Silt, Denver Cereal Volume 8 Read Online Free Page A

you doing?” Jill
asked.
    “ Good.” Honey
smiled.
    “ We’re really at our last
chance for natural delivery,” Blane said.
    “ I’m sorry but I don’t
understand why you’re pushing for a natural birth?” Jill smiled at
her little pun and took Honey’s hand. “I’ll probably have a
C-section.”
    “ Because she’s in a
wheelchair,” Steve said. “C-sections are harder to heal for people
in a wheelchair and she’ll have an infant to care for. She’d have
to be admitted for at least a day, maybe two just to get a jump
start on the healing.”
    “ I don’t want to go to the
hospital,” Honey grunted. “I’ve spent enough time
there.”
    Jill nodded.
    “ How can we help?”
Anjelika asked.
    “ Honey’s getting tired,”
Blane said. He pointed toward the screen. “So is the baby. We
thought you might be able to give them a little healing
boost.”
    “ Sure,” Jill
said.
    Jill put her hands on Honey’s belly and
looked up at the monitor. The baby stirred. She felt something
behind her as Colin set a chair behind her. Jill sat down. Mike
stood across from her and put his hands between hers. Anjelika went
to Honey’s head and put her hands on her head. Steve put his hand
on her shoulder.
    “ Ooh, I feel warm!” Honey
said, before gasping. A contraction ripped through her.
    “ We’re moving now,”
Camilla the midwife said. “Honey, can you wait for
one . . .?”
    Honey jerked up with the force of her
contraction.
    “ This is our shot,”
Camilla said. “You do this now or we’ll get the doctor.
Si?”
    “ Got it,” Honey
said.
    “ Blane?” Camilla
said.
    Blane removed a needle from her hand and
placed a new needle in her head.
    “ Ready,” Blane
said.
    “ Go Honey,” Camilla said.
“Push, push, push, push . . .”
    Honey groaned.
    “ Help her!” Camilla
pointed MJ to Honey’s head. She nudged Jill with her shoulder. “Do
more now.”
    Colin touched Jill’s shoulder. Jill looked
back at him to see that he was holding the vase full of salt water
she’d prepared. She lifted her left hand to touch the vase.
    “ Mike!” Jill
said.
    Mike looked up, saw the vase, and lifted his
right hand from Honey’s belly to hold the vase.
    “ Mom!” Mike
said.
    Anjelika leaned over to touch the glass.
    “ Steve,” Anjelika
said.
    Steve set down the ultrasound wand and
reached to touch the water. A connection seemed to be made the
moment Steve touched the vase. Colin picked up the ultrasound wand
so that they could see the baby again. Honey bore down and the baby
moved.
    “ Good,” Camilla said. “Go
Honey go! You can do this. Go!”
    Closing her eyes to concentrate, Jill heard
her own sons cheering for Honey and the baby they knew to be a
girl. When she opened her eyes, the baby had crowned.
    “ One more time!” Camilla
said.
    Margaret Celia Scully was born.
    ~~~~~~~~
    Saturday afternoon—2:03 p.m.
     
    Humming to herself, Valerie cleaned the main
Castle kitchen. Tomorrow was Delphie’s annual Harvest Day. Valerie
was in charge of making sure there was room in the refrigerator and
kitchen to store everything they harvested.
    Harvest Day was Valerie’s favorite day of
the year. She had been here at the Castle for every Harvest Day.
Even when she wasn’t getting along with Mike, she’d come home to
help dig out a potato or whatever. Valerie loved the glorious
experience of finding one treasure after another. Now that she was
home, she loved the idea that the tiniest seed could multiply into
a glorious vine that created a bounty of acorn squash or pumpkins
or watermelon.
    When Celia had purchased this house,
Delphie’s first task was to remove the asphalt. Valerie smiled
remembering how Delphie had taken a sledgehammer to the black mess.
When Delphie went to work the next day, Celia had paid a team from
Lipson Construction to take out the asphalt. Delphie had come home
and the asphalt was gone. No one ever told her how the asphalt
disappeared. But then, she’d never