A Waltz with Traitors by A.L. Sowards

Author:A.L. Sowards
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Covenant Communications, Inc.
Published: 2022-11-14T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-One

Nadia stayed with Veronika all through the night, even when Anton came. He’d never attended a birth either. She and Larisa obeyed his requests anyway, whether it was fetching more water or applying counterpressure to Veronika’s back. And sometimes, Nadia just held Veronika’s hand through the contractions.

The sun was high the next morning when Veronika cried and pushed yet again.

“It’s the baby. I see hair.” Anton’s face was haggard, but the joy of those words seemed to wipe away hours of exhaustion. “One more push, Ver. You’re almost done.”

Nadia sat behind Veronika, supporting her back, so she couldn’t see, but at the next contraction, she felt her friend tremble and push again and heard the groan. Then Anton’s laughter merged with a baby’s wail. “It’s a boy.”

Veronika sighed and leaned back. Despite the exhaustion from so much pain and so much work, she beamed. “A son.”

Nadia wiped her friend’s forehead with a cool cloth while Anton delivered the afterbirth and cut the infant’s cord. Larisa wrapped the baby in a blanket and placed him in Veronika’s arms. The new parents admired each fragile finger and each tiny toe. The baby was small and red and somehow the most endearing thing Nadia had ever seen.

She excused herself after a while. “I’ll find something for Veronika to eat.” Her work that night had been minor compared to Veronika’s, but she was tired and hungry. Veronika had to be even more so.

She returned with food, then later with a bucket of warm water so they could clean the baby. The meal did little to restore Veronika’s energy, but it would take several days, maybe weeks to recover. Anton washed the newborn boy, who screamed loudly until his father dried him and once again wrapped him in a blanket.

Someone knocked on the side of the boxcar, and then the door slid open, and Dalek came inside, followed by Filip. Nadia’s eyes went to Filip first. They always did now, whenever he was in the room.

“Dalek, Filip, come meet my son!” Anton held the infant higher so his friends could see.

“A son? That’s wonderful!” Filip came closer and brushed the baby’s hair with a reverent finger. For a moment, Nadia was filled with longing. Helping Veronika with the delivery had made her glad she was not with child. The process had been terrifying. And Veronika was no weakling. If she had cried in pain, what would Nadia do? But in the end, she had a baby. What would it be like to bear a child and share it with Filip? The pain still frightened her, but the outcome—the outcome appealed to her.

Anton bent to give his wife a kiss. “Yes, and my beautiful, brave Veronika is well.” Anton met Nadia’s eyes for a moment. “She had the help of dear friends.”

Nadia felt her cheeks grow warm. Veronika had shown Nadia so much kindness. Nadia was glad to return a bit of it.

“Dalek?” Anton’s face held question. “What’s wrong?”

Dalek glanced from the baby to Veronika to Anton.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.