Page 46 of Thin Lines (Donati Bloodlines 2)

For a short moment, she felt his warm, slick skin, shewatched his struggling breaths, and he lived.

And then he didn’t.

That was the hardest. It was worse than delivering ababy she knew wouldn’t survive. It was worse than feeling like she was alone ona kitchen floor all over again.

He died in her palm. All red-pink, with closed eyes,and never having made a sound.

But for a moment, he got to be loved. Emma got totouch him, apologize for having failed again, and she got to love him.

She had people all around her.

They watched and never said a thing.

She still felt alone.

“Where in the fuck were you?”

Emma blinked awake, and rubbed at her eyes to clearthe sleepiness from her eyes. A soreness settled in her lower half as sheshifted on the bed. That was to be expected, apparently. The baby might havebeen extremely premature, but she still delivered him. Her body had stillexpelled a baby, and the placenta. It needed time to heal.

The arguing voices outside of her hospital room becamelouder, confusing her further.

“I stayed to finish—”

“That was more important to you?”

Calisto.

“Why is that picture of the drop of water on thedoor?” Affonso asked.

“It’s meant to tell the other nurses and doctors whomight enter the room, unaware of the outcome of the delivery, that a child waslost. It also tells them to be quiet as they pass, for Emma’s sake.”

“Ah.”

“Is that all you have to say right now?”

“I assumed you would call, Cal,” Affonso muttered.

“I did. I told you what was happening!”

“She didn’t need me here for that. She could do italone.”

The coldness of Affonso’s tone didn’t even shock Emma.

“You should have been here,” Calisto snarled.

“To what, see a dead child be born?” Affonso asked. “Idid that once with my first wife. I wasn’t needed, Calisto.”

“You … You are—”

“What?”

“Fucking useless,” Calisto finished darkly. “A poorexcuse for a man, never mind a father.”

“Well, you wouldn’t know, hmm?”

“Pardon?”

“You wouldn’t know. You and your mother never let mebe one.”