Chapter 7 - The Empty Crib
Lily wasn't breathing.
She was choking on a small piece of shattered glass that had fallen near her mouth.
I screamed at Susan to pull the car over immediately.
She slammed on the brakes, skidding onto the shoulder of the highway.
I unbuckled Lily with trembling hands and laid her flat on my lap.
I remembered the infant CPR class I took when I was pregnant.
I turned her tiny body over and delivered sharp, firm back blows between her shoulder blades.
One.
Two.
Three.
A bloody shard of safety glass popped out of her mouth onto the seat.
Lily gasped loudly and started crying at the top of her lungs.
It was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard in my entire life.
Susan drove wildly, breaking every speed limit to get us to the nearest emergency room.
We burst through the hospital doors covered in snow and blood.
The nurses rushed Lily into a trauma room to check her throat and vitals.
They told me to wait in the hallway while the doctor examined her.
Susan went to the cafeteria to get us some hot coffee.
I walked into the nearby restroom to wash my bloody hands in the sink.
I stared at my exhausted reflection, vowing to destroy Marcus and my mother.
I dried my hands and walked back to the pediatric trauma room.
The hospital bed was completely empty.
The heart monitors were turned off, and the blankets were folded neatly.
Panic seized my throat as I ran to the nurses' station.
I demanded to know where my baby was.
The head nurse looked confused and checked her computer screen.
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She said the father had just arrived with official court documents.
He had discharged the baby five minutes ago and left through the rear exit.
