The doctor stepped forward at once, steadying Darrell by the arm, his voice low and reassuring.
"Mr. Farley, don't worry. It's perfectly common for expectant mothers to experience nausea from pre-delivery anxiety."
He placed a single pill in Darrell's palm.
"Have your wife take this. She'll feel better."
Darrell locked eyes with the doctor for one brief, loaded moment.
Then the doctor left the room.
Darrell pointed toward the doctor's retreating figure and smiled at me, his expression warm and tender.
"Beverly, those two hours I was gone? I went to find you a doctor. That was Dr. Finch, the one who just left. He was named the top OB-GYN surgeon in the capital this year. You're in good hands. He'll make sure you and the baby are safe."
He sat down on the edge of the bed and held the pill to my lips.
"Take this. It'll keep you comfortable for the three days before surgery. Be good. Take it."
I picked the pill from his palm, slipped it into my mouth, then grabbed the glass of water and drank the whole thing down.
Something loosened behind Darrell's eyes. Relief, settling into satisfaction.
He tucked the blanket around me, gave me one last gentle smile, and left.
The second the door clicked shut, I dug the pill out from under my tongue and wrapped it in a tissue.
Whatever this was, Darrell, I would make you taste it a thousand times over.
"Darrell..."
A woman's coy, whining voice drifted through the door, pulling me from my thoughts.
"I feel like you're distracted this time. Did something happen? Don't tell me you went soft and you're actually going to let that old hag have the baby."
"Don't worry, Becca." Darrell's voice was low, soothing, dripping with tenderness. It seeped through the crack in the door. "You're the only one I've ever loved. Why would I let her keep it?"
"It won't be much longer now. She's almost bled dry. I've cleaned up the company, moved everything over. Once she loses this baby, I'll use her inability to carry a child as grounds for the divorce. Then I'll take you, and we'll disappear."
"Darrell, you've sacrificed so much. For me and our son, you kept up the act for eight years. You even lost two fingers..."
"It's nothing. If it weren't for those two fingers, she never would have believed me so easily. For you and our boy, any price is worth paying."
The rest of their words blurred into static.
A deafening roar filled my skull.