It Takes a Village
Well, well, well, look who finally posted an update! This isn't the final chapter as promised, though. I put way too much pressure on myself to end this story (and I kinda didn't want to, because it was one of the things that kept me sane during the first lockdown) - this chapter has been sitting in my drafts since early December, but today I realised it could actually work as a penultimate-ish chapter.
Thank you for your patience and all the support you've shown me (and this story) - I hope you like it!
Chapter 25: Baby's on the Way
"The baby's coming."
"Now?" Cassie asked, eyes wide as she searched for her own shoes. Tara's baby shower wasn't until the following day, she hadn't even worked her last day at the Bell, Book, and Candle.
"It sounded like it, but I could be a false alarm…she's still two weeks from her due date."
"Have they called an ambulance?"
"No, Cassie…Tara wants a home birth."
When Sam had told Cassie that he and Tara had discussed her birth plan, she hadn't even thought to ask what they had decided. She had assumed that Tara would want to give birth in a hospital, with all the drugs and doctors she could possibly need just a page away.
"And she asked you to…?"
Sam laughed as he fought with his shoe lace.
"No, only if it's an emergency. She's been assigned a midwife."
"If it's an emergency she should go to the hospital."
Later, at a more appropriate time and place, Sam was prepared to mercilessly tease Cassie for suggesting a hospital over the more natural, timeless option.
They really were rubbing off on each other.
"I'm coming with you," she turned to their children. "Grace, Nick, please stay here. We'll both have our cell phones if you need anything."
"Don't worry about us," Grace replied. "Go and make sure my nephew arrives safely."
Cassie kissed Grace on the cheek before she and Sam dashed out to his SUV.
Tara and Brandon only lived across town, but it seemed to take forever to get to the other side of Middleton. They were both quiet as Sam drove, both lost in their own thoughts.
"Are you getting one of your feelings?" Sam asked after a while.
"Yes, but I can't tell if it's good or bad."
"Tara's midwife is on the way, so we'll just be there to assist, and to keep Tara and Brandon calm."
Cassie took some deep breaths as Sam turned into the street where the Russells lived. She was anxious, but she was hopeful. She couldn't want to meet the newest addition to their family. She just hoped that he had a safe and smooth journey into their lives, for his and Tara's sakes.
Sam pulled the car to a stop in a space outside Tara and Brandon's house, rushing to grab his medical bag from the behind the driver's seat. He was grateful that he had come straight to Cassie's house after work, and hadn't been delayed by having to go back to his house to get his kit.
As soon as they approached the front door, Brandon pulled it open for them. His face was the dictionary definition of anxious, expectant father.
"Brandon, how is she doing?" Cassie gave her stepson a one-armed hug as Sam made his way toward their bedroom.
"Everything was fine. We'd had dinner as normal, and I was just in the kitchen clearing up when I heard Tara scream from the living room. I don't think my heart rate has been back to normal since."
As a cop, Brandon was forced to keep his cool in all sorts of risky situations. Even in a sleepy town like Middleton, there were still days when Brandon knew that one false move could leave in hospital, or worse. He had learned that lesson the hard way when his father had passed. This was different though. Brandon had never felt this kind of fear and blind panic before. He had really never been more relieved to see Sam Radford.
"Where's the midwife?" Sam called.
"We called her before you, she said she was on her way."
There was a muffled curse from Sam, and Cassie and Brandon rushed to join him in the bedroom.
It only took one look at Tara for Cassie to realise that the baby was coming, and he was coming soon. There would be no time to get Tara to the hospital now. She went to the head of the bed and knelt down on the carpet.
"Hey Tara, everything is going to be okay. Sam is going to look after you."
Bent over his medical bag, Sam raised his eyebrows at this. He had delivered many babies throughout his career, in all sorts of situations, but it wasn't something he did regularly. Especially not since he had moved to Middleton. It was even more daunting when the woman he would be helping was Cassie's daughter in law.
No pressure, Radford.
"Where's Megan?" Tara's pupils were dilated, tendrils of her blonde hair were already dampened with sweat and sticking to her flushed forehead.
"Megan is our midwife," Brandon clarified, standing on the other side of the bed. He wished someone would give him something to do, because he had never felt more useless.
"Brandon, why don't you go and get us some towels and a blanket," Sam suggested, seeming to sense the younger man's restless concern. You didn't need Cassie's powers of perception to see that Brandon was just one step away from all-out panic. "Maybe you could call this Megan and see what's taking so damn long?"
Brandon rushed out of the room, relieved to have something meaningful to do even if he sense that he was probably being sent out of the way so as not to worry Tara even further. This was not how Brandon had imagined it when they had made the decision to have a home birth.
For starters, he hadn't imagined their baby even thinking about making an appearance for at least another week or two. But it seemed like his son had other plans.
Abigail was spending the evening at Stephanie's. It had happened quite organically. She had been closing up the flower shop, and she had sensed a presence behind her.
"Hi Stephanie,"
"How do you…you know what, never mind,"
By some miracle in a place like Middleton, Abigail and Stephanie had managed to keep their feelings secret. Possibly because for years they had been keeping them secret from each other. The town had been preoccupied lately anyway, with Cassie and Sam's relationship drama, Linda's extended stay, and the Russells baby news. The two of them looked at each other for a moment, a silent conversation taking place.
"Hi," Stephanie took the initiative this time, seeing that it was Abigail who had instigated their first two kisses. She pressed a brief, sweet kiss to Abigail's cheek.
"Hi," Abigail grinned, linking her arm through Stephanie's as they walked up Main Street. She didn't care who saw them or what they thought. She was finally completely happy, and, well, complete.
That blissful feeling didn't last for long, though it had nothing to do with Stephanie.
"Hold up a minute," she stopped on the sidewalk and dug into her designer purse for her cell phone. It hadn't chirped or vibrated, but she knew she needed to have it close by.
"Is everything alright?" Even Stephanie could feel the waves of concern emanating from the other woman.
"I'm not sure, I feel…"
Her phone vibrated twice in her hand, and she almost dropped it. She opened the text message with shaking fingers, while Stephanie watched with worry etched into her features.
"Tara's gone into labour," she took a breath, this was early, much too early. "The midwife can't get there because of a major traffic accident. Sam and Cassie are going to have to deliver the baby."
"Oh, Abigail," she gasped, and for want of anything else to do, Stephanie took the other woman into her arms.
Linda had planned to announce her departure to Sam and Nick over dinner that evening, but when she had returned from the realtor's office she had found a note propped up on the kitchen table. While she had been literally and metaphorically tearing up the rental agreement for the property in Middleton, her ex husband and son had made plans to eat dinner at Grey House. Linda couldn't even find the energy to be annoyed, or surprised. This time she had wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt, and calmly explain her plans to return to her life in New York over a meal like civilised family members might do. She had never been one for goodbyes or endings anyway, so perhaps it was better this way.
Using the reverse-side of the paper Sam had left his message on, Linda wrote out her goodbye note.
She would call Nick later, and try to make him understand her decision. But she had a feeling he wouldn't need much persuading. He belonged in Middleton now and so did his father, but she, quite simply, did not. Perhaps you could successfully rehabilitate a city man into someone who loved small town life, but as lovely as Middleton was it had not caught Linda under its spell.
She told herself that she wouldn't be sorry to go, but maybe she wasn't quite so immune to Middleton's charm after all.
She finished off her note, adding a kiss to the bottom for Nick's benefit and waited for her cab to arrive.
By the time Sam and Nick returned from dinner with Cassie, she would be long gone.
Cassie watched Sam as he took control of the situation. She could sense that he was feeling a little out of his depths, but that was because of her own personal and her intimate knowledge of the man. Tara seemed calmed now that Sam was here, which was good for both her and her unborn son. At least until Brandon came running back into the room, a stack of towels and blankets under one arm and his cell phone grasped tightly in his hands.
"I got hold of Megan," he sounded breathless, even though he had only been to the linen closet and back. "There's been an accident out on the highway, total chaos both ways. Even if she takes a detour, she won't be here for at least another hour."
Sam swore, wishing that Brandon had told him the information quietly and privately. It seemed like all of Brandon's cop training had been overtaken by expectant father panic.
Tara tried to push herself up on her elbows, but Cassie's gently helped her back down. Agitation was the last thing the pregnant woman needed.
"Okay, it's fine," Sam said, much more calmly than he felt. If the midwife was unable to get here because the roads were blocked, their chances to trying to get an ambulance here or to get to the hospital themselves were slim to none. He realised he would not have been so receptive to the idea of Tara having a home birth had he known that he would be responsible for the delivery of said home birth. He was more grateful than he could ever express that he had Cassie by his side for his, even if it was her first grandchild he would be delivering. No pressure at all. "We can do this."
Before Cassie's eyes the man she loved transformed himself into Doctor Samuel Radford, award-winning, world-renowned, trauma surgeon and general practitioner. She had never been more proud of him. As concerned as she was about Tara and her unborn baby, Cassie knew there was no one she trusted more with the lives of her loved ones than Sam.
Cassie knelt beside the bed and tried to distract Tara from what was happening. The last thing they wanted was for the very-soon-to-be mother to panic. It was easier said than done when all four of them could have quite easily given in to the heightened emotions.
Although Cassie was usually the cool, calm centre of Middleton, she was drawing her strength and resilience from Sam. She rarely got to see him in action like this, and rarer still when it involved a family member. She was confident that Tara was in capable hands, and she couldn't sense that anything was wrong. She couldn't rely on that alone though, as her gifts were capricious and didn't always warn her of impending danger.
There were some things that just had to unfold, and not even a Merriwick could change or manipulate them.
Cassie brushed back some stray strands of hair from Tara's forehead and spoke gently to her, trying not to grit her teeth every time her daughter in law squeezed her hand in a bone-crushing grip when her contractions overwhelmed her.
Brandon paced in the way that only first-time fathers could, starting to wear a path across the bedroom and hall carpet.
"Brandon," Sam called, watching as the other man turned to him with the dictionary definition of 'rabbit in headlights' showing in his eyes. "Come and hold Tara's hand, it's nearly time to meet your son."
Sam turned to Cassie, wordlessly locking eyes with her. Neither of them needed to say anything to each other, she just gave him the slightest of nods.
"Okay, let's do this."