My mother whipped around to face the doctor. "See? I told you she has problems. She calls every man she sees her husband."
"Doctor, please just do it. The further along she gets, the harder it'll be."
Hesitation flickered across the doctor's face. I seized the moment and bolted for the door. "Marlene!"
"Sylvia!" Cornelius lunged and grabbed my sleeve.
I wrenched free and kept running.
I was almost at the entrance when my foot caught on something. My balance vanished. I hit the floor hard, stomach first.
A searing pain ripped upward from my abdomen.
My mind went blank. Nothing but white noise.
Then warmth. A slow, spreading warmth soaking through my pants.
I panicked.
Marlene was already at my side, crouching down. "Mrs. Henson?!"
"Get me to Asclepius." I clenched my teeth. My voice shook. "Find Rhys. Now."
My mother snapped out of it and rushed over. "Don't listen to her! She doesn't know what she's saying..."
Marlene didn't even look at her. She was already lifting me up. "You're losing a lot of blood. I'm taking you to Asclepius right now."
My mother gritted her teeth and followed us out the clinic door. "I'm her mother! I'm going with her!"