Chapter 4

Macey woke with a sudden urge to pee. With a grunt, she pushed herself out of bed, struggling with her rather large stomach. She gently stroked it. It had been months since the doctor told her she was not having just one baby but two.

Twins. It still didn’t seem real despite her expanding middle. Twins, actual twins.

She eased out of bed and retreated to the bathroom to relieve herself. Once she was comfortable again, she moved to the living room and sat on the sofa. She was grateful for the large cushions. Her back and feet constantly ached. Now, it seemed the twins had settled permanently on her bladder. That was something no one warned her about.

She inhaled deeply as her body tensed. For the past couple of weeks she had been having minor contractions. Her doctor explained it was her body’s way of preparing for labor and to not be alarmed by them. The moment passed. She winced as a wave of heartburn came next. It seemed she was always fending off one or the other. Macey grimaced, pushing herself up to retrieve a glass of water from the kitchen.

As she moved she felt something shift. Suddenly, her water broke and her fluid started leaking. She froze in a moment of disbelief, but another contraction brought her back to reality just as someone knocked on her door.

“Ah…yes?”

“Macey, it’s me,” Victoria’s voice answered.

A wave of relief washed over her, “Vicki, come in. The door is open.”

“Hey girl, you’ll never believe what I found.”

“Umm, Vicki…”

“I was walking and happen to spy this shop…”

“Victoria!”

“What?” Victoria looked up. “What’s up?”

“I think I’ve just gone into labor.”

“…What?”

“Vicki, I’m in labor.” Macey tried to hold back a laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation. “I need to go to the hospital.”

“C’est pas vrai!” Victoria stared at her, slowly processing what she had said. “Don’t panic. Everything is under control! First thing is…”[1]

Macey couldn’t help but laugh. Wasn’t it her job to panic? For someone who was always so put together, it was surprisingly easy to throw Victoria for a loop.

“Victoria! First, call the hospital and let them know we are on our way. Then call a cab to get us there. Then call my father-in-law, or ex-father-in-law, to let him know.” Macey sighed. “He wanted to be there and I did promise him.”

“Right.” Victoria paused to take a deep breath before taking out her phone. “I’ll call the hospital and the cab. You can take the father-in-law. I honestly don’t know what to say to him.”

Macey chuckled as Victoria handed her the cell phone sitting just out of her reach. Breathing deeply through another contraction, Macey stared at the phone. Though she had tossed her old phone away, Augustus hadn’t hesitated to purchase her a replacement. This one she was certain was on his private phone plan and the number only known by him, aside from the friends she made since starting her studies. However, the first number in her contacts was still Augustus.

Hitting the call button, she leaned back, listening to Victoria curse in French and shook her head. Macey wasn’t sure she even wanted to know the reason why. She doubted Victoria would be unloading her frustration onto hospital staff. She guessed it had something to do with the cab.

“You have reached Mister DaLair’s office. He is unavailable right now,” Stephen’s voice answered.

“Stephen, it’s me,” Macey said, knowing he never set the phone on speaker, so there was little chance of being overheard regardless of where he was.

There was a pause. She was certain she heard a door close before he finally answered, “Miss Macey?”

“Did I call at a bad time?”

“Not at all. They are merely in the middle of a board meeting.”

“Oh.” Macey opened her mouth, but snapped it closed.

She almost asked how Julius was doing and had to suppress the urge before she could speak again. That wasn’t her world anymore and he wasn’t her concern. It had almost been a year. Her marriage was over and he had moved on. No doubt, he had a new woman on his arm the moment the divorce papers were filed. Maybe he had already proposed. They could be planning their wedding even as she sat there with her labor pains. Tears blurred her vision as she thought about it.

“Miss Macey?” Stephen prompted when she didn’t reply. “Is everything all right?”

“Yes. Sorry. I’m calling because dad wanted to know when I went into labor. Well, I am. In labor.”

“Are you all right? Are you alone? Do you need me to make calls for you? Arrange transportation?”

“No. It’s fine. Vicki is here. She’s calling the hospital and a cab is on the way. We’ll be heading to the hospital shortly.”

“Understood. I’ll arrange transportation for Mister DaLair. He’ll be there as soon as he is able.”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that. I mean…”

“Mister DaLair insists. I will let you know his ETA as soon as I confirm it.”

“…Okay.”

“Come on Macey. We got to go.” Victoria said, hauling the prepared duffle bag out of the entry closet where it had been stashed for the last two months. Though Victoria might have momentarily panicked, she was once again in control.

“Right. Um. Help?”

“Coming, ma moitié.” Victoria hurried to the couch to help Macey stand and supported her as she waddled to the door.[2]

She helped Macey into a coat before slinging the duffle over her own shoulder and escorting Macey out. Locking up the apartment, Victoria hurried Macey to the elevator. It was slow-going, but there was no rushing a pregnant woman carrying twins.

* * *

Stephen immediately called the airport to get clearance for the DaLair’s private jet. It took some negotiation, but he managed to secure takeoff within the hour provided his employer could make it to the airport. He didn’t imagine it would be difficult. If there was one thing Augustus DaLair refused to miss, it was the birth of his grandchildren. Labor was bound to take a while, but it was a six-hour flight, so there wasn’t a moment to lose.

After confirming the flight details, he returned to the board meeting. It was progressing as slowly as when he left. Augustus presided over it though it was the board members who did most of the talking. On one side, March sat feigning interest, though he was sharp enough to discern the important points buried in the mundane details.

On the other side, Julius slumped in his seat, his forehead resting on the table in front of him. One didn’t need to be near him to smell liquor. His clothing was disheveled and there was no telling exactly when he last shaved or showered. In fact, March had to practically break down his door and drag him to work to even make it to the board meeting, which was mandatory for DaLair family members. Anything short of a terminal illness was not a valid excuse for missing.

March had done his best to make him look presentable, but there wasn’t much he could do about his brother’s recovery from his latest drinking binge. A glass of water with a quickly dissolving tablet of Alka-Seltzer™ sat untouched beside Julius. It wasn’t clear he was even awake.

Stephen walked past the inert Julius to return to Augustus’s side. He leaned close to his employer and whispered low in his ear, “Sir, it’s time. I made travel arrangements, as agreed.”

Augustus suddenly straightened at the whispered words. He glanced at his youngest son, fighting the urge to tell him the truth. Over the past several months, Julius’s search for Macey had only become more desperate. In fact, he heard Julius was looking into hospitals, which could only mean Julius somehow learned Macey was pregnant. It wasn’t a wonder then Julius’s drinking had gotten more drastic as the birth approached. Yet, his son didn’t know the whole truth. Macey was having twins.

Augustus clenched his fists, wanting nothing more than to drag his son out of the room by his hair and shove him on that plane, but he couldn’t do that to Macey. He promised to keep her secret and help her leave her old life behind. She didn’t want Julius there. Any added stress at this time would be detrimental to the mother and the babies.

As much as he wanted to drag Julius there by the ears, he wouldn’t risk the lives of his grandchildren or their mother. Julius’s comeuppance would come, but it would come later: when Macey was ready to face him on her own terms. That was a day Augustus couldn’t wait to see.

“Very interesting, gentlemen,” Augustus said, interrupting the progress report on their latest acquisition. “So, I am to understand that everything is going as planned and there are no issues needing attention? Yes? Good. Then meeting adjourned.”

“Ah, dad?” March stared as his father stood. Not that he wasn’t ready to end the meeting as well, but it was out of character for his father to do so. Augustus never ended meetings early.

“Something important just came up. I’ll be leaving now. Good work everyone,” Augustus said as Stephen moved ahead of him and opened the door. “March, take your brother home. Next time, I want him awake and sober.”

“Yeah, dad.” March rubbed his temples, looking at the shell that was once his brother. He stood and circled the table. “Come one, Jules. Let’s get you home. Work day is over.”

Julius muttered groggily as his brother pulled him to his feet. Though he looked asleep, he was surprisingly aware. How could he sleep when Macey was out there? Their baby would soon make its entrance into the world and he still hadn’t found them. There had to be a way.

Macey was too responsible to neglect her own care, let alone her baby. She wouldn’t shun hospitals to simply avoid him. No. She would be certain to make every appointment to ensure the baby’s health.

Yet, she hadn’t appeared at any hospital since she confirmed her pregnancy. That could only mean she either left town or was seeing a private doctor. A private doctor was out. There were no charges on their joint charge cards and she had left them all behind anyway. But it also didn’t make sense she had left town.

Since she left all her charge cards behind her only funds would be the cash in her wallet. He wasn’t sure how much she had on hand, but he couldn’t imagine it was more than a hundred dollars or so. That much wouldn’t take her very far. Where would she go?

“Damn it, Macey. Where are you?”

“I know,” March sighed as he half-walked, half-carried his brother to the elevator. “I wish I knew where she went too.”

Somehow, they made it to the parking garage where March pushed him into his Subaru. Julius groaned as he collapsed across the back seat. He raised his hand to stare at the wedding band he still wore. It glinted as if laughing at him.

Macey, where did you go?

Are you and the baby safe?

* * *

“Here we go,” Victoria escorted Macey down the steps to the sidewalk where their cab waited.

The cab driver impatiently tapped the steering wheel as Victoria carefully helped Macey inside before climbing in herself. Once she was certain Macey was comfortable, she said, “Hôpital de Paris and step on it.”[3]

“We’d already be there if you women didn’t take so long.” The driver complained, but put the car in drive and pulled onto the street in a jerky motion that made both of them rock violently in the back.

“Imbécile,” Victoria muttered. “We’d like to get there in one piece.”

“You said step on it, mademoiselle.”

“Well, unless you want these babies shooting out of her, I suggest you make it a smooth ride!” Victoria snapped.

“Hein?” he glanced over his shoulder, the color suddenly draining from his face. “She’s having a baby? Right now?”[4]

“Yes!”

“La vache!” he stepped on the accelerator, honking as he weaved through the traffic.[5]

Macey clutched the door handle to keep herself from being tossed around in the cab as she tried to keep her breathing even and calm. She eyed her phone in an attempt to time her contractions, but the jerky motion of the cab ride made it more difficult to tell contraction from inertia.

The cab came to a screeching stop in front of the hospital. The driver tumbled out in his rush to get to her door. Victoria was almost as quick. She came around the vehicle armed with her handbag, beating him on the head as Macey slowly pulled herself out of the cab.

“Roi des cons! Tu as le QI d’une huitre! Tête de noeud!” Victoria exclaimed with each successful hit.[6]

“Vicki,” Macey sighed as she leaned against the cab for support. “Vicki! I need you!”