Wolves of the Pacific

by greenpeach20

In 1902, Renesmee Cullen grew tired of the tedious life of moving around with her family and decided to make the journey west as a mail order bride. Yet a chance encounter with a reddish brown wolf would change her life forever.

191. Chapter 191

Chapter 191

Kevin made all the necessary arrangements so he, Amber and Lilliana could go to France as he promised. In the meantime, a case came through Kevin's law firm that caught his attention. Evalynn was the only one on his team that was a malpractice attorney and getting cases for her was sometimes a struggle; typically cases malpractice attorneys elsewhere had turned away. This one was no different but when Kevin read through the claim and the evidence, he knew he needed to get this to Evalynn immediately. With the case file in hand, Kevin went to Evalynn's office where she was working on something small.

"Evalynn," Kevin said, grabbing her attention and closing the door to her office behind him before placing the case on her desk. "I've got a case for you that I think you'll like working on."

"Good," she said, "I'm desperate for something interesting. What's the issue?"

"Just read it," Kevin encouraged and Evalynn pulled everything out of the manila envelope starting with the synopsis of the claim being filed. The claim itself was filed against First Medical for wrongful death of a man named James Martin. The person who filed the claim was a man by the name of Eric Dorn. As she continued to read, her eyes began to widen.

"The Plaintiff is accusing First Medical of infecting the deceased with AIDS?" Evalynn asked.

"Yup," Kevin said. "From what I've gathered, Mr. Dorn has brought this case to a few different law firms and all of them have refused to take it."

"For good reason," Evalynn said. "This is a serious accusation and short of undeniable proof, this is likely to be thrown out. For that matter, how are Mr. Dorn and Mr. Martin related that he's even filing this complaint?" Kevin didn't bother answering and allowed Evalynn to keep reading. Included in the paperwork was proof Eric Dorn was a Personal Representative for James Martin. As Evalynn went through that paperwork, it clicked. "Mr. Dorn and Mr. Martin were lovers?"

"Exactly," Kevin said. "So the key to this case is going to be proving Mr. Martin couldn't have contracted AIDS any other way except by medical negligence on the hospital's part."

"So be prepared for the prosecuting attorney to call Mr. Martin a whore to prove their case?"

"It's the easiest angle to go with to be sure," Kevin agreed.

"They could also try to claim ignorance," Evalynn suggested though saying that more so to herself. "Funding to research this disease has only just been granted back in May."

"Except Mr. Martin died this past August," Kevin pointed out. "You know more than I do medical experts and hospitals have known about this disease for a while even if they may not have known much about it and you've been keeping a close eye on it too."

"When it gets called GRID, then yes, I would say it's worth following," Evalynn said but there was no denying the bitterness in her voice. "A disease that infects only homosexuals: stupidest fucking idea I've ever heard."

"Don't do that," Kevin warned. "Remember: the moment you take a case personally, you've already lost."

"I know," Evalynn sighed heavily.

"This is going to be tough but if you win this case, I guarantee you'll be highly sought after. Then from there?" Kevin shrugged a little with a smile. "That really depends on you."

Evalynn smiled, knowing what Kevin was referring to. The truth of the matter was Kevin didn't run a malpractice firm and when she'd tried applying to work for malpractice firms, they always turned her away citing she had 'no experience'. They never said it was because she's a woman with no experience but even if they never said it, she had a sneaking suspicion that was the reason. After being snubbed so many times, Evalynn wasn't even sure she ever wanted to try applying to those places again and opening up her own law firm required clientele that was willing to follow her: something she was sorely lacking at the moment. That was to say nothing about her present lack of capital. Another option had come to her mind, though.

"How about this," Evalynn said to Kevin, "if I win this case, you make me Partner."

"Partner?" Kevin asked, raising his brow a little with a tame but proud smile. "That's a bold proposition for someone just out of law school."

"It is," she agreed, "but if I win this case and you make me Partner, we can branch this firm out together and share in the profits. And you haven't had a Partner since Mr. Heidelberg retired."

"That's true, I haven't," Kevin said

"That's a long time to be running this business by yourself and still taking cases," she continued. Evalynn stood from her desk. "So what do you say, Uncle Kevin?" she said then offered her hand. "If I win this case, you make me Partner."

Kevin glanced at her hand then back at her before accepting, "You've got a deal."

Evalynn hopped into action starting with calling Mr. Dorn and scheduled a time for him to come into her office so they could review his case and see if she might be a good fit of attorney for him. She could tell he was surprised to be speaking with a female malpractice attorney but by this point, he was just relieved someone was willing to give his case a chance. Evalynn ended her day right at 5 as usual. That was something that annoyed her to no end. If she'd learned anything from watching Kevin over all the years, even when she was a little girl and she'd be spending some time with Heather on the weekends, the 8-5 work day was really just a suggestion. You work on your cases, give them your all and you either finish what you've got for the day or you work until you can't anymore. Going home right at 5 meant she had nothing to fill her days and no matter how Kevin told her he didn't expect any of his attorneys to work late into the night, she saw her fellow associates and paralegals doing just that.

"Welcome home," Shyann said when Evalynn made it back to their little apartment. Shyann was already dressed and ready to leave for the club.

"Hey," Evalynn said. "How was your day?"

"Productive," she smiled. "You know how Jaedynn's been shopping at that Costco place?"

"Isn't that the bulk-grocer or something?"

"That's the one," Shyann said. "I wanted to check it out so Jaedynn let me come with her. Can't even get into the store unless you've got a membership. Can you believe that! But, I will give them credit: the prices for meat made the trip worth it."

"How'd you buy anything if you're required to have a membership?"

"Jaedynn let me leach off hers," Shyann said. "And she said if I ever want to join her again to just let her know. So any time we need meat, I'll just piggyback off Jaedynn again and get us some meat in bulk for super cheap. Check out our freezer – I think between you and I, we'll be set for 3 months."

"Jesus, Shyann," Evalynn said but went to the fridge and opened the freezer door. It was packed to an almost comical degree.

"I've got dinner in the oven and it should be ready in another twenty minutes – so just enough time for you to take a shower."

"Thank you," Evalynn said and finally went to Shyann to give her a kiss. "You have that bachelor party tonight right?"

"Yes – a party of six," Shyann answered.

"It won't be just you entertaining right?"

"Me and two other girls," Shyann reassured. "Don't worry, Evalynn; I'll be fine." Evalynn smiled at her and gave Shyann another chaste kiss. Afterwards, Shyann said, "So how was your day?"

"I was handed a new case," Evalynn replied as she went to the table taking a seat.

"Don't you get new cases daily or something?"

"I'm lucky if I get a new case every other month," Evalynn muttered. "This one's big, though; really big."

"How so?"

"The Plaintiff is suing First Medical for wrongful death of his partner. He's claiming the hospital's at fault for his lover contracting AIDS." Shyann looked at Evalynn for a moment at a loss for words at first.

"Will you be able to prove that?" she finally asked but all Evalynn could do is shrug.

"I don't know," she admitted. "But if I can, it would be pivotal for my career. I'll be highly sought after and," she paused briefly and looked at Shyann again, "if I win this case, I'll have enough to become Partner at Heidelberg and Black."

"What does that entail?" Shyann asked.

"It means I would own a share of the business," she replied. "So instead of just getting my salary and the commissions I get from cases I've won, I would also earn a share in the business's profits as a whole."

"Oh wow," Shyann said. "Do you think this'll make it to court?"

"I don't know yet," Evalynn said. "Honestly, my biggest fear is the judge will throw this out before it can even be entertained much less before it can be presented to a jury. It came my way because no malpractice attorney within a 50 mile radius is willing to touch this case with a 10 foot pole."

"Sounds to me like you'd better make them wish they'd given this case a chance," Shyann encouraged with an affectionate smile. She glanced at the clock to make sure she still had time and then went to the table taking a seat on Evalynn's lap. "Not to mention," she added and hooded her eyes alluringly, "we could finally afford to entertain starting a family and making me a housewife."

Evalynn smiled, "That would be nice."

"Who'd ever think you of all people would want to have your very own housewife?" Shyann teased and pressed a kiss to Evalynn's nose.

"I want what makes you happy," Evalynn replied. "And while I personally would never want to be a housewife, I can understand the appeal of coming home to a clean house and dinner hot and ready on the table."

"I'll wear pearls and a dress while I clean the house," Shyann teased and then added, "and I'll cook you dinner in nothing but an apron." Evalynn rolled her eyes a little but she was smiling while Shyann giggled. "And Dakota's already said he's fine with being our donor. All he asks is that we don't try hitting him up for money."

"For fuck's sake," Evalynn rolled her eyes again this time with annoyance rather than humor, "All we need him to do is cum in a cup and be done with it. We're not asking for the world here."

"I also do sincerely appreciate you taking one for the team and carrying the baby," Shyann smiled lovingly.

"My brother isn't comfortable being our donor; there wasn't exactly another option. Unless, of course, you want to have my eggs harvested, fertilized and you carry the baby."

"If Dakota's our donor, I'm going to say that's a resounding no from me," Shyann said and Evalynn laughed just a little.

"That's fair," she said and gave Shyann a quick kiss. "You get going to work. I'll make sure there's enough left over for when you get home."

"I'll be done with the bachelor party by midnight and back on the pole by one," Shyann said and gave Evalynn a kiss. "Maybe you can come by the club tonight to see me?"

"I'll come pick you up," Evalynn offered. "You're off by 3?"

"Yup," Shyann said and gave Evalynn another kiss before getting off her lap and grabbing her purse to leave. Before stepping out, she looked over her shoulder at Evalynn and said, "I'll see you tonight. Make sure you come ready to tip."

Evalynn laughed a little and said, "I always tip a dancer."

Evalynn spent the rest of the evening relaxing as much as she could but her mind was whirling with the case Kevin had handed over to her and she was trying to come up with a plan of action. Her first step she knew would be to get her client's account of events and find the evidence to support that. She took a hard nap on the couch and woke up right at three so she rushed out the door to the strip club to pick up Shyann. Evalynn just ran opting to drive Shyann's car back home and when she arrived, Shyann stepped outside saying goodbye to the bouncer. The rest of the weekend was uneventful outside of Shyann going to the club for work and Evalynn thinking through a list of questions for when she sat down with Mr. Dorn. When Monday finally came, Evalynn was up early so she could get ready for work while Shyann slept the morning away. She was scheduled to meet her client bright and early so she was out the door the instant she was dressed opting to get coffee once she arrived at the office. She parked her car in the lot of the building just as Kevin was stepping out of his own car so he waited on the sidewalk for her so they could go up together.

"Morning, Evalynn," Kevin said once she was approaching.

"Morning, sir," Evalynn answered, remaining formal since they were right outside the building.

"You're meeting Mr. Dorn today?"

"At 9:30," Evalynn nodded. "I don't know why I'm so nervous. It's not like this is the first time I've ever met with someone I'm defending."

"This is the first case of yours that could be big," Kevin said and patted her shoulder a little. "You'll do great Evalynn. Just remember: don't get personal. I know with a case like this that can be hard but you have to stay the objective party."

"I know," Evalynn replied as they stepped into the building together and then went to the elevator.

Once in her office, Evalynn chugged her coffee and got together her files to review before her meeting. She'd read through everything several times and the more she reviewed, the harder this always shaped up to be. Mr. Dorn insisted he and Mr. Martin were faithful to each other but the hospital's lawyers would leap at any evidence, no matter how farfetched or insignificant, that could even insinuate otherwise. Even if she could prove beyond a reasonable doubt they were faithful to each other, there would then be the matter of proving Mr. Martin wasn't a drug user. She made a mental note to reach out to the hospital and any general practitioners for blood tests and hope for the best but knew she had to be prepared for the worst. The hardest part, though, even if she proved there was no infidelity or drug use on the part of either of them, even with Mr. Dorn's blood tests already proving he did not have HIV or AIDS, the hardest part would be proving beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Martin contracted AIDS due to negligence on the part of First Medical – and she still didn't have the vaguest idea how she was going to do it.

"Miss Black?" Evalynn was taken out of her spell when she heard the receptionist's voice come in through the intercom on her phone. "There's a Mr. Dorn here for you."

She took a moment to collect herself and pressed the button to respond, "You can send him in." Evalynn stood from her desk and took a moment to straighten out her blazer then walked around so she could welcome her new client. The door was already open so once the receptionist walked up, she guided a man in. He wasn't very tall; about 5'5" if her estimation was generous and he had brown hair with greys sprinkled through it.

"Do you want me to close the door, Miss Black?" the receptionist asked.

"Yes, thank you Tabatha," Evalynn responded and she closed the door behind her while Evalynn smiled politely and offered her hand which Mr. Dorn accepted albeit hesitantly. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Dorn although I wish it were under better circumstances."

"Thank you for meeting with me," he responded and Evalynn invited him to take a seat while she came back around to sit at her desk. He was clearly really nervous and a bit fidgety as he took a seat – visibly uncomfortable and apprehensive. "How…..that is to say, when did you.."

"How long have I been an attorney?" Evalynn finished for him and Mr. Dorn nodded his head. "I graduated from Yale Law in 1981. Before that, I earned my medical degree from Yale. I started working for Heidelberg and Black immediately after passing my BAR exam in New York and in Washington State."

"Black," he mumbled, "you wouldn't happen to be related to the owner would you?"

"Kevin Black is my uncle," Evalynn answered and that seemed to make Mr. Dorn even more uncomfortable. Evalynn took a deep, silent breath and asked, "Is there something wrong?" He was quiet at first but did eventually answer.

"I'm a little apprehensive if I'm honest," Mr. Dorn finally answered. "I mean no disrespect: based on your college background alone, you're clearly a very intelligent young woman but surely you can understand I'm not extremely confident with my case being in the hands of a woman who's only been practicing law for two years and has work thanks to a family member to boot."

"Mr. Dorn," Evalynn started off extremely hostile, but she caught herself. Whether she liked it or not, he wasn't entirely off base and he was her client. Her job was to earn his trust and if she was going to turn things around for herself, she needed to win this case. Only after she began practicing law had she realized how truly hard it was to swallow her pride but as her eyes briefly darted to the picture on her desk of Shyann, it became a little easier. "Mr. Dorn," she repeated in a much softer but still commanding tone, "I completely understand where you're coming from. Under the circumstances and given the fight we're going to face, you have every reason to be apprehensive, but I need you to understand something: whether I've been practicing law for 2 years or 20 years, I can't help you if you don't trust me and work with me."

"I'll work with you," Mr. Dorn said but there was still no confidence in his voice. "I don't really have much choice. You're the only lawyer who's been willing to take my case."

"And I'll make sure everyone before me regrets that decision," Evalynn said confidently. Mr. Dorn finally smiled just a little but there was still a bit of a wall there. At this point, Evalynn decided it was best to move on and get as much information as possible. "I understand that you and Mr. Martin were in a romantic relationship?" she asked and Mr. Dorn nodded.

"Yes," he responded. "Jim and I had made ourselves one another's personal representatives about 5 years ago. It was the closest we could get to being married. Even that was an uphill battle."

"How did you two meet?" Evalynn asked.

"We both served in the Navy," he answered and Evalynn couldn't help the tiniest little smile from appearing on her face. Mr. Dorn noticed and started smiling himself. "Before the Village People for the record."

"I wasn't going to say anything," Evalynn replied, allowing her smile to widen a bit. "When did you both meet and when did your relationship become romantic?"

"We met in 1960," Mr. Dorn answered. "Jim joined the Navy 1955, I joined 1959 – we met when we were both stationed on the Houston. I was a Sonar Technician and he was a Communications Officer. The two of us would talk from time to time and became friends but we didn't start sleeping together until '62."

"So the two of you started as friends then turned to friends with benefits?"

"In a sense," Mr. Dorn shrugged a little. "We realized we both liked men and we were friends so we had the bright idea to start sleeping together – relieve the tension from being on a submarine so to speak. After we finished serving on the Houston, we were returned to land duty in Jacksonville and that's when our relationship turned from just sex to the two of us making plans to spend our lives together. We both served in the Navy until 1967 – then we retired and then moved to Kentucky. We moved here to Seattle 14 years ago."

"Are either of you from Seattle?"

"No," Mr. Dorn said. "I was born and raised in Ohio and Jim was born in Hawaii but he moved all over the place. His dad was in the Navy so after he returned from Japan at the end of the war, Jim and his family never lived anywhere longer than 2 to 3 years."

"What made you choose to move to Seattle?"

"It was far away from our families and we wanted a fresh start," Mr. Dorn answered. "It's one of the things we would argue about constantly until we finally got away: I told my family I'm gay – he never did. They didn't find out until I contacted them to let them know he died from AIDS. Ever since then, his family's convinced I'm the reason he's dead," Mr. Dorn's voice became weak as he spoke and he was about to start crying but her managed to stop himself.

"Was he embarrassed that he was gay?" Evalynn finally asked after allowing Mr. Dorn a moment.

"He was," Mr. Dorn nodded. "He always said it didn't affect the way he felt about me but his dad is…well, to put it bluntly his dad's a bit of a brute. He named his son after James Stewart for shit's sake. His older brother was named John Wayne."

"You're joking."

"I'm dead serious," Mr. Dorn said. "John Wayne Martin, James Stewart Martin and his little sister Jean Arthur Martin."

"Sounds like his dad loved Westerns," Evalynn said. "What does that have to do with him being a brute, though?"

"He doesn't take too kindly to fags," Mr. Dorn said, "and he likes to think of himself as the manliest man to ever man and expected his sons to be just as manly."

"How did Mr. Martin come to terms with being gay?"

"Truthfully, I don't think he ever did," Mr. Dorn said. "I knew pretty early I had no interest in women but I kept it to myself. I didn't tell my family until Jim and I became official. My parents were livid and wouldn't talk to me for years. I started talking to them again about 10 years ago but it's just to check on me. I didn't see my mother again until five years ago to attend my father's funeral. It was the first time my family had ever met Jim but I haven't seen them since."

"How did it go when you saw them?"

"Cordial," Mr. Dorn answered bluntly. "Awkward and uncomfortable, but cordial. For Jim, he would just go to family events sparingly after we moved to Seattle. Before that, we were living in Kentucky near his family – my family's still in Ohio – and he would go to see them all the time but would never bring me. If his family were coming over, he'd insist I go out with friends for a few hours. It nearly ruined our relationship."

"How did you two come to the decision to move to Seattle?"

"One day, I'd had enough and I told him I was leaving him," Mr. Dorn said. "He'd just attended his little sister's wedding and left me home." Mr. Dorn took a deep breath, remembering the incident well. "I didn't give a shit about the fucking wedding. It was the principle of the matter. He didn't even invite me. Hell, I hadn't even known about the wedding until a few days before it was scheduled. He'd told me Jeanie was getting married and he'd be staying the night in Lexington and back the next morning. Every birthday party his niece or nephew had, I was left home. Every family reunion, every holiday party – I was left home alone because even if my family had been close, they weren't speaking to me meanwhile he was keeping me hidden away too embarrassed to admit we were together while he maintained a completely normal relationship with his family. His sister's wedding was the last straw.

"When he came home from his sister's wedding, I'd already made the decision I was leaving and had started packing my things. He asked what I was doing and I told him I'd had enough of being his dirty little secret and I was leaving. He begged me not to leave but I wasn't having it. I told him I hoped the next guy he shacked up with was a spineless little cuck who didn't mind being turned into a toy he put in the closet once he's done and I left the house. To be completely honest, I didn't really have a plan at the time. I just went to a hotel and started making arrangements to move to Seattle. I almost chose Alaska but that was a bit far even for me. Jim had followed me, came up to my room and begged me to talk to him. We argued for nearly an hour and I told him to get the fuck out of my room and at the time he did, but he came back the next morning telling me he was sorry and he wanted to work things out. I told him I was going to Seattle and that was that and he told me he was fine with it, that he'd go with me. We went to get some breakfast and finally sat down and spoke about what was bothering me and why I'd decided to leave. He told me he was sorry and that he didn't want to lose me and that he was willing to relocate to Seattle if that would make me happy. So I decided to give him another chance and we moved to Seattle together."

"So when you guys decided to move, what did he tell his family?"

"He told them a really good job opportunity came up and he was moving," Mr. Dorn said. "Things were really tough for a while. Despite us deciding we would work things out, there was still a lot of animosity." This was it, Evalynn thought to herself. If First Medical's attorneys were to find out about this, it would be exactly the sort of thing they could use to insinuate one or both of them had been unfaithful.

"I know you said in your statement you and Mr. Martin were faithful to each other," Evalynn began but Mr. Dorn didn't let her finish.

"We were," he said with a venomous tone. "I loved him – I never stepped out on him and he never stepped out on me. No matter how angry I was at him during that time, I never looked at another man much less slept with them."

"And what about Mr. Martin?" Evalynn pressed and when it was clear he was getting really angry, she added, "I just need to know all the facts."

"I already gave you all the facts," he responded. "I realize this is a thing Lawyers like to do but you don't need to ask me the same question over and over again."

"Look, Mr. Dorn, I need you to understand –"

"No, I need you to understand," he interrupted. "I'm sure you think men are incapable of being fucking faithful but we were. Jim and I were together for better or for worse and that was that."

"Until you made the decision you'd had enough and were leaving," Evalynn pointed out and that clearly struck a nerve with him. "You realize if First Medical's attorneys were to find out about this, it would be just the circumstances they'd need to present reasonable doubt that their negligence was involved."

"And I would think a good attorney can prove beyond a reasonable doubt negligence was involved," he spat back. Evalynn sat up a little straighter staring Mr. Dorn down. She needed to take a moment to think before responding otherwise this would continue to go south.

"Mr. Dorn," Evalynn said, "Is there a reason you're getting so defensive about this?"

"Because we were never unfaithful to each other, I told you that and you kept pressing as if I'd give you a different answer."

"Forgive me for saying but you seem extremely passionate over something that never happened," Evalynn said and this time, Mr. Dorn didn't say anything but he was still extremely mad. "Are you sure there's nothing you want to tell me?"

"There's nothing to tell."

"Is there actually nothing to tell or is this something you're embarrassed about?" Evalynn pressed and before Mr. Dorn could respond, knowing he was about to stonewall her again, she added, "Mr. Dorn, I need you to be completely honest with me. Anything you keep from me is something First Medical's attorneys could find out or know about that I don't. If I'm going to represent you and have a fair shot at getting you a victory in court, there can be no secrets between us. Do you understand?"

"Young lady, I was fighting in Cuba before you were out of diapers – don't talk to me like I'm a fucking child."

Evalynn kept herself calm but it took all her willpower. However it became clear that, no matter how badly she wanted this and wanted to take the case, this wasn't going to work. "You know what, Mr. Dorn," she eventually said, "I have a feeling I'm not the best choice of an attorney for you."

Mr. Dorn didn't respond. There was still a fire in his eyes and after briefly averting his eyes, he stood from the chair, pulled open her door and walked out. Only once he was gone did Evalynn allow herself to deflate and rubbed her face. She was so frustrated but above all, she felt so defeated. Almost instantly, she felt like a failure. She glanced at Shyann's picture and felt even worse. She wouldn't put up with a client speaking to her that way but she knew there likely wouldn't be another chance like this coming across her desk anytime soon.

"Evalynn?" Kevin said as he gently knocked on the frame of her office door, "What happened?"

"I told Mr. Dorn I don't think I'm a good choice of attorney for him," Evalynn said with a groan. "From the start, he was really uncomfortable and when I pressed about fidelity between him and Mr. Martin, he got defensive and then he told me he'd been serving in the Navy when I was still in diapers and not to talk to him like a child. Even called me 'young lady'," she muttered the last part.

"Ah," Kevin said and then sat across from her. "Well, you can't defend the man if he isn't willing to treat you respectfully. Trust me: I've defended men who've thought they were smarter than me and were disrespectful. I still do what I can for them but it does make the task much harder." Evalynn didn't respond. She was leaning back in her chair coming to terms with the fact she'd just kissed what could've been her big break goodbye. "Don't worry Evalynn," Kevin said, "something else will come along."

"When?" she asked as she looked at Kevin.

"I don't know," he responded honestly. "Don't give up, though. Trust me: I've fought that battle where no one will give me a chance."

"You have one big advantage over me, though: you're a man. A Native American, sure, but a man nonetheless. That's less frowned upon than being a woman."

"Evalynn," Kevin said firmly, "I was walking into a white man's world and had to prove I was their equal. You're walking into a man's realm and you have to do the same. Regardless of why the prejudice is there, the way you combat it isn't going to change."

"Yes, I know," Evalynn said. "I guess I just hoped if any man would treat me like an equal, it would be a gay man."

"Gay men can be misogynists too, Evalynn," Kevin said. "It'll be alright. I know it doesn't seem like it right now but another case will come along and so long as you're still in, our previous agreement still stands."

Evalynn finally smiled a little, "Thank you Uncle Kevin."

"Any time," Kevin said, smiling back reassuringly. "How about you and I have lunch together today? It'll be my treat."

"No, Uncle Kevin, but thank you for offering," Evalynn replied with a light laugh.

"Let me know if you change your mind," Kevin said and finally left Evalynn's office so she could work on something else.

She tried her best not to dwell on what happened that morning but she struggled to get it out of her mind. Once it was the end of her work day, she left on time as per usual with the same annoyance it always left her with. When she returned home from work, Shyann was making dinner boiling two potatoes and searing a large steak for them to share. She went around to the tiny kitchen as Shyann welcomed her home with a smile and a kiss.

"How did everything go with that new client?" Shyann asked.

"Not well," Evalynn admitted. "I decided I wouldn't be a good fit of an attorney for him and he left. So I won't be representing him." Shyann saw the disappointment in Evalynn's face and turned off the heat and tossed the steak in the oven with the potatoes so she could give Evalynn her full attention.

"I'm sorry babe," Shyann said as she wrapped her arms around Evalynn's neck. "Don't let this bring you down. Another case will come along."

"Maybe," Evalynn said and rested her forehead against Shyann's.

"Let me get a timer going for the steak, I'll pour you a glass of wine, we'll sit on the couch and you can tell me what happened," Shyann offered.

"I might need something stronger than wine," Evalynn said.

"A Tom Collins coming right up," she said and gave Evalynn a kiss. She went to the liquor cabinet to grab what she needed while Evalynn went to their room and got changed into some pajama shorts and a loose fitting spaghetti strap tank top. Once she was comfortable, she returned out to their living room sitting on the couch and by then, Shyann finished making her drink and sat on Evalynn's lap handing her the High Ball glass. She waited for Evalynn to start but first, Evalynn took a big swig of her drink. "That bad?"

"He called me 'young lady' then told me he'd been in the Navy while I was still in diapers and not to talk to him like a child," Evalynn answered.

"Well, fuck him then," Shyann responded bluntly.

"I think I fucked myself more than him," Evalynn said and took one more gulp of her drink finishing it off. Shyann took the glass and placed it on the coffee table then wrapped her arms around Evalynn's neck giving her a kiss.

"I know it might not seem like it, but another case will come up. I promise," Shyann said. "In the meantime, you keep up the hard work and when you do finally get that big case and win, I'll don my pearls and Sunday best and be your little stay at home wife with a smile." Evalynn finally laughed gently and then kissed Shyann. The kiss was chaste for just a moment but Shyann deepened it rather quickly and Evalynn complied. They kissed for several minutes until Shyann gently pulled away and they looked longingly into one another's eyes. "Better?" Shyann asked.

"Much better," Evalynn answered and turned Shyann around onto her back then started kissing her way down Shyann's body pulling off her panties before proceeding to go down on her.

"Evalynn," Shyann moaned and wined all at once, "You had a hard day. I should be going down on you."

"You made me feel better so I'm rewarding you," was Evalynn's answer before going right back to what she was doing.

The timer went off while she was still bringing Shyann higher but they ignored it until Shyann finally reached her climax. She got to the steak in time to get it out before it overcooked, but the instant the steak was safe, she shoved Evalynn against the kitchen counter tearing her shorts and panties off so she could return the favor. For a while, Evalynn felt much better but the next day when she needed to go to work again, her mind wandered back to what happened. Outside of that, the day went on as it normally did. When five o'clock was approaching, Evalynn was working on a case file another lawyer needed assistance with.

"Miss Black," Tabatha's voice came up from Evalynn's phone, "There's a Mr. Dorn here to see you." That grabbed Evalynn's attention immediately and for a moment, she didn't respond. When she did, though, she made sure she was calm and unbothered.

"You can send him in," Evalynn said and closed the envelope with the case file she'd been working on and stood from her desk. A moment later, the receptionist gestured for Mr. Dorn to go into Evalynn's office and closed the door before walking away. "How can I help you, Mr. Dorn?" He looked so defeated and it took him a moment to finally say anything.

"May I sit?" he finally asked.

"Sure," she said and sat at her desk while Mr. Dorn took a seat across from her. She waited for him to finally talk and although she didn't wait that long, it felt like an eternity.

"I owe you an apology," he finally said. "You're just trying to do your job and I shouldn't have snapped at you like I did, especially when you're the only attorney who's been willing to take me on as a client and help me. I know yesterday you said you did not feel you would be a good fit of an attorney for me but I'm hoping you will reconsider and take me back on as a client." Evalynn was surprised at first but also extremely relieved.

"Well," she began, "I appreciate you coming to me and apologizing. In turn, allow me to apologize for pressing you like I did. I can only imagine what it's like to lose a man you've been with for 21 years and the stress this has all put you under. Please know that if I'm pressing, it's not to be cruel so if my line of questioning yesterday was upsetting I apologize."

"You don't have anything to apologize for," Mr. Dorn said and took a deep breath. "To answer your question before I walked out," he started then paused for a moment before finally continuing, "After Jim and I moved here, there was still a lot of animosity as I'd stated. We were trying to work things out but I was still mad at him for treating me like he'd been treating me and I think for a while he resented that I'd taken him away from his family." Evalynn continued to stay silent, letting him talk even if there were long pauses. "When I said we've been faithful to each other, I was being truthful but…there was this one man Jim met. I think he'd met this guy at work or something. I'll be honest: I don't remember. He was inviting Jim out to drinks after work and at first I didn't think anything of it, but then we bumped into him at a gay bar and that's when my suspicions began."

"Did this guy actively pursue Mr. Martin?"

"He did as a matter of fact," Mr. Dorn said. It was clear thinking about it still made him upset. "Jim swore nothing was going on and he turned down this guy's advances but for a while I was doubtful. To Jim's credit, he ended all contact with this other man as soon as he realized it was upsetting me and I never caught wind of him ever seeing this guy again."

"You said this happened when you moved to Seattle? When was that?"

"1969," he answered.

"Okay," Evalynn said. "Do you know if this guy would end up under the radar of First Medical's legal team?"

"I have no idea," Mr. Dorn said. "I can't even remember the son of a bitch's name much less where he is now."

"How did the two of you regain your trust for one another? Did you seek counseling or therapy?"

"Counseling," Mr. Dorn answered. "A friend of ours at the gay bar we frequented gave us a name of a therapist who was non-judgmental and who's worked with homosexuals."

"What gay bar did you two like?"

"It's this place called Cherry," Mr. Dorn answered. "It's under new management now so we haven't been there in a while. Jim and I were never into that clubbing shit. One of our friends used to call us Statler and Waldorf." Evalynn laughed out loud just a moment but stopped herself.

"I'm sorry," Evalynn managed.

"It's fine – service in the military during Vietnam to boot tends to make a man cantankerous," Mr. Dorn said.

"You served in Vietnam?"

"Yes, we both did," Mr. Dorn said. "We were already toying with retiring from the Navy but that cemented our decision."

"A cousin of mine felt the same way," Evalynn said. "He served in Vietnam back in the 60s – before that he loved being in the Navy but after that experience, he couldn't bring himself to reenlist."

"I understand completely," Mr. Dorn said. "Anyway, just in case you were worried Jim contracted AIDS from drug use, you have my utmost confidence and reassurance that is demonstrably untrue. The man could stay cool as a cucumber in water combat but you try to give that man a shot, he turned into a sniveling little bitch." Mr. Dorn smiled briefly but it was short lived as the sorrow filled his eyes and he had to rub them to make sure he didn't cry. "Fuck me, I miss him."

"I can tell you really loved him," Evalynn said.

"I loved that man more than the air I breath," Mr. Dorn muttered.

"That's surprisingly poetic of you," Evalynn smiled.

"Yes, Jim and I were never really 'romantic'. Suck my dick, I'll suck yours and we'll both be happy as pigs in shit."

"Hey, you two were together 21 years, so you were doing something right," Evalynn said. "Shyann and I have been together about 5 years now."

"Shyann?" Mr. Dorn asked and then it finally dawned on him. "You're a lesbian."

"A gold star one at that," Evalynn joked a little.

"Well fuck," Mr. Dorn said and rubbed his face, "now I feel even more like shit. No wonder you're willing to help me."

"I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a part of me that took this case very personally," Evalynn admitted. "So, for what it's worth, I know what it's like to have to hide who I really am."

"Given you work for your uncle, I assume your family's more accepting?"

"For the most part," Evalynn said. "My mom's still a bit uncomfortable with it but she's accepted Shyann makes me happy. My dad knew I was a lesbian long before I told him. My cousin Heather was the first one I ever told and when I got older, I told my dad."

"And he was accepting?"

"Yes, very," Evalynn said. "It's not lost on me that I enjoy a support system few get to have. It's my hope, with a case like this, I can help everyone take a step in the right direction."

"And catapult your legal career I assume."

"Well, yes, that too," Evalynn smiled and Mr. Dorn smiled too. "Now that we've kissed and made up," she joked and Mr. Dorn chuckled a little, "Tell me about yours and Mr. Martin's relationship. After you two started going to counseling specifically."

"Our relationship was better than ever," Mr. Dorn said. "He still hadn't told his family about his homosexuality but since we were so far away from them and he didn't leave me alone to see them as much as he used to and since we'd developed a better friend group, it didn't bother me so much. I accepted that telling his family he's gay was not something he was willing to do and since we no longer had to worry about them, we got to go out and enjoy ourselves."

"That's great to hear," Evalynn said and then braced herself for the question she knew had to be asked. "Can you tell me about the events leading up to Mr. Martin's death?" Mr. Dorn's face fell in an instant and it took him a moment to finally answer.

"He started having this sudden, intense abdominal pain," Mr. Dorn said. "I took him to the ER and they determined he had appendicitis and would need to go into urgent surgery."

"At the time he went into surgery, do you know if he tested positive for AIDS?"

"He was negative," Mr. Dorn said confidently. "Even at 43, that man was healthy as the day I met him."

"He was only 43?"

"Yes, he was only 43 when he died – same age as me," Mr. Dorn said. "Jim had lied about his age and joined the Navy at 15."

"No kidding."

"Yup, no kidding," Mr. Dorn said. "Once he'd had surgery and was released from the hospital, he was in a lot of pain but otherwise he was fine. He was recovering for the most part until he started having these bizarre symptoms. He was going pale, he developed these blotches on his skin, he was fatigued, he lost at least 10 pounds in the blink of an eye and he had a fever that persisted for days. I rushed him back to the hospital and they did what they could to treat him but they quickly realized he was suffering from AIDS complications. Some of the nurses refused to treat him after they found out – rotten cunts," Mr. Dorn said and he was becoming more and more upset and agitated. "I watched the man I love die in a hospital bed while the staff and doctors did nothing. When I started asking questions about his surgery, I found out they'd needed to give him a blood transfusion and that's when I realized that's what caused him to contract it in the first place."

"His condition declined rapidly?"

"Yes," Mr. Dorn said. "One day he'd been recovering fine from surgery, the next he was on his death bed and there was nothing I could do."

"I'm really sorry," Evalynn said. Mr. Dorn was trying so, so hard not to let himself cry but he was hurting. "Before this surgery, was Mr. Martin seeing a general practitioner or any other medical provider regularly?"

"Just his GP once a year," Mr. Dorn managed. "He'd actually seen his GP this past July."

"What was that doctor's name?" Evalynn asked eagerly.

"Dr. Randolf Hammel," Mr. Dorn answered. "I don't know the address off the top of my head."

"That's alright, I'll check the phonebook for him," Evalynn said. "I'll do some digging and we'll get this case rolling. I can't promise when this will go before a judge, but you mark my words: no matter how long it takes I'll make sure it does. Although just be prepared for the fight of a lifetime. You'll be praying for Nam once we get things going in court."

"That bad?"

"I can promise you First Medical's lawyers are going to hop on anything that could insinuate you or Mr. Martin were promiscuous or drug users or both. And based on what you've told me so far, unfortunately even if they can't prove either of those things, we're in the position where our evidence is circumstantial."

"But if I'm right and Jim was killed due to their negligence, then there would be other victims wouldn't there?"

"My thoughts exactly," Evalynn said. "Although I do need to ask: are you open to a settlement? That's most likely the route they're going to try and make us go down."

"I'm not settling for shit," Mr. Dorn said. "Those bastards took Jim away from me. I won't settle for anything less than having their faces rubbed into the shit on the floor like dogs."

"Dually noted," Evalynn said and took a note that she added to his file she was now very glad she'd not thrown out. Mr. Dorn remained at Evalynn's office for well over an hour discussing his case, what she'd be doing to gather evidence and they discussed the cost for keeping her on retainer. "This is going to take years and it's going to be expensive," Evalynn warned.

"I know it will be," Mr. Dorn acknowledged. "But if I don't at least try, I'll never be able to live with myself and, worse, this could continue to happen to more people. I'll figure out the finances of it all. I just want you to worry about proving they killed Jim."

"I'll do everything I can Mr. Dorn," Evalynn reassured.

"Please," he said, "just call me Eric. When you call me 'Mr. Dorn' it makes me feel old. And you can just say 'Jim' while you're at it."

"Okay, then you can call me Evalynn," she returned. After they were done, Evalynn walked him out and promised they would be in frequent contact to go over his case even if nothing had changed since their last discussion. She realized it was 6:30 and she needed to call home so Shyann knew where she was.

"Evalynn," she heard Kevin call from his office as she was walking past to return to her own. She stepped inside and walked to his desk.

"Everything okay?"

"I was about to ask you that," Kevin said. "You and Mr. Dorn were talking for a while. I take it you'll be taking him on as a client after all?"

"Yes," Evalynn said and took a seat across from him. "He apologized to me and asked if I'd be willing to take him back as a client and I told him I would."

"I'm glad to hear it," Kevin smiled. "So what's first on the agenda?"

"I'll be reaching out to the hospital and Mr. Martin's GP to get blood test results and start getting interviews with hospital staff. I already warned Mr. Dorn this was going to take a while and it would be years before this could finally get before a judge."

"Is he open to a settlement?"

"He said, and I quote, 'I'm not settling for shit'," Evalynn answered and Kevin sighed a little.

"That could come back to bite him," Kevin said.

"Maybe, but he just doesn't want them getting off with a slap on the wrist by throwing money at him and making this whole thing go away. He wants them to suffer for their mistake and honestly I do to. I'm also going to find out who besides Mr. Martin received blood transfusions and of those patients how many contracted AIDS."

"Hell, if you can get that evidence, that alone will have them begging for a settlement," Kevin said. "Problem is they have the financial means to drag this out. I doubt Mr. Dorn does."

"I'll do the work pro bono if I have to," Evalynn said and that caught Kevin's attention.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive," Evalynn said. "For this, I'm positive. I want to win this case more than you know."

"Believe me, I know," Kevin said. "Just be prepared for things to get nasty."

"I'm prepared," Evalynn said. "I'll just have to get nastier."

Kevin chuckled a little and said, "That's the spirit Evalynn."

Evalynn made sure to still call home and let Shyann know she'd been kept at work late and when she explained what happened, Shyann was thrilled for her and promised she wouldn't be upset if Evalynn began working later than normal.

Tristan, in the meantime, was getting prepared for the baby. Freidrick joined him to look for a crib and other necessary furniture while also discussing what neighborhoods he recommended. Tristan made the decision he was going to work out what he needed to so he could live off base and get them a slightly bigger apartment. So long as it had two bedrooms, it would be easier on them in the long run. Although Freida was hesitant with the idea when Tristan first brought it up, she came to decide it would be for the best if Tristan were to move in and they got a bigger apartment. Tristan began staying the night with her practically every night and while he was always gone by the time she woke up, he was always back by six so they could have dinner and spend time together whether they crafted, talked, watched whatever was on TV or slept together. It was getting very comfortable and before she knew it, Freida couldn't imagine not having Tristan around.

With Freidrick's assistance, Tristan made sure they had rooms reserved at Hôtel du Louvre for the week of November 19th all the while the date of their baby's anatomy scan was fast approaching. In the two or so weeks leading up to the scan, Freida felt better than she had in months. She wasn't nearly as groggy; in fact she had more energy than ever, she was no longer nauseous, any aversions to smells seemed to go away or were radically reduced and she actually felt normal. Or as close to normal as she could feel. She still wasn't showing at all either. During that time, the only symptoms to speak of that she was pregnant was her blood pressure and, in conjuncture to that, her insatiable sexual appetite. Freida was checking her blood pressure regularly as she'd been directed but in the mornings especially, her readings were often far too high. On one occasion, she had to go to the hospital – as per doctor's orders – because her blood pressure was reading 159/107.

"Well, we finished testing your urine sample," the nurse had told her after she'd been in Labor and Delivery the past hour. "You're dehydrated so make sure you're drinking plenty of water throughout the day." The nurse noticed the large machine on the table and asked, "This is the at-home monitor you've been using?"

"Yes," Freida answered. "I'm worried there's something wrong with it. My boyfriend will take my blood pressure at night and those readings have been fine. It's the readings I take in the morning with this thing that are always high." The nurse examined the machine and the cuff then seemed to have an 'aha' moment.

"It's because this cuff is too small," the nurse answered and Freida just stared at her.

"What?"

"This cuff is too small," she repeated. "This is a cuff we'd use on a child."

Freida felt extremely embarrassed and waited for the nurse to measure her arm so she could let her know what cuff size she was supposed to have. After she'd been released from the hospital that day, she went straight to a pharmacy to locate a cuff that was the right size. She didn't tell Tristan or her parents that she'd needed to go to the hospital, far too embarrassed about the revelation that her cuff was too small.

From that point, her blood pressure readings were still on the higher end, but nothing that would require her to go back into the hospital. As for her other symptom, she'd get home from work and start making something for dinner but the instant Tristan was home, she'd turn off the burner even if the food wasn't finished cooking and she'd jump Tristan like a wild animal though he didn't complain a peep about it. He liked to think of it as the two of them making up for lost time. Then the day of the scan finally came and Tristan came to pick Freida up from work in the Jeep he'd leased for their use and drove them straight to the hospital.

"Is it weird that I'm a little nervous?" Tristan asked as they were on their way.

"I'm nervous too," Freida admitted. "I was so sure we're having a girl; I'm worried it turns out I was wrong. Maybe my instincts aren't as good as I thought."

"I'm sure you're right," Tristan said and took her hand in his so he could squeeze it while keeping his eyes on the road. "And hey, I'll love this baby whether it's a boy or a girl."

"I know," Freida said with a light smile and leaned her head on his shoulder. When they were at a red light, Tristan turned so he could press a kiss to her head but quickly returned his eyes to the road.

Within minutes of them arriving, as per usual, Freida was directed to give a urine sample, a nurse took her weight which had, once again, remained largely unchanged, and then they were brought to the ultrasound room to wait for the ultrasound tech. Freida got undressed from the waist down and sat on the gurney with a long paper towel covering her lap while Tristan sat on the chair nearby getting really fidgety. Freida was getting nervous too.

"Hallo," the nurse said as she knocked on the door, "Darf ich rein kommen?" (May I come in?)

"Ja," Freida answered and the ultrasound tech came in. She spotted Tristan then smiled.

"Do you prefer I speak English or German?" she asked.

"Whatever you prefer; I'll understand either way," Tristan answered.

"Perfekt," she answered in German and washed her hands then put some gloves on. She pulled her little stool around and grabbed the bottle of gel. "Wie haben Sie sich gefühlt? Ist Ihnen immer noch übel?" (How have you been feeling? Still nauseous?)

"Ich fühle mich allmählich besser. Meine Blutdruckwerte sind besser, seit ich meine Manschette gewechselt habe und Tristan sehr gut darin geworden ist, sie für mich zu messen. Meine Brustwarzen waren empfindlich, ansonsten ging es mir gut," (I've started feeling better. My blood pressure readings have been better since I changed out my cuff and Tristan's gotten very good at taking it for me. My nipples have been tender, otherwise I've been fine) Freida answered.

"Das zweite Trimester ist für die meisten Mütter einfacher," (The second trimester tends to be easier on most moms) the tech replied. "Heben Sie Ihr Hemd für mich hoch und lehnen Sie sich zurück. Ich werde es so zurechtrücken, dass Ihr Bauch frei liegt." (Go ahead and lift your shirt for me and lay back. I'll get you adjusted so your belly's exposed.)

Freida did as instructed lifting her shirt up to right under her bra while the tech tucked the paper into Freida's panties tugging those down until her belly was fully exposed. The tech commented about her not showing but assured it wasn't completely unheard of. Babies sometimes just grow up instead of out and it made the baby bump difficult to see. She warned Freida the gel would be cold before getting some on her belly then using the wand to spread it around before she started working. Right away, the image of their baby came up but they weren't really sure what they were looking at.

"Hier ist der Kopf des Babys," (Here is baby's head) the tech said, pointing it out to them. "Bevor ich es vergesse: Möchtest du das Geschlecht wissen?" (Before I forget, do you want to know the sex?)

"Ja," Freida and Tristan both answered.

"Sehr gut. Sobald wir mit unseren Messungen fertig sind, werden wir das Geschlecht des Babys bestimmen," (Very good. Once we finish our measurements, we'll determine baby's sex) the tech answered and at first, the scan was going fine.

She measured the baby's head a few times and then moved the wand finding an arm, pointing it out to them and then measuring that. She did the same thing for the baby's other arm and managed to measure the baby's back as well. Trouble arose when she was trying to measure the baby's feet and get the face on screen and so on. According to the tech, the baby kept moving around and wouldn't sit still. "Das Baby macht da drin Purzelbäume," (Baby's doing somersaults in there) she commented as she moved the wand around. The baby just wouldn't cooperate it seemed and an appointment that likely should've only taken a half hour ended up taking over fifty minutes altogether. The tech began suggesting they may have to reschedule for a time when the baby was more cooperative but, at long last, the tech found what she was looking for.

"Endlich," (Finally) the tech said with a sigh of relief. "Herzlichen Glückwunsch. Es ist ein Mädchen." (Congratulations. It's a girl.)

Despite that having been her instinct anyway, Freida was still lost for words. Now they knew. There was no doubt now: they were having a girl. Freida heard Tristan sniffle a little but didn't look at him. He was tearing up to be sure. He'd gotten his heart set on a girl since Freida had been so sure and now it was set in stone and he couldn't be happier. The tech took a few more measurements and then printed out a collection of pictures for them labeling them appropriately. One picture was of the baby's feet, a few showed their baby's face, another was of the top of her head and another was a picture of her genital region with 'Es ist ein Mädchen!' written on it. The tech helped Freida clean her belly and gave them privacy after letting them know what room to go to once they were ready.

"Were you crying?" Freida asked Tristan once they were alone and instead of denying it, he just smiled a little.

"Sure I was," Tristan said and rubbed his eye again staring at the pictures. "Amber Lynn Black," he said.

"Yeah," Freida said with the same smile. "We'd better get to our exam room. I suspect we took up a lot more time than was planned for."

"Hey, little Amber didn't want to sit still; that's not our fault," Tristan said as he stood from the chair in the corner.

"She's uncooperative; she gets that from you so it's your fault," Freida joked.

"Talk about the Pot calling the Kettle Black; you're difficult on a good day," Tristan answered back.

"I am the picture of amiability and cooperation," Freida said as she was fighting herself to keep her face straight but when Tristan walked in front of her giving her a playfully serious look, she broke and started laughing.

"You say that shit to me with a straight face. I dare you," he said but Freida just couldn't do it.

She didn't engage or respond as she continued fighting her laughter leaving the room so they could go across the office to the exam room. The laughter had died down by the time they made it to the exam room and Tristan was staring at the ultrasound pictures with a distant smile on his face. They waited another few minutes before there was a knock on the door and a nurse stepped in to take Freida's blood pressure and asked for the forms documenting her at-home readings. Freida handed those over and then the nurse got the current reading: 142/91. Once the nurse left, Dr. Braun stepped in wearing scrubs and shoe coverings with a mask on his face that he took off once he was in the room.

"Afternoon Miss Hoffman. Congratulations to you both on a beautiful little girl." Freida and Tristan said thank you and then Dr. Braun added, "How are you feeling?"

"I don't feel so groggy as I did and the morning sickness is gone," Freida said.

"That's good," he said, "and I saw you've been diligent in taking your blood pressure three times a day."

"Yes, I have been," Freida nodded.

"You've been taking Aspirin?"

"Yes," Freida answered and from there Dr. Braun cleared his throat a little and started writing something down in Freida's file.

"Unfortunately your blood pressure isn't improving so what we'll do is put you on a blood pressure medication so we can start getting that under control for you."

"Doctor Braun?" Tristan said and got the doctor's attention, "This isn't permanent is it?"

"No, this will resolve itself once she's had the baby. Until then, we need to manage her symptoms and make sure this doesn't continue to progress. Now, Miss Hoffman, have you had any headaches or blurred vision?"

"No," Freida answered but she was anxious.

"That's good news," Dr. Braun said and handed her a piece of paper with his signature and a prescription on it. "Take this to the pharmacy and we'll start with having you take one pill in the morning and one pill at night. If your blood pressure continues to rise or it gets too low, we'll adjust the dose but that should be a good start."

"Do I still need to take the Aspirin?" Freida asked.

"Yes, continue taking Aspirin every morning. That'll help as well," Dr. Braun said. "And, of course, keep taking your prenatal vitamins. How has the iron supplement been? You mentioned the morning sickness is gone so I assume the supplement hasn't given you any nausea?"

"Not that I've noticed, no," Freida answered.

"Good," Dr. Braun said. "Do either of you have any questions for me?"

"Aside from Freida taking these blood pressure pills, is there anything else we can do to alleviate this?"

"No fried foods and using less salt will help but like I mentioned, this is a symptom of the pregnancy so it won't go away until she's had the baby," Dr. Braun said. "We just need to keep monitoring it and as before, if her blood pressure goes above 150 she needs to come to the hospital so we can monitor her."

"But outside of all this, the baby's okay?" Freida asked.

"Yes, the baby is doing very well," Dr. Braun assured. "She's growing exactly how she should and there's no indicator of any serious issues. I'm confident once you deliver, it will be a perfectly healthy baby girl."

"Okay," Freida nodded her head feeling some relief. "Thank you Dr. Braun."

"Did either of you have anymore questions?" he asked but Freida and Tristan both shook their heads. "In that case, Miss Hoffman, we'll see you again in 4 weeks."

"Will that visit include an ultrasound?"

"No, it will be a specialized blood test to check if there's a concern for gestational diabetes," Dr. Braun answered.

"Watch me get that too," Freida mumbled.

"We won't know for sure until we do the appropriate tests but right now it's a bit too soon to do that," Dr. Braun said. "All the same, if it turns into a problem, we'll make sure to address it."

"Okay," Freida answered. After the doctor left the room, Freida and Tristan packed away the pictures and Freida's folder with her blood pressure readings and went to the front desk to schedule her appointment. The receptionist gave Freida more logs for her to take home to continue tracking her blood pressure and then they set the date of her next appointment.

"Hat Dr. Braun mit Ihnen besprochen, was Sie bei Ihrem nächsten Termin erwartet?" (Did Dr. Braun go over what to expect for your next appointment?) she asked Freida.

"Er sagte, bei meinem nächsten Termin würde es um einen Diabetestest gehen," (He said my next appointment would be to test for diabetes) Freida answered.

"Ja. Sie müssen vor dem Test ein Getränk zu sich nehmen. Mögen Sie lieber Orange oder Traube?" (Yes. There is a drink you will need to take before we test you. Do you prefer orange or grape?)

"Um," Freida began, honestly not knowing which she would prefer and she shrugged, "Orange ist in Ordnung.) (Orange is fine.)

The receptionist nodded and then went to a tiny cabinet to one side and grabbed the bottle of orange liquid handing it to Freida. She told Freida most mom's have said it's easier to get down when cold and that she needed to drink it an hour before her blood test was scheduled and that, if it had not been an hour since she'd had the drink she needed to inform them before testing began. She let her know if she tested positive, other tests would need to be performed but if it was negative, no further testing would be needed. Once they had everything and Freida was scheduled for her next appointment, she left the hospital with Tristan and they went straight to the pharmacy managing to catch them just in time so she could get her prescription.

"Did you want to grab something while we're here?" Tristan asked after they'd bought her medication.

"Sure," Freida said and the two of them went to the deli and got some pre-made sandwiches and soup to take home. Once they made it back to their apartment, Freida got the soup in a pot to heat up on the stove and while they waited, Freida took her first dose of blood pressure medication and sat with Tristan on the couch. Once she was sitting next to him, Tristan took her in his arms holding her close. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm just on edge," Tristan said. "My grandpa had high blood pressure and he died of a stroke suddenly and then my grandma started having problems and she had several strokes before she eventually passed away."

"Tristan," Freida said with a gentle sigh and wrapped her arms around Tristan's waist, "you've got to remember I'm not fully human. This is only temporary. Once I have the baby, my blood pressure will return to normal and I'll be fine."

"I know," Tristan said, "It's just freaking me out is all."

"I know," Freida said, "but try not to worry too much about it. Everything will be fine."

Freida made a point to drop the matter after that and before long, the soup was hot and they started eating their soup and sandwiches. She finally started to relax while they were sitting together and talked about their days and the plans for Paris and what they could all do together. Freida was actually getting really excited for the trip, having never been outside Germany much less to Paris and she listened intently to Tristan talk about the sites they'd seen when he and his sister had gone to Paris for their Mitzvah present. Later when it was time for bed, the two of them brushed their teeth together squeezing themselves into the tiny bathroom and then once they were in bed, Tristan read a chapter of Moby Dick to Freida's belly although she fell asleep rather quickly growing bored with Ishmael describing having breakfast with several other whalers yet the table being silent as they ate. When the most interesting thing to happen in that chapter was Queequeg helping himself to more meat using his harpoon, it was a Herculean effort to even fain interest in the story.

Tristan continued reading until the chapter was finished and then adjusted Freida so she was properly lying down in bed with her head on the pillow. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and then leaned down to kiss her flat belly wishing the baby good night and then finally turned over to fall asleep himself. Then, rather suddenly, around 11:00 at night, Freida was awaking with the most agonizing pain she'd ever felt in her life. It was nipple pain but unlike anything she'd felt this pregnancy or ever before. The sensation was akin to stinging: intense, unrelenting, agonizing stinging. The pain was so intense, she was instantly brought to tears. She sat up in bed tucking her hands into her nightshirt to cover her breasts with her hands in a vain hope it would get rid of the pain but it wouldn't let up. She glanced at Tristan, who was still sound asleep, and considered waking him but she decided against it. It would pass the instant she woke him up she was sure so there was no point. However the pain continued for nearly an hour. 45 minutes to be exact.

Freida went to the floor grabbing her heating pad getting it to the highest setting and pressing it to her breasts but that also did nothing. The pain would not stop. So she got to her kitchen opening up the freezer and grabbing a plastic bag to fill with ice and pressed that to her chest. It did nothing. The pain continued and for several minutes of pressing the ice to her chest in vain, it wouldn't go away. She was left in tears crying profusely but silently on the kitchen floor enduring the worst pain she'd ever felt. She couldn't speak; all she could do was cry lying on her back on the floor waiting an eternity. When the pain finally went away, she pulled herself up off the floor and glanced at the clock realizing it was now midnight. She got herself back into bed in shock over what just happened but eventually managed to get to sleep. However, as soon as she went to sleep, the pain returned and woke her up again this time at one in the morning. She didn't know what else to do so she put the heating pad to her chest yet again and started praying for the pain to go away, not sure what else to do. Then after managing to get to sleep, one final time the pain woke her up, this time at three in the morning. That instance the pain did not last as long, but even after managing to get back to sleep, her alarm went off at 5 waking her up after a sleepless night. Tristan was already awake just stepping out of the shower and was getting dressed to leave for base.

"Tristan," Freida cried a little and her voice caught his immediate attention and he rushed to her.

"Freida? Are you okay? What's wrong?" he asked and lifted her up so she was sitting on the bed and he was holding her. "Were you crying?"

"Ich weiß nicht, was passiert ist," (I don't know what happened) Freida said in German, far too tired to be bothered with English. "Meine Brustwarzen hatten so viel Schmerz." (My nipples were in so much pain.)

"Your nipples?" Tristan asked with confusion. "Was it that pinching feeling again?"

"Es war nicht 'gezwickt'. Es stechen," (It wasn't 'pinching'. It was stinging.) Freida groaned.

"Holy shit," Tristan muttered and rocked her trying to comfort her. "When did this happen?"

"Three times last night," Freida said, finally having the energy to speak English.

"Did you try waking me?" he asked and Freida gently shook her head. "If this happens in the night again, wake me up okay? Even if all I do is hold you until it stops, just wake me up okay?"

"Okay," Freida managed and Tristan kept rocking her for a few minutes. When his eyes darted to the clock, he realized he was running late and he needed to leave.

"I need to get to work but if you need anything, just call the base and someone will get me," Tristan said and gave her a kiss and leaving for the base.

Barely managing to stay awake, Freida got herself dressed for work then made herself a quick breakfast, took her medication and then left her apartment. The rest of her day went along normally until around one that afternoon. She was at her desk working on her typewriter composing an approval letter when she suddenly felt that nipple pain all over again. It was so intense she had to stop what she was doing, unable to focus on anything but the pain. She tucked her hands into her shirt going into her bra to cover her nipples with her hands hunched over her desk desperate for the pain to stop and despite her best efforts, she couldn't hold back the tiny cries of pain.

"Freida, are you okay?" Yasmine asked when she heard Freida start whimpering then went to her desk when she saw Freida hunched over her desk. "Do you need an ambulance?" Yasmine asked, beginning to panic.

"No," Freida whimpered as her head hung over her desk.

"Freida, if you're having contractions, we need to get you to the hospital!" another coworker cried but Freida refused again.

"It's not contraction," she said and breathed deeply through the pain.

"Do I need to call an ambulance?" their boss asked as he came to their section of the office having seen Freida hunched over.

"No," Freida insisted. At a loss of what else to do, Yasmine started rubbing Freida's back trying to sooth her. It took several minutes for the pain to finally go away. It thankfully didn't last nearly as long as it did at night put the intense stinging was no less painful.

"Are you okay?" Yasmine asked when Freida finally sat up and took her hands out from her shirt.

"I'm fine," Freida said. "I just," she stopped and glanced up only now realizing their boss was there.

"What?" their boss asked and Yasmine spoke up.

"Freida, let's go to the lunch room and get a snack," she said and encouraged Freida away from her desk to the lunch room so they could talk without their boss there. "Okay, now that we don't have a man hovering, what happened?"

"It's my nipples," Freida admitted. "Last night I started experiencing this stinging sensation and I just experienced it again at my desk. The pain was so bad it woke me up three times last night."

"Stinging?" Yasmine asked. "Is…..is that normal? I've never heard of that one."

"Neither have I," Freida said and put some coins in the machine to get herself a bottle of coke. "It must be the medication."

"What medication are you on? If it's doing this to you, you should probably stop taking it," Yasmine said.

"I can't," Freida answered, "I was put on blood pressure medication."

"Oh," was all Yasmine said in response. Freida started guzzling down the soda and Yasmine asked, "Is it okay for you to be drinking carbona-" Freida stopped suddenly and rushed to the trashcan throwing up the soda she just drank and whatever else was in her stomach at the time. "Never mind."

"Fuck," Freida whimpered once she finally stopped.

"Have you talked to your doctor about this?"

"Last night's the first it's started happening," Freida said. "I'm going to call them and set up an appointment."

"Yeah, make sure to do that right away," Yasmine said. "This nipple stinging thing doesn't sound normal."

Once she was back at her desk, she took a moment to call the doctor so she could ask about her symptoms and ended up scheduling an appointment to see the doctor the next day. When she returned home that day, she told Tristan about what happened at work and promised she would be going to the doctor the next day about the nipple pain. Tristan asked if she wanted him to drive her but she insisted he didn't have to and that she'd see him when he returned home the next day. When she arrived at work, she informed her boss she had an appointment with her doctor and would need to leave early. When it was nearing her appointment, she left work and went straight to the hospital. The nurses took her vitals including her blood pressure and while it was still higher than the doctor wanted, it was better than it had been before.

"Hello," Olivia, the nurse practitioner, said as she stepped into the room Freida was waiting, "So what's been going on? How are you feeling?"

"I don't feel sick anymore," Freida said, "but now I'm feeling this horrible stinging sensation in my nipples."

"Stinging?" Olivia asked. Much to Freida's frustration, she looked completely perplexed just as any other woman Freida had thus far confided in. "Well, go ahead and lay back and I'll take a look."

Freida did as instructed laying back and Olivia came and pulled away the hospital gown to expose Freida's breasts. She touched the mounds squeezing it to check for anything concerning and paid close attention to the areolas especially, asking if anything was hurting but at the moment, nothing hurt.

"Well," Olivia said after she'd begun observing and had felt each breast, "it could be a yeast infection in the nipples but there's no redness – so it's unlikely. We'll still write you a prescription for an antibiotic to see if that helps."

"This didn't start happening until I started the blood pressure medicine," Freida said. "Is nipple stinging a normal symptom?"

"It's not one I've heard of," Olivia said. "I'm sure it's happened before but it's not common."

"Is there anything I can do about it? Maybe a numbing cream?" Freida pleaded.

"Sadly no," Olivia answered and took her hands away letting Freida secure the gown and sit up. "Let's try the antibiotics and if that doesn't work, at least we know it's not a yeast infection."

"I did not even know you could get a yeast infection in the breasts," Freida mumbled.

"Yes, I'm afraid you can," Olivia said. "Other than this, has everything else been alright?" Freida was about to mention one more symptom but she held back. The tingling in her hands was rather so Freida decided it wasn't worth bringing it up and she definitely couldn't stand there being more wrong with her.

"Yeah, I'm alright otherwise," Freida said.

"I'm glad to hear it, but if anything changes, just give us a call okay?"

Freida finally left the office with her prescription and stopped by the pharmacy to get her medicine. When she returned home, she gave Tristan the update and the rest of the night went by rather normally. However, it was quickly very clear it wasn't a yeast infection. Freida took the antibiotics but the pain never eased. Every night she was woken up anywhere from one to three times during the night from the intense pain and it would disrupt here day at least once every day although the exact time the pain would hit was never consistent. After Tristen insisted she wake him up every time it happened, it caused them both to lose sleep. Sometimes Tristan would wake up on his own and other times shed have to wake him but regardless, he would hold her and cuddle with her swaying back and forth soothingly until the pain finally stopped.

"Nipple stinging?" Helen asked when Freida brought it up to her mother. Tristan and Freidrick were sitting together on the porch while Freida was helping her mother make dinner. "When did this start?"

"When I started taking the blood pressure medication," Freida answered. "They put me on antibiotics in case it's a yeast infection, but I'm almost done with the dose and the pain isn't going away."

"That is so strange," Helen mumbled. "I've never heard of such a symptom before."

"Damn it," Freida whined. "I refuse to believe I'm the only woman to ever experience this."

"I'm sure you're not, Freida," Helen reassured and rubbed Freida's back. Then she glanced down at Freida's belly. "I cannot believe you're still not showing. When I was pregnant with you, I was showing within a few days."

"Supposedly I'll blow up come the third trimester," Freida lamented.

"It'll all be alright, Freida," Helen promised. "We're leaving for Paris in a few weeks; we can all finally meet Tristan's parents and become acquainted. That'll be exciting."

"I just hope his mom will be comfortable meeting dad," Freida said.

"I don't want you worrying about any of that," Helen said. "You've got enough to worry about. I'm sure everything will be alright."

Regardless of her mother's reassurance, Freida was still extremely anxious and with the lack of sleep from this new symptom, it was only making her feel worse. Tristan called home as soon as he was able to talk to Kyle but to his shock, Kyle was just as befuddled by the symptom as everyone else seemed to be. "You're honestly telling me in the 100 years you've been a doctor you've never once heard of this?" Tristan had asked.

"I'm sorry, Tristan, but I haven't," Kyle had said, "And for God's sake, I'm not that old."

While Carlisle confirmed he'd known of many instances in which pregnant mothers experienced nipple tenderness, he too had never heard of 'stinging' in the nipples and this new information served to only frustrate Tristan more. The only suggestion Kyle could make was Lidocaine, so Tristan reached out to Cristoff to obtain some and presented it to Freida when they returned home. She was excited and used it the instant she started feeling even the slightest pain but her excitement was short lived. It didn't work. She kept applying it throughout the night every time the pain happened but it never helped and every time she did and it didn't work, Tristan felt more and more helpless.

By the time it was nearing the day they'd be leaving for Paris, Freida was operating on virtually no sleep and was eating constantly to make up for it. A sandwich with soup from the deli near her office became an almost daily meal for her but she dropped it the instant her pants started becoming uncomfortable. She began wearing dresses to ease the discomfort but when she looked at herself in the mirror, she never saw a belly. She'd asked Cristoff if there could be something wrong that would cause her not to show but his only answer was sometimes babies grew upwards instead of outwards although he could think of very few instances in his own medical career where he'd seen such a thing. Of course, he prefaced that by making it clear he was not an OBGYN and had limited experience with pregnancy outside of what his own wife had gone through many years before. The day finally came for them to leave and they all met up at the train station before getting on together for what would be an 8 hour trip. In truth, Freida was so desperate for sleep she figured the train ride would be a great way to get it.