Chapter 4 - The Hospital and the Loss of Carson
The emergency team rushed her straight to Saint Anthony Hospital in downtown. After almost two nerve-wracking hours, the surgeon finally came out of the operating room with a solemn expression on his face. They had managed to stabilize her life, but she was suffering from severe dehydration, a concussion caused by a heavy blow to her head, and a complete placental abruption.
Our baby boy did not survive the trauma.
I felt the entire hospital hallway tilt beneath my feet. That child, whom we had already lovingly named Carson, had died without me being able to protect him from my own family. Overwhelming guilt pierced my heart because I had spent years forcing Kristin to endure the unbearable just to keep my mother happy.
Early the next morning, my brother Zachary showed up at the hospital waiting area. He did not bother to ask about his unborn nephew or his sister-in-law’s fragile health.
“You need to get Mom out of this legal mess right now,” he ordered me in an aggressive tone. “Kristin is completely exaggerating everything because it was just a quick punishment, not a kidnapping.”
Before I could physically throw him out, Kristin woke up thrashing and screaming from her bed.
“Please do not kick me again! I promise I will cook whatever you want! Just do not lock me in the dark!”
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I ran into the hospital room to comfort her. When she finally recognized my face, she clung tightly to my shirt and sobbed uncontrollably as she revealed the entire horror. Zachary had slapped her across the face simply because she felt too sick to cook. My mother grabbed her by her hair, and when Kristin tried to shield her pregnant stomach, my brother kicked her hard to the ground before they both dragged her out to the dark shed.
The absolute worst part was that Zachary had returned to the backyard twice over those three days. He heard her frantic pleas for help from the other side of the door and actively chose to walk away without opening it.
