Chapter 12 – Saving the Twins
Chapter 12 – Saving the Twins
The applause inside the boardroom faded behind me.
By the time the elevator doors closed, the celebration no longer mattered.
The company had been saved.
The empire had been secured.
None of it meant anything if I lost the only two lives I truly cared about.
A sharp pain gripped my abdomen.
I bent forward instinctively.
Dr. Ellis caught my arm before I could fall.
"Mara."
His voice became urgent.
"When did the contractions start again?"
I looked at my watch.
"They never completely stopped."
Another contraction hit.
Stronger.
Longer.
Only four minutes after the last one.
Victor's face turned pale.
"No..."
Dr. Ellis was already reaching for his phone.
"We're going back to the hospital."
The Race Against Time
Outside headquarters, a convoy was waiting.
The lead security officer opened the SUV before we reached it.
"No hospitals nearby," Dr. Ellis said firmly.
"St. Catherine's. Now."
The driver nodded once.
The convoy pulled into traffic with police escort.
Red and blue lights flashed across rain-soaked streets.
Inside the SUV, I struggled to breathe through another contraction.
Victor held my hand tightly.
"Look at me."
I lifted my eyes.
"You've survived everything they've thrown at you."
"You'll survive this too."
I smiled weakly.
"I'm not afraid for me."
"I know."
I placed both hands over my stomach.
"I'm afraid for them."
Adrian's Lowest Moment
Across town, Adrian sat alone on a wooden bench outside company headquarters.
The cardboard box containing his personal belongings rested beside him.
One framed photograph.
A few books.
A coffee mug.
His office key.
Twenty years of work had been reduced to a single box.
His phone buzzed.
Michael Reynolds.
Adrian answered immediately.
"What happened?"
Michael didn't waste time.
"Mara's been rushed back to the hospital."
Adrian stood so quickly the box fell to the sidewalk.
"What?"
"Dr. Ellis believes she's in premature labor."
The world seemed to stop.
"The babies?"
"We don't know."
The line went silent.
Adrian whispered,
"Please..."
Michael had never heard him sound like that before.
Not like a businessman.
Not like an executive.
Like a frightened husband.
Emergency
The maternity team met us before the SUV stopped.
Nurses rushed my stretcher through the emergency entrance.
Dr. Ellis shouted instructions as they moved.
"Thirty-four weeks."
"Twin pregnancy."
"Trauma history."
"Contractions every three minutes."
"Prepare Operating Room Three."
The fluorescent lights blurred above me as the ceiling rushed past.
Another contraction tore through my body.
I cried out despite trying not to.
Victor followed until the operating room doors stopped him.
A nurse gently blocked his path.
"I'm sorry."
"You'll have to wait here."
The doors closed.
Leaving him alone.
Inside the Operating Room
The room filled with controlled urgency.
Monitors beeped.
Instruments were counted.
Doctors exchanged precise instructions.
Dr. Ellis leaned over me.
"Mara."
I nodded.
"We've done everything possible to delay delivery."
"I know."
"But the babies have made their decision."
Tears filled my eyes.
"So they're coming?"
He smiled gently.
"They're coming."
The anesthesiologist prepared the medication.
One of the nurses squeezed my shoulder.
"You're doing beautifully."
Another contraction hit.
I gritted my teeth.
Then suddenly...
The monitor changed.
A shrill alarm echoed through the room.
One of the nurses looked up sharply.
"Doctor."
"Heart rate dropping."
"Which baby?"
"Twin B."
The room froze.
Only for a second.
Then everyone moved at once.
Outside
Victor stood alone in the hallway.
His hands trembled for the first time in decades.
The billionaire who had negotiated billion-dollar acquisitions...
Could do absolutely nothing.
Every few seconds he looked toward the operating room.
Praying.
Not bargaining.
Not calculating.
Simply praying.
A familiar voice interrupted him.
"Mr. Ashcroft."
Victor turned.
Adrian stood several feet away.
His clothes were soaked from the rain.
His face looked exhausted.
"I came as soon as I heard."
Victor stared at him.
"You shouldn't be here."
"I know."
"I just..."
He struggled to find the words.
"I need to know if they're alive."
Victor remained silent.
"I don't expect forgiveness."
"I don't expect to see Mara."
"I'll leave if you ask."
He looked toward the operating room.
"But those babies..."
His voice broke.
"They're my children too."
Victor looked at him for a long moment.
Then quietly answered,
"They are."
The silence between them felt endless.
Finally Victor spoke again.
"If either of them dies today..."
Adrian closed his eyes.
"I'll blame myself every day for the rest of my life."
Victor nodded slowly.
"As you should."
Fighting for Two Hearts
Inside the operating room...
The alarms continued.
"Twin B down to ninety."
"Eighty-eight."
Dr. Ellis remained perfectly calm.
"Prepare for emergency delivery."
The surgical team moved into position.
I could hear every word.
Every number.
Every alarm.
Fear threatened to overwhelm me.
I closed my eyes.
Not to escape.
To speak to my babies.
"My little miracles..."
"You've already survived more than anyone should."
"You don't have to be brave alone."
"Mommy's here."
"I'll meet you."
"But you have to keep coming toward me."
A nurse suddenly smiled.
"Doctor!"
The monitor climbed.
"Ninety-five."
"One hundred."
"One hundred ten."
Dr. Ellis looked at the screen.
"Good."
"Stay with me, little one."
Another contraction.
Then another.
Minutes passed like hours.
Finally Dr. Ellis nodded.
"We're ready."
"Mara..."
"It's time."
The First Cry
The room became a blur of movement.
Pressure.
Voices.
Hands.
Then—
A tiny cry.
High-pitched.
Fragile.
Beautiful.
The entire operating room paused.
One nurse laughed through tears.
"It's a girl."
I sobbed openly.
"My daughter..."
But no one handed her to me.
Another alarm sounded.
"Twin B still in distress."
Dr. Ellis didn't look away.
"We're not finished."
Seconds later...
Another intense push.
Another moment that seemed to stretch forever.
Then silence.
Too much silence.
No cry.
The room became tense.
A neonatal specialist lifted my son.
He wasn't breathing.
"Come on..."
The doctor whispered.
Another nurse began gentle resuscitation.
Victor, waiting outside, heard nothing.
Adrian heard nothing.
The hallway remained painfully quiet.
Inside, every heartbeat mattered.
The neonatal team worked with flawless precision.
A tiny oxygen mask.
Gentle compressions.
Warm blankets.
"Again."
Another second.
Then another.
I couldn't see him.
Only the faces around me.
Then—
A weak cough.
Another.
Suddenly...
A cry.
Soft.
Hoarse.
But unmistakable.
The room erupted with relieved laughter.
"It's a boy."
"He's breathing."
Dr. Ellis closed his eyes for one brief moment before smiling.
"They're both here."
"They're both alive."
A New Beginning
An hour later, the twins rested side by side in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Small.
Wrapped in matching white blankets.
Connected to monitors.
But alive.
Victor stood beside the incubators.
Tears streamed freely down his face.
"They're beautiful."
I smiled weakly from my hospital bed.
"They look nothing like billionaires."
Victor laughed.
"Thank God."
Outside the nursery window, Adrian watched from a distance.
He wasn't allowed inside.
He didn't ask to be.
He simply stood there, looking at the tiny son and daughter he had nearly lost before ever holding them.
A nurse quietly approached him.
"They're stable."
He whispered,
"Can they..."
His voice caught.
"...can they hear me?"
The nurse smiled softly.
"They probably know their father's voice."
Adrian stepped closer to the glass.
He placed one trembling hand against it.
"I'm sorry."
"I wasn't the man you deserved."
"I promise..."
Tears rolled down his face.
"...if I ever earn the chance to know you..."
"You'll never have to fear me."
Inside the nursery, the little boy stretched one tiny hand.
The little girl turned toward her brother.
Neither knew the world they had entered.
Neither knew the war fought for their lives.
They only knew one thing.
They had survived.
And with their first cries...
Hope had been born alongside them.
May you like
End of Chapter 12
Chapter 13 – The Father They Had to Become
