Page 49 of Thin Lines (Donati Bloodlines 2)

“You can have a child, but it may take some planningand close monitoring, Emma,” the doctor told her.

She didn’t really hear him.

“Thank you,” Emma said.

She stood from her chair, feeling exhausted with theday. She didn’t want to be here with the doctors, their tests, never mindhaving this very conversation. It was like reliving the week before all overagain. She could still feel her boy in her palm, tiny, fragile, and helplessbecause she couldn’t carry him like she was supposed to.

“Emma, wait,” the doctor said.

“What now?”

“A couple of things.”

“I would like to get out of here,” Emma said, sighing.

“I can see that. First, I wanted to say that it helpsafter a loss like this for women to seek therapy. Often times, women findthemselves in the midst of a depression, blaming themselves, and not knowinghow to climb their way out of it. It might help to find someone to talk to sothat you can deal with how you feel about all of this. Not just the birth andlosing the baby, but your future, deciding to have more children, and handlingwhat that means.”

Emma waved it all off. She wasn’t in the mood todiscuss therapy. She was heartbroken, but she wasn’t crazy or depressed.

Her heart simply hurt.

“And the second thing?” she asked, grabbing her bagoff the floor.

The doctor frowned. “Should you find yourself pregnantagain, by choice or accident, it’s very important that your doctor know as soonas possible, to begin monitoring the thickness of your cervix. This can beprevented from happening to you a second time. Do you understand?”

She understood.

She just didn’t see how it mattered, now.

There would be no more children. Not if she had anysay.

Calisto

“Well?” Affonso demanded, unaffected as ever. “What ofit, Father?”

Calisto bristled, hearing his uncle’s rudeness towardthe priest. It wasn’t like Affonso to be so short with a man of God, but hehadn’t exactly wanted to do this at all. Not this day, the small, privateservice, or the burial that would follow for his dead son.

This entire thing had been done by Calisto’s hand andonly for Emma’s benefit.

It wasn’t about Affonso’s wants.

“I promise to make it short, Affonso. I have a call tomake. Can you entertain yourself for a few minutes until I’m ready to comeout?” the priest asked.

Affonso nodded, turned on his heel, and left the smalloffice without a backward glance. It took all the patience that Calisto hadinside not to glare at his uncle’s back.

Father Day didn’t miss Calisto’s irritation for asecond.

“He’s not up for this, I take it?”

“No,” Calisto said.

“That’s fine. His wife needs it more, I suspect.”

Calisto frowned. “She doesn’t talk a lot.”

“I know. I tried to speak with her earlier. It’s likeshe’s somewhere else entirely.”

“It was … difficult.”