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Wow, people. I am blown away by the response that I got on the last chapter. It gave me the push that I needed to get to editing (which I am so close to being completely done with). If you guys can keep that up, then I'll post THREE chapters every week instead of two. (Sure, that means that the story will end "sooner", but we all know that it has to end sometime, right?) Let me know after this chapter if that's something you'd be interested in. I'm thinking… if I get eight reviews on each chapter, then I'll go ahead and post the next one. Up to three a week, anyway. That would still give this story a couple of weeks.
Disclaimer (because I haven't done one in a while): I only use the characters from Hawaii Five-O, and I completely disregard the timeline of the show. All of the OCs are of my own creation. I think you all get it by now, but just a reminder.
As always… thank you so much to each and every one of you that have read, reviewed, favorited, followed, and private messaged. I appreciate you all so very, very much. You are the reason that I continue to write.
Happy Reading!
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Chapter Twenty-One: It's A…
Allie
As soon as I opened my eyes, my entire body felt wired, as if I had somehow consumed ten cans of Red Bull while I slept. I had been dreaming about it for the last few days and I was beyond ready.
Ready to find out the gender of my baby.
As I showered, I thought about all of the "midwives' tales" that I'd read about. Like craving sweets meant that you're having a girl, whereas craving salty or sour meant a boy. A fast heartbeat meant a girl and a slow heartbeat meant a boy. Of course, there wasn't actually a scientific basis for these claims, but some people online absolutely swore by them.
So… I'd wasted the entire evening before going through some to see if I could predict the gender.
Morning sickness? YES. Which meant girl.
Heartburn? Only a little. Which meant boy.
Headaches? Yes (though who knew if that was from pregnancy or Medici). Which meant boy.
Sleep on… My right side. Which meant girl.
Baby's heartbeat was just over 140. Which meant girl.
Craving salty or sweet? Both, really. So, that one didn't help at all.
Happy or moody? Moody, but it was hard to be happy when you were being forced to work on a heist.
Skin soft or dry? Dry. Definitely dry. Which meant boy.
Chinese calendar said girl.
Mayan calendar said boy.
All in all, it was a toss-up. And none of those things had even been proven to be one hundred percent effective at predicting the gender. But, a lot of people online had said that they just had a "feeling" that their baby was going to be a boy or a girl. A lot of them had been right, and they chalked it up to "maternal instinct". Mine must have been broken, though, because I didn't feel anything that pointed me one way or another.
I was just going to have to wait until the ultrasound technician told me.
I fumbled with my clothes as I got dressed because of all of the nervous energy in my body. I was so excited to find out the gender of my baby, of course, but… there was a little something on the side that I had to worry about as well.
One of Medici's men – Alexi, I thought his name was – waited for me just outside of my suite, his face like stone. I greeted him, but he said nothing as he began to lead the way down the hall. Even that couldn't dampen my mood, though. Sure, the heist was tomorrow and mine and Trent's lives would be at stake, but I had decided to set that aside for now and just focus on the appointment. There would be plenty of time to worry later.
The ride to the doctor's office seemed to take forever, as did the walk inside, even though we'd gotten a parking space pretty close to the entrance. Finally, I was checking in and then finding a seat to wait for the ultrasound tech to call me back. Alexi grabbed some men's magazine and began to flip through the pages much too quickly to actually be reading the articles. I knew that he was busy keeping an eye out for anything suspicious, and that made me just a touch nervous.
"Allie?" A woman that I hadn't seen before stood at the entrance to the office, smiling at me. She was young – even younger than me, I thought – with blonde hair pulled up in a tight bun. She wore pink scrubs that put the finishing touch on her "full of sunshine" appearance.
I stood and made my way over to the ultrasound tech, glad that I hadn't had to wait long but also nervous about what was to come.
I needn't have worried, though.
As we made it to the end of the hall (heading for the door with the 'ultrasound room' sign above it), Imran came towards us, dressed in blue scrubs and looking harried. He spoke to the tech in a rush, flashing an apologetic, albeit charming, smile. "Sorry, sorry. Do you know where Dr. Dubois is? I was sent over from the hospital to collect some of his personal notes on a patient and they sent me back here, but… I got a little turned around."
Miss Sunshine smiled kindly at him and pointed down the hall to the left. "Just follow that all the way to the end, curve to the left, and it's the first door on your right."
He looked relieved. "Thank you, thank you so much." And as he moved to pass us, he bumped into me. "Oh, sorry. I'm sorry!" He caught me around the waist and made sure that I was steady on my feet. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," I assured him.
"Great. Sorry again." He flashed us one more smile and then disappeared down the hall.
The tech opened the door, none the wiser, and gestured for me to precede her inside. "Right in here."
I entered the room and, once the door was closed, felt in my back pocket.
The phone was there.
As she moved for the rolling stool beside the ultrasound machine, I said, "I was wondering if it was okay if I video called the baby's father? He had to work today and couldn't make it."
Sympathy flashed in her eyes. "Oh, of course! I don't mind at all."
"Great." I typed Steve's number and then made the call.
Several rings later (and just when I had started to think that he wouldn't answer me at all), he answered. His expression was wary, but when he saw me, his face lit up. "Allie! How did you-"
I cut him off before he could say anything suspicious in front of the tech. "Hey, honey! I'm here at the doctor's office for my ultrasound. She said it was totally fine to video chat with you so that you could watch, since you couldn't leave work. Are you available?"
"Yes!" he said eagerly, and I could see him sitting down on the bed in his room. My room, if I recalled correctly. "Uh, go ahead and get started, I guess."
I sat down on the padded chair/exam table and lifted my shirt up so that the tech could put a towel in the waistband of my jeans to protect them from the gel. As she did, I spoke to Steve. "I'll have the phone facing the screen so that you can see everything." And also, so that the tech couldn't see that he was actually in bed and not in an office.
"And I'll explain everything out loud," the tech added.
"Sounds great."
I turned the phone toward the screen, and the tech began. She started with the head, where she said that everything in the brain looked normal. We got to see the face for a few moments, and she assured us that she was printing out pictures as she went so that we could remember it forever.
Then, she moved down to the heart. We got to hear the heartbeat, which came in at one hundred and sixty-five beats per minute. There was a lot to check there, apparently, because she spent about five to ten minutes there checking everything out and measuring. My own heart was hammering the whole time, because I was so anxious to find out the gender of the baby. I knew that Steve was, as well, and I was amazed that he hadn't told her to hurry up yet. Then again… this was the first time that he was seeing his baby in real time. Previously, he'd only seen the picture I'd given him. That was a great reminder for me to be patient and let him enjoy it.
"Okay," the tech said as she finished up the last measurement for the heart. "Are you guys wanting to know the gender, or-"
"Yes," Steve and I said at the same time, effectively cutting off her question.
She laughed. "Well, okay, then. Let's find out that gender. Do either of you have any guesses, before I tell you?"
"I'm gonna guess that it's a girl," Steve said.
I thought for a few moments. "Boy," I decided.
"Okay," the tech said and moved the wand over my stomach. "Let's see who's right."
I involuntarily held my breath, and I knew that Steve was doing the same.
It was the moment we'd both been waiting a while for.
"It's a boy," the tech announced.
I felt like I wanted to cry.
"A boy?" Steve repeated. "We… we have a son?"
"A son," the tech confirmed with a smile as she moved on to do the rest of the exam. "Do you guys have any big gender reveal plans? I know that's kind of the thing now."
"No plans," I said. "But… I think it would be fun to tell everyone together."
"Yeah," Steve agreed with me. "We'll tell them once we get everyone together." Once this heist is over with and Medici is rotting in jail.
The rest of the exam flew by, and once it was done, the tech told me that I could go into the small bathroom off to the side to finish wiping off the gel. I thanked her and locked myself in the small bathroom.
Steve was smiling at me when I turned the phone around. "A boy, huh?"
"A boy." I smiled. "We'll have to start thinking about names."
"Just so you know, I'd really like it if I could keep 'Steven' running in my family. Maybe as the middle name?"
"I like that," I agreed.
Expression more serious, he asked me, "How did you pull this off, by the way?"
"Trade secret." I winked at him. "You won't be able to call or text me on this phone again, though. I have to get rid of it. Medici's men search me after every doctor's visit now."
Steve's face reddened in anger. "This all can't be over soon enough."
"Tomorrow." Sighing, I smiled sadly at him. "I have to go."
Reluctantly, he nodded. "Okay. Stay safe. I love you. Both of you."
"We love you, too." It was so hard to end the call and toss the phone in the trash, but I knew that it was what had to be done.
Steve and I would be together again soon enough.
Alexi checked me once we got to the car, but of course, he didn't find anything on me. Once he was satisfied, we hopped in the car and headed back to the hotel. And though the circumstances were very serious, I couldn't stop the smile that broke out across my face.
In May, Steve and I were going to have a baby boy.
A perfect baby boy.
The following morning, I woke up in a bit of a daze. I'd slept well and had wonderful dreams, so the fact that it was heist day hit me like a bolt of lightning, stealing my breath away. I had been waiting for what felt like forever (even though it had only been weeks), and I all at once felt so ready and not ready at all.
But, ready or not…
I climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom to wash my face and start my morning skincare routine. Medici had – at my request – hired people to come and do my hair, makeup, and nails. I needed to look just like a member of the high society so as to blend in, so he'd been happy to splurge for me.
And… a little pampering never hurt anyone.
The dinner didn't start until five, but I needed to be there early for cocktails (mocktails, for me) and to mingle. The more the guests liked me, the less suspicious they would find me. And I could be very charming when I wanted or needed to be. And this time, it was both.
Once I'd finished in the bathroom, I went out into the kitchen and found that Medici had ordered my favorites from the bakery around the corner. They sat waiting for me on the small table along with a handwritten note.
Good luck today. I have every faith in you.
I rolled my eyes, tossed the note into the nearby trashcan, and sat down to eat my breakfast. Whether or not anyone believed in me, I was going to get this done. And then go home to get married and have my first baby.
Eyes on the prize, Allie… eyes on the prize.
Nothing – nothing – was going to get in my way.
Steve
I really didn't want to answer my phone, but I knew that all Danny wanted was an update. Sighing, I pushed the talk button and pressed the phone to my ear, going back to the task at hand with my free arm. "Hey, Danny."
"Hey, Steve," he returned. "Chin and Kono are here with me. You're on speaker."
"We just wanted to wish you luck today," Kono chipped in. "Is everything ready for the heist?"
"I think so. We have our people still out looking for Trent, but it's looking like we're out of luck and Allie will just have to go through with it. But I think we're ready." I finished cleaning my gun and cocked it. Smiled at the smoothness of the motion. "Definitely ready."
Chin laughed as Danny exclaimed, "Did you just cock a gun? What are you planning to do, Punisher, shoot your way into the museum and demand that they give you the box?"
I rolled my eyes, but our familiar banter helped to relax me. "Maybe. Got a problem with that?"
"I do, actually. I'd prefer that you come back to Hawaii and head up this task force like you're supposed to do. You can't very well do that while sitting in a French prison, can you?"
"I don't know, maybe." I slid the gun into its place on my belt, hidden by the unbuttoned navy shirt that I wore over a relaxed gray tee. Allie was going to have to dress up to go to the fancy party, but I didn't need to wear a tux to sit in the car as emergency backup. Thank goodness for that; I'd rather wear full SEAL gear than a tuxedo any day of the week.
"When will you be coming home after all of this is over?" Chin asked me, likely because Danny had opened his mouth to argue some more. Danny never knew when to give it up.
Oddly enough, I hadn't thought a lot about our timeline once Allie and Trent were away from Medici. Part of me hadn't wanted to so that my hopes wouldn't be crushed if something went wrong. But, now that we were so close to the end of this thing… I dared to dream. "Hopefully after a few days. Or, maybe Allie will want out of Paris as soon as possible. Either way, it'll be up to her."
"Make sure to have her call us as soon as she's up to it," Kono said. "And are you sure you don't want us to get an emergency flight out?"
"Best not to," I said, though I wanted them there with me more than almost anything. "Now that it's time for the heist, Medici will be keeping a closer than ever eye on everything. If he finds out that you're in Paris… it's just not worth the risk."
"Copy," Chin told me. "But send us a text as soon as Allie is safe. And then have her call when she's up to it, like Kono said. We can't wait to hear her voice again. We miss her."
"And you, I guess," Danny added. "So, if you could both come back in one piece, that would be… well… that would be great, I guess."
Fighting a smile, I said, "Yeah, I'm sure it would. I'll let you guys know as soon as I know anything, okay? Day or night. Promise."
"Good." Kono was the first to bid farewell. "Good luck today, boss."
"Yeah," Chin agreed. "We'll talk to you later."
"We'll be waiting to hear." Danny was the last one to speak. "So, don't keep us waiting."
"I'll try not to."
"Well…" He sighed. "Good luck."
"Thanks." I hung up the phone and set it on the counter before staring at my reflection in the mirror.
I'd let a bit of a shadow grow along my jaw and up into my sideburns, but I'd tried to make sure that it was neat. There were slight dark circles beneath my eyes, hinting at the torture I had experienced in being kept away from Allie all this time. But in my eyes… I saw the same determination that I'd seen there before each of my SEAL missions.
I was not going to let Allie and our baby down.
Satisfied that I was prepped, I went back out into my room and decided to clean up a bit since, in a matter of hours rather than days, Allie would be joining me there. I wanted everything to be perfect for our reunion, and that included a clean room.
Minutes later, room cleaned, I headed down the stairs to join the others in the living room, which had become sort of the command post. Computers were set up to display information on the TVs that hung on the walls, and they'd gotten very crafty with the seating arrangements.
People were already milling about and calling out to each other, since we were close to time to go.
"Steve!" Kol waved me over to the center of the room where he stood with a man that I could have sworn I'd seen before.
Recognizing the confusion on my face, the tall man with dark curly hair reached out to shake my hand. "Jason Stark. We never officially met, but I helped out with Allie's first case with your task force."
"The art forger," I realized.
He nodded. "One and the same. What do you think?" He gestured to the coffee table, where his newest masterpiece shined proudly.
I knelt down to examine it and laughed in wonder. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that this is the real box. How long did it take you to do this?"
"It was a rush order," he teased Kol. "Stayed up for almost forty-eight hours straight to get it done."
"Don't lie." Kol rolled his eyes and nudged Jason. "You took naps while it was baking."
"I did take a few naps," Jason admitted.
"I don't care how many naps you took." I straightened and reached out to shake his hand one more time. "I just want to say thank you for pulling this off for us. If I can ever do anything to repay you, just say the word."
He held up a hand and shook his head. "Thanks, but not necessary. Allie pulled my chestnuts out of the fire more times than I can even count. Doing this doesn't account for even half of the favors that I owe her."
Kol snickered. "You've got that right. Remember that one time in Morocco? Allie had to-"
But Kol was cut off when Edward called out to everyone from the doorway that led into the entryway. "May I please have everyone's attention?"
All talking ceased immediately and everyone turned to face him. I felt my heart pounding as I looked at my watch and realized that it was go time. I had been waiting for this for far too long.
Edward glanced around the room and, once certain that he had everyone's full attention, nodded very seriously.
"It is time."
