Chapter Four
On the last day of his vacation, Oscar took Jaime to her appointment with Rudy, and was by her side to see the images on the ultrasound screen.
"You're a little further along than I thought, Honey," Rudy observed. "I'd put you at just over two months."
"Is that bad?" Jaime asked nervously. "Does that mean he's too small?"
"She," Oscar said.
Rudy smiled. "No - everything looks just fine. On the small side of normal, but nothing to worry about." He attached a blood pressure cuff to Jaime's left arm. He took the reading, turned to Oscar, and motioned with his eyes toward the door. "Honey," he said to Jaime, "Linda will help you get that gel off and get dressed, and then you can meet us in my office. Ok?"
Jaime nodded. Linda had seen the look Rudy had given Oscar, and she'd worked with him long enough to know she should take her time, stall as much as possible, to give Rudy and Oscar time to talk.
Once they were in the office with the door closed, Oscar let the worry show on his face. "What's wrong, Rudy? Is it bad? Do I need to sit down?"
"Yes." Both men sat, and Rudy got right to the point. "By itself, the fact that the embyro is small is nothing to worry about. But...Jaime's blood pressure is dangerously high. To have that show up this early in a pregnancy is an urgent red flag."
"Are you saying she'll lose the baby?"
"Not necessarily. But we need to keep her stress level as low as possible. That, plus medication, extra sleep and as much time off her feet as she'll tolerate...hopefully will do the trick."
"I'm supposed to go back to work tomorrow," Oscar told him. "I'll go in for a couple hours in the morning and arrange for Russ and Jim to cover things for awhile so I can take a leave of absence."
"The last thing I ever thought I'd hear you say, Oscar, but that would be ideal."
"Jaime's the only part of my life that really matters...Jaime - and the baby."
Rudy nodded agreement. "Now this is ultimately your decision, but I don't advise telling her that she's at such a high risk. I can have our pharmacy blend the new medication into her vitamins, and simply tell her I've changed the dosage. The goal is to eliminate stress, not add more."
"Rudy, I'll go with whatever you think is best. I just want to keep both of them healthy and safe."
On the drive home, Jaime took a look at her news pills and began to complain. "Oscar, did you see these? Freakin' horse pills! And they reek!"
"Reeking horse pills that you'll be taking every day, for our daughter."
"Our son. And I'm gonna take 'em. Just had to vent a little."
Oscar drove up the long, private driveway, got out to open his wife's door and helped her from the car. "I love you so much," he said softly. He swept her into his arms for a deep, passionate kiss as his emotions overwhelmed him. They never noticed two pairs of eyes watching them from far back in the trees, like two cobras waiting for the perfect chance to strike.
