Two days later
-
It was three o'clock in the morning when James was suddenly awoken by a knock on the door to his quarter. As quickly as he could, he put on his robe and opened the door. "Helen?" He asked, noticing the woman who stood, hunched over, in front of his door.
She put a hand up to signal silence for a moment before she exhaled noisily and stood uprightly again.
"Are you all right, Helen?" He asked, studying her closely.
"I will be fine." She assured. "But it is time to go to the hospital, and the rest of the team is in search of an abnormal."
"I will escort you." He said, seriously.
"You have time to dress, James." She said with a chuckle as he prepared to leave. "I need to call a car as I cannot drive, and I do not believe you have learned."
He shook his head.
"Then, dress." She said with a smile. "I will call a car, and we will leave when the car arrives."
"Do you need assistance to the telephone?"
She shook her head. "I will be fine, James. Dress, breathe, and we will be all right."
"As you wish." He said, trying to calm himself.
-
He met her in the study five minutes later. "Helen?"
She sat in the chair, her long hair hiding her face from him. "I'm coming." She assured.
"Are you all right, Helen?"
"Fine." She said with a slight sniffle.
He walked into the room and over to where she sat. "Helen?"
She wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I'm sorry, James." She whispered.
"There's nothing to apologize for, Helen." He assured. "What's the matter?"
"I'm not sure." She said as the tears continued to slip down her cheeks. "I suppose I'm not sure how well I'll succeed at this..."
"At delivering your child? At raising your child?"
"Yes." She said, wiping her cheeks again. "All of it. I'm afraid, James."
"I've never done this before, Helen." He admitted. "And so I'm not sure what to say, but I don't think that anyone ever approaches the birth of a child without worrying about their effectiveness as parents."
She bit her lip, looking vulnerably at her oldest and dearest friend.
"You've never been unsuccessful at anything at which you've tried your hand." He assured. "And I am certain that this will be no exception."
"Have I lost my mind, James?" She asked, emotionally. "Have I made a mistake in bringing to term a child whose father is one of the most notorious serial killers of our day?"
"Helen, it's a little late to ask that question." He said, softly. "But John was not inherently unhinged."
"No, he wasn't." She said, nodding.
"I trust that you will be able to overcome any struggle that may come your way."
She nodded as her tears lessened.
There was a chime, and she looked at him with a nervous smile. "It's time to go, isn't it?"
He nodded and offered her a hand. Within a moment, her grip had strengthened dramatically and she had closed her eyes.
"Helen?"
"Contrac...tion." She managed with a ragged breath.
The chime rang again a few moments later as she relaxed slightly. "I will join you in a moment. Tell the driver that I am coming." She directed, gently.
He nodded. "Of course."