up in a hospital bed that looked far too large for her. A bowl of warm soup sat on the tray next to her, half-eaten.
"Is Leo okay?" she asked immediately.
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"He's warm, Mia. He's going to be just fine," Nathan said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Where are your parents, sweetie?"
Mia looked down, her small hands pulling at the clean white hospital sheets. "Mommy got sick in the summer... she didn't wake up one day. The landlord locked our door. I took Leo so they wouldn't separate us."
