~*~Chapter Seven~*~
After the sex, Roman was quiet. He was sitting in his car, puffing on a cigarette. Peter sat next to him, staring up at the sky. It was late, and he had to get back to Miranda. She was probably worried.
"Roman, are you going to be okay?" Peter asked.
Roman shrugged.
"You know, man, you gotta get back to Letha. You need to work things out with her. Tell her you're sorry."
Roman threw his cigarette out the window and turned to stare at Peter. His face was completely expressionless, then suddenly he smiled.
"Thank you," he said softly.
He pulled Peter to him again and he kissed him. "You always understand," Roman said when he ended the kiss. No one understood like Peter. He was one in a million.
~*~0~*~
Letha had managed to put Cassandra to bed. She had been awake since then, still feeling upset. She was really stressing out. She tried to focus on being a mother. She climbed the stairs to check on Cassandra. When she reached her daughter's bedroom, she pulled the door open.
Standing above Cassandra's bed was the silhouette of a man. He had large wings which spanned the entire length of Cassandra's bed. She couldn't even see her daughter, whom was behind those wings.
Letha let out a scream seeing it was the form of an angel. He turned to look at her and she could see him clearly. He had dark hair and broad shoulders. He looked like a giant compared to Cassandra.
The first thing that came to mind was the night Letha saw her own angel - the night Cassandra had been conceived. Letha knew now that it was Roman who came to her that night in the guise of an angel. She had only been seventeen. She had conceived a child that night, her beloved Cassandra.
Then winged-being turned his head. Letha's eyes met his, and before she could speak, he disappeared. There was an empty space where he had been standing. She was shaking and trembling. Who was this angel? What did he want with her little girl?!
Letha checked to make sure that Cassandra was sleeping. Realizing that her daughter was fine, Letha covered her with the blanket. After a few minutes, she headed downstairs to the kitchen, still shaken up. She started boiling some water to make tea.
~*~0~*~
After leaving Roman, Peter drove away in his truck. Roman, too, had left in his own vehicle. It was time to go back to Miranda. Peter wondered if she was sleeping and if she would understand why he had to go.
Roman made the drive back to his home. He pulled in front of the house and remained inside his car. He hesitated, not wanting to get out. The need to see Letha and hold her was strong, but he was still hurting. He had to find the words to make everything up to her.
Finally, he left the vehicle and closed the door. It was pitch dark as he walked up to the house. He stood up straight as he forced himself to go inside. He could do this. He would make amends with Letha. He wanted to make everything right in their world.
~*~0~*~
It was after visiting hours when Peter sneaked into the hospital. He made his way down several dimly-lit corridors until he came to Miranda's room. Very quietly, he slipped in and stood over her bed. Nothing could prepare him for what would happen next.
"We need to take the baby to the nursery now," a nurse said as she took the baby boy. "I-." She reached out, wanting to hold her baby longer. "Why can't he stay here with me please?" She had a bad feeling that she shouldn't be parting with her son. "Hospital rules, honey," the nurse said with a sickening-sweet smile. "Get some sleep. There is something on the bedside table to help you rest." "No, thank you," she said as she watched the nurse taking the baby away. She felt sad, but she knew they'd bring him back to her in the morning. She turned over to go to sleep as the nurse was leaving.
Miranda's body tossed in the small hospital bed roughly. Her arms were flailing as if she was trying to go after something or reach for something.
"My baby," she whimpered.
In the nursery, the nurse was laying the baby in an isolette. She turned to glance over her shoulder as the door to the nursery slid open and a tall gentleman walked in. "Did she take it?" he asked. The nurse picked up the newborn boy swaddled in a pale blue blanket. She handed the infant to the man. "She refused the pill. You better move fast before she wakes up and realizes that the baby is not here. If she hears you..." "She won't hear me," he snapped with annoyance. He snatched the infant away from her so abruptly that child started howling in fright. Quickly, the man turned to flee the nursery while holding the screaming baby in his arms.
Miranda shot up in bed. A scream that could have shattered glass tore through her throat. She was still screaming as she attempted to leave her hospital bed. She got caught up in the sheets while falling out of bed.
"Miranda. Miranda!" Peter said as he rushed to her side. He lifted her carefully, laying her back down gently on the bed.
"What's wrong? Why are you screaming? What happened?" Peter asked in confusion.
She was trembling as she reached out to clutch Peter's arm. "He wants the baby... he's going to take Nic," she sobbed. "He's not gone; I can feel it."
Her body wouldn't stop shaking as hot tears slid down her cheeks. "We have to leave. We have to stay safe. He's here in the hospital. He's waiting for the nurse to take the baby. She's going to leave a sedative for me. Don't let them force me to take it," she begged. "Please. If I take it; I'll be knocked out and then they can take the baby. The nurse is going to give him the baby and tell him to leave before I realize that he's gone. Nic... I need him. Where is he?!"
Miranda panicked as she tried to jump off the bed again. "Peter... the baby; we have to get to him first!" she cried.
Peter stared at Miranda in shock. "Who? Who wants the baby?" he asked as he held Miranda back down on the bed. "Miranda, what are you talking about?" He was confused. He started looking around the room for the baby. Had something happened to their son?
"I couldn't see faces, but he's coming for Nic. Please, we have to do something," she begged tearfully. "Peter, we have to keep him from taking our son."
"Ohhh honey, it was just a bad dream," Peter said as he held Miranda and kissed her. "I can go to the nursery and get our son. He's alright. I am sure of it. Do you want me to go and get him for you?"
"I heard them," she told Peter. "They were talking and Nic was screaming. "Yes, please go find him." She would only feel better once their son was back in her arms.
"Okay, don't worry," Peter said as he gave her a soothing kiss. "I will be right back."
He headed toward the nursery to get his son. When he got there, he found Nic sleeping peacefully in his isolette. "Excuse me," he said to the nurse. "My wife is upset and missing the baby. She'd like our son to stay with us in our room tonight."
The nurse agreed and said she'd bring baby Nic to Miranda's hospital room right away. Peter left to return to Miranda's side. "Nic is fine," he reassured her. "The nurse said she's bringing him right down." Tenderly, he wiped away Miranda's tears.
Miranda still wasn't convinced and wouldn't be until she had Nic back in her room with her. "Thank you for going to find him," she said as she reached for Peter's hand. "I promise I heard them." She hoped that he knew she wasn't just making this up; she had heard two voices and her son crying. She had heard all the things they had said.
Peter brought Miranda's hand up to his lips, softly kissing it. "It's okay, Miranda. You've had a rough night. Hell, you have had a rough two days. You were in labor a long time. You've got to be exhausted. I'm sorry I left."
She frowned. "Why did you leave?" she asked softly as he held her hand.
"Roman and Letha had a big fight. She was crying. I had to go find Roman and talk some sense into him. He was acting crazy," Peter stated. "Everything will be okay. They are just hitting a rough spot right now. You don't need to worry."
As Peter spoke, the nurse came in, holding little Nicolai. Tenderly, she placed the dark-haired baby in his mommy's arms.
Miranda looked at the nurse's face... It was a different nurse, but that didn't mean that what she had seen and heard earlier wasn't real. "Thank you," she said as she cradled her son in her arms.
Peter looked at his precious son. The baby was sleeping peacefully in Miranda's embrace. They looked so amazing together. He couldn't wait to get Miranda and their baby boy home. They were going to be a family now.
The nurse smiled. "You're welcome," she said before leaving the room.
Miranda began to calm as she held Nicolai in her arms. "Thank you, Peter," she said softly. "For always knowing what I need." He knew her so well. In the four years they had been married, he always knew what made her happy. He knew how to comfort her whenever she got upset. Very seldom did he do anything to make her angry. Their agreement still held when it came to Roman. He always came back to her at the end of the day. She had learned to live with his sometimes abrupt departures. It wasn't easy, but it was their lives.
"Do you mind if I snuggle in bed with you and Nic?" Peter asked. He really wanted to hold Miranda in his arms. He had missed her and their baby boy while they'd been apart.
Miranda couldn't help the smile that lit up her face. "I don't mind at all," she told him as she moved over carefully, giving Peter room to snuggle with her and the baby. She wanted nothing more than to have his arms around her, holding her close.
Peter lay down in the hospital bed with Miranda. She snuggled her in his arms as they fell asleep together, holding baby Nicolai.
