CHAPTER FIVE

For a moment, the world came to a halt. Elise lunged to the child’s side, she dropped to her knees and scooped the little child into her embrace. Panic and urgency filled her eyes as she rocked the child gently. 

“Evie… Evie, baby… can you answer mummy? Baby… can you please look at mummy?” Elise’s trembling hands cupped the child’s little face. Yet, there was no response from the child. Her eyes remained shut and her small body remained still in her mother’s embrace. 

Tears welled in Elise's eyes, “Baby, no…” her voice broke in a small helpless whisper.

Her head shot up with urgency, her gaze met with Declan who looked back at her with deep concern. “Please, help me… the hospital” she muttered. 

“Let me,” Declan knelt beside the woman and child; he gently took the child away from her. With swift movement, he carried the child out of the restaurant. Elise hurried after him, her eyes blurring with tears as she watched her child’s head resting limply on the man’s shoulders. For the first time in her life, she felt utterly useless as a mother. 

Seeing Declan approach the car, the driver hurried out holding an umbrella. Although he had no inkling what was happening, he shielded the man and child from the rain and ushered them into the car. 

“Drive to the nearest hospital” the man instructed and the driver ignited the engine immediately and zoomed off into the rain. At that moment, despite not knowing what was going on, the driver dared not concern himself with the possible reasons why a man who was never reckless with his own safety would risk driving through the storm for a child and woman he had only just met. Pushing aside his needless thoughts, he focused on the road ahead. 

Elise’s mind at the moment was filled with concerns of her child, she held the child’s hands in hers and rubbed them gently. She wished the drive may be faster so they can get to the hospital sooner. She simply could not rid her heart of the fears gnawing within. She feared the worst that could possibly happen.

Soon, they arrived at the hospital and the child was brought in. Elise tried getting into the ICU with her daughter only to be restricted at the entrance. 

“It’s my baby in there… I just want to be with her, please…”

“No, ma’am, you can’t go in there for now” the nurses uttered, and before she knew it, she was shut out of the ward. 

Her heart sank as the door shut with a soft thud. Her knees became soft and she crashed to the ground in front of the door. She cupped her face in her palm, and unable to hold back her tears, they poured out. All the frustration that had been accumulating in her chest needed venting. She just could not believe how everything usually took a worst turn for her. Just a while ago, her child was recovering properly from a small fever, now she is lying in the hospital bed, all alone. Having stood alone for so long, Elise finally felt tired. It was as though nothing seemed to be working. She felt like she needed a break, yet dared not take one. 

Ten minutes passed and her tears finally reduced to gentle sobs and finally, sniffling. She felt someone approach her and raised her head slightly. Two shiny leather black shoes appeared before and she glanced at the man staring at her with a hand stretched towards her. 

“Here,” the man uttered. He offered a handkerchief to her. 

“Thank you,” Elise sniffled and accepted the handkerchief. 

“She’s going to be fine,” Declan offered a rare word of encouragement. His eyes narrowed as he glanced at the ICU the little child was brought into. At first, he had suspected the child merely had recurring fever; however, he had seen a number of doctors and nurses come in and out of the ward, carrying some sort of extraordinary medical equipment. He peered into the room at some point and the child was already placed on oxygen.

“Hmm…” Elise nodded, she followed the man’s gaze to the ward again and her heart grew heavier. She could only remain calm with the belief that her child would be fine. 

Soon, the doctors and nurses lined out of the ward. It was only then that Elise was finally allowed into the room. For some reason, Declan followed her closely behind. Elise rushed to the side of the bed, she reached out to touch the child however, seeing her eyes still shut and her delicate body connected to several tubes, her fingers shook and she hesitated. She just could not understand why her daughter ended up in such a vulnerable state. She was fine just a while ago… Elise’s heart hurt even more. Seeing all the tubes connected to the little child, she knew it must have hurt and could only wish the pain was transferred to her.

“How… What exactly happened to my baby?” She asked the only doctor in the room.

“Ma’am, please calm down.” The doctor approached. “It’s a congenital heart defect.”

Elise froze, her knees wobbled and she fell slightly to the side but was thankfully caught on time by the man standing close to her. “What… what did you say?” she stuttered.

“Ventricular septal defect. It happens when there is a hole in the septum between the left and right ventricles. When we examined your daughter, it was discovered that she has a moderate hole within the muscular part of the septum. In most cases, muscular ventricular septal defects, when they are so small, close on their own. However, the defect in your child’s heart is slightly larger than small. Because this hole in her heart is not so small, her body may succumb to sickness faster than it should, leading to loss of consciousness just like this evening. While this sounds very major and heart breaking, I can also assure you that an open-heart surgery may not be needed, as with appropriate monitoring and care, the hole will close on its own. What I am trying to say is that, you may need to watch your child more closely henceforth so as to avoid overload on her heart, her nutrition will also be guided strictly and there will be scheduling of regular echo follow up to track whether the hole is closing on its own.”

Elise felt as though the world was falling on her shoulders when she heard the doctor’s words. She felt very lightheaded, barely able to stand on her own feet. It took her a moment to digest the doctor’s words. It was just so hard for her to accept that her daughter had a serious medical condition. She was already struggling enough to have each day go by, how then can her troubles increase more. She wiped the tear lingering at the corner of her eyes, and looked at the doctor. 

“Will she…” she could not bear to ask the question on the tip of her tongue. 

“She is doing great now. Just the anesthesia waiting to wear out. You can decide to take her home when she wakes up or stay admitted for a few days more. One of you can come with me to get her prescriptions.” 

“I will go with you,” Declan said before the woman could react. He lowered his gaze to look at the woman and said softly. “You should spend more time with her.” With that he walked out of the ward with the doctor.