“All right, all right, one at a time,” he said and pointed to a man he’d never met before. “You. Tell me your name and what you’d like to see in our future.”
35
A scream of pain bellowed out of Jade. She leaned forward out of the nest of pillows supporting her back. At the foot of the bed, Kathleen gave her an encouraging smile. “You’re doing great, Jade,” she said in a supportive tone. “They’re getting longer. That means the baby will be here soon. You’re almost there.”
“You have a way better bedside manner than I do,” Nikki murmured beside Kathleen as Jade screamed again and another contraction wracked her body.
Kathleen winked at the doctor as Jade rode out the contraction and then collapsed back into the heap of pillows. “I can’t imagine doing this without an epidural,” Kathleen admitted.
“I don’t think Jade imagined it either,” Nikki said. “She’s setting the record, though. First baby to be born at the hotel.”
Kathleen’s grin widened. “Another one will be coming in a few more moments,” she said and looked up to where Max was holding Jade’s hands and wiping Jade’s dark hair back from her face. “How are you doing, Max?” she asked.
“How is he doing?” Jade cried out. “He’s telling me another stupid joke, that’s how he is doing. He’s—”
Another contraction hit her and she cried out. Her face screwed up in pain, and she gripped Max’s hand so hard that he winced. “Thanks, Kathy,” Max said. “Glad you’re directing her fists of fury onto me.”
“It’s your fault I’m in this mess,” Jade snarled, but her words had no threat to them. “It’s your fault you made me laugh at that stupid joke while we were on that stupid date by that stupid river—”
“Lots of stupids going on here,” Max said as Jade cried out again. “Ouch.”
“You’re doing wonderful, Jade,” Kathleen urged. “One more big push. The baby is crowning. Soon you’ll be a brand-new mother.”
“God help us,” Jade said.
Kathleen shared a smile with Nikki. She couldn’t stop smiling. The past nine months had been a whirlwind, starting from the day Jade came to her looking pale and terrified as she whispered that she was late. She and Max had been seeing each other for only a couple of months. Kathleen knew that Jade had fought the attraction, but for some reason Max was able to make Jade laugh. When it seemed like there was going to definitely be a new addition to their family, Kathleen had congratulated the would-be parents, who were both bursting with fear, love, and affection, and then yanked Nikki aside.
The two doctors had snuck away to plot how they were going to handle this. The community was becoming more settled, and they were all seeing families form and young love bloom. Yet for the two healers in the community, that meant they needed to figure out how to become midwives in addition to dentists, surgeons, and overall family practitioners.
Kathleen remembered Nikki arguing with her one evening about how they were going to approach the issue.
“It’s not like pregnancies are going to go away, Nikki,” Kathleen had said as she took a drink from a bottle of wine they’d found and saved for this very occasion.
“I wish they would,” Nikki said, taking the bottle from Kathleen and taking a sip. They were sitting outside under the tree where David had been buried, looking at the stars. “We only have prairie medicine, now. Pregnancy is difficult even in the best situations. We don’t have an epidural. We can’t do caesareans if a baby is breech. So many women died in childbirth.” Nikki looked sick. “I don’t want to bury any young women.”
“I know it will be difficult,” Kathleen said, “but we can’t stop people from falling in love and expressing that love.”
Nikki had given her a knowing look and refused to give her the wine bottle. “You’re just excited to have a niece or nephew.”
“Of course I am! But it’s not just that. There’s nothing we can do to stop it. The deed is done. Our job is to figure out a way to deliver the child to the best of our ability. You need to train me on how to be a midwife.”
“I’ll be learning that myself!” Nikki exclaimed. “We’ll have to find a place that can be sterilized. We don’t have any vaccines for the child, so they might get sick easily. We have to prepare for that.”
“Pregnancy has been around since the dawn of time,” Kathleen said. “We can do it. Instincts will kick in. We don’t need epidurals. We don’t need medicines. Sure, they’re great, but we will be able to manage.” She had reached out and taken Nikki’s hands. “We’ve dealt with worse.”
“Yes, we have,” Nikki said softly, squeezing Kathleen’s hands back. “At least this time there will be adorable fingers and toes.”
“God, I can’t wait to see Max suffer with his first child,” Kathleen had cackled. “He’ll be head over heels for the little lamb.”
Now, here they were. As Jade had grown plumper, Kathleen and Nikki had done as much research as they could. They’d gone into Galena and raided the library, bringing back endless books on medicine, delivery, and what to expect for new mothers. They’d done as much research as they could and now it was time to put their knowledge to the test.
“I’m never doing this again,” Jade cursed as she pushed. “I’m going to be a terrible mother. It’s genetic. isn’t it? My mother was awful, ergo, I’m going to be awful.”
Max leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek. “We’ve talked about this,” he said in a gentle voice. “You’re nothing like your mother. This is a good thing, Jade. We’re a good thing.”
Jade’s eyes softened and she turned so that Max could kiss her full on the mouth. Kathleen bit back a grin. She loved seeing her brother in love with a woman—truly in love, like, would-do-anything-for-her kind of love. He had grown up so much. Kathleen knew that Max would be a wonderful father. She was already blown away with how encouraging a partner he’d turned out to be. He even promised that if Jade didn’t want to be with him, he would still care for their child no matter what. Kathleen was pretty certain that Jade had fallen in love with him even more after he’d told her that. She was a strange person, but she valued her freedom, and since Max was so easygoing, she knew the two of them would be together for a long time. She hoped forever.
It wasn’t only that Max had stepped up for Jade. He’d become a pillar of the community. People knew and respected him. It seemed as if he’d finally found his place, oddly enough. He was happier than he’d been in a long time. Kathleen didn’t know if he just needed people who he could turn to and speak truthfully to, or if it was the close-knit nature of the community that was part of it, but Max seemed content.
Maybe it was because Max, Matthew, and Wyatt had become a trio of sorts. They seemed to do everything together, and the resulting bond had become very strong. They’d even started looking for a secondary location to begin digging another well. They’d used dowsing rods, despite Matthew’s scoffs at the idea, and were starting to dig into the underground aquifer. Kathleen knew that a second well wasn’t a dire need, but she also knew it wouldn’t hurt to have two water sources to draw from. Especially now that their community of the hotel and the gun club had expanded so much.
New people were coming to the hotel. They were either refugees from Samuel’s old commune or they were newcomers searching for a home in this changed world. Matthew and Wyatt would always sit them down and explain the laws they all abided by, walk them through the expectations of living here, and let the newcomers make the decision. Most of the time, people were overjoyed to join a thriving community. As the community grew, the members had begun clearing portions of the mountain between the hotel and the gun club. They’d either reclaimed houses to live in or built new cabins for others.
Sometimes, Kathleen thought about when it all began. She’d been stranded in Chicago and she thought she’d never be happy again. She’d been so scared of all that she had lost. Yet now, she found her days full of tasks, chores, learning medicine, and evenings spent cuddled up with
her husband while they listened to community members make music or dance around the group bonfire.
Allison and Patton were also growing up. Too fast for her taste, but so it goes. Patton had the same close brotherhood with a couple of friends from the gun club. Allison had started to find people close to her age that she enjoyed being around. Kathleen had also seen some of the boys eye Allison and bring her flowers and tokens of affection, but she knew Allison was a slow mover. She would wait for the right man.
Jade screamed in pain again. “One more push,” Kathleen urged and cupped her hands, ready to scoop up the baby. “One more!”
Jade cried out and the baby was suddenly in Kathleen’s arms. Nikki moved quickly and cut the cord, while Kathleen stood and wiped the baby’s face clean. A baby girl. Kathleen’s heart swelled to bursting. The little girl screamed, the newfound voice cutting through the room and making Kathleen tear up. Immediately, she handed the baby to Jade, who cradled the newborn close to her chest. Jade looked at the child as if stunned. Max cooed over his daughter.
“I can’t believe it,” Jade said, close to tears. “Max, look at her. She’s beautiful.”
“I love you,” Max said and kissed Jade. “I love you,” he said to the baby, and kissed the crown of her head.
Kathleen settled back down as the new parents bonded with their child. There was still more to come now that the child had come out. She and Nikki prepared for the placenta to be delivered. Jade bled more than normal, but it seemed to be nothing that Nikki couldn’t handle. “Go outside and tell the community,” Nikki said to her. “I know they’re dying to know. And now that they can hear those cries…”
“All right,” Kathleen said and stood. She wiped her hands, removed her apron, and slipped outside.
Most of the community was waiting or pacing in the hotel’s front lobby. Out the window, Kathleen saw others who were furiously working on the garden that had expanded from a small plot to a vivaciously large acre. Everyone looked up at her as she entered the room.
Ruth sat with Allison in one of the chairs. Many young women were waiting anxiously for news. Kathleen knew why. She’d told Nikki that night, hadn’t she? Pregnancy wasn’t something that could be avoided. A lot of women wanted to become mothers, but were scared for their lives. They wanted to know they would be well taken care of. That it could be accomplished. While Kathleen didn’t like to say it in front of Jade, the young woman had been an experiment of sorts.
Now, though, Kathleen felt on top of the world. She knew she would be able to give not just Jade but all of these women hope for the future. She could allay their fears and show them that there could be many good things in this life.
“It’s a girl,” Kathleen announced proudly. “Jade and Max have a baby girl.”
Ruth smiled and said loudly, “But is she healthy?”
Kathleen opened her mouth to respond, but she was cut off by the loud wail of a newborn. The sound rang down the hallway, and every face in the room broke into a grin. Kathleen laughed. “Oh yes,” she said. “Definitely healthy. How could she not be? She’s my niece, after all!”
Ruth stood and walked to the front door and flung it open. Everyone outside seemed to come to a standstill, as if waiting for the news.
“Max and Jade have a baby girl!” she shouted, and it seemed her voice echoed from the mountains.
Kathleen smiled at the joy that suffused the room. She hugged her own daughter.
Even though her niece would grow up in a very different world than her own children had, Kathleen knew that one thing would never change. That little girl would never be without love. This community would never be without hope.
It wasn’t the future any of them thought they would have, but the foundations of their lives were the same whether it was now or before. There would always be love and hope at the River Rock Hotel.
End of Erupting Chaos
EMP Catastrophe Book Three
Erupting Trouble, April 14th, 2021
Erupting Danger, May 12th, 2021
Erupting Chaos, June 9th, 2021
PS: Do you love EMP post-apocalyptic fiction? Then keep reading for exclusive extracts from Emerging Chaos and Escaping Conflict.
Thank you
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(EMP Catastrophe Book Three)
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About Grace Hamilton
Grace Hamilton is the prepper pen-name for a bad-ass, survivalist momma-bear of four kids, and wife to a wonderful husband. After being stuck in a mountain cabin for six days following a flash flood, she decided she never wanted to feel so powerless or have to send her kids to bed hungry again. Now she lives the prepper lifestyle and knows that if SHTF or TEOTWAWKI happens, she’ll be ready to help protect and provide for her family.
Combine this survivalist mentality with a vivid imagination (as well as a slightly unhealthy day dreaming habit) and you get a prepper fiction author. Grace spends her days thinking about the worst possible survival situations that a person could be thrown into, then throwing her characters into these nightmares while trying to figure out "What SHOULD you do in this situation?"
You will find Grace on:
BLURB
The power is out, and the world is in chaos…
When a Coronal Mass Ejection causes an EMP catastrophe and shuts down the power worldwide, Melanie Pearson is determined to reunite with her husband and daughter. But to cross dangerous territory and earn a spot in a well-fortified safe haven, she’ll need to help her boss find his own son first. As tension between Melanie and her boss escalates and he shows his vicious side, it becomes clear she may have made a deal with the devil.
When the lights go out, it’s Mark’s job to keep his daughter Shona by his side and find a way to reunite with his wife, Melanie, when the lights go out. There’s no way to turn the power back on, and Knoxville is quickly descending into chaos. His only goal is to find a way to get his family to safety.
With a destination in mind, the fractured family will face off against a world that is quickly becoming unrecognizable. And when even greater tragedy strikes, they will need to find a new way to survive. But what is the cost of survival in a world on the brink of collapse?
Get your copy of Emerging Chaos
Available September 8th, 2021
(Available for pre-order now)
www.GraceHamiltonBooks.com
EXCERPT
Chapter One
His voice always preceded him, like the storm surge of a hurricane, a deep rumbling sound that hit just the right resonance to carry all the way down the hall and into the break room. Melanie Pearson was grateful for this. It meant she had time to brace herself for his arrival. And when Hurricane Derrick entered a room, it always brought trouble. Fortunately, it was a long walk from his big upstairs office at the back of the building to the bre
ak room where they’d had the Christmas party, and she’d left the door open.
“Sounds like a storm’s brewing,” Lizzy said. Currently, Melanie’s best friend was on her hands and knees, an open trash bag on the ground beside her. Melanie heard the soft clatter of plastic cups, as her friend dug party residue out from under the table.
“What does he possibly have to complain about now?” Melanie grumbled. She had a plastic grocery store bag in her left hand, and as she worked her way down the long counter, she picked up debris and tossed it into the bag. “We volunteered to clean up after the party on our own time.”
“Well, he didn’t have to have the party in the first place, let’s not forget,” Lizzy said, imitating Derrick’s voice as she strained to reach a corner where someone had dropped a paper plate with globs of red and green cake frosting still on it. “He’s just keeping the Platt family tradition alive.”
“Not without making sure we all know he resents it,” Melanie added.
The break room at Beaton’s Food Factory was a big, dingy space with ugly gray carpet that was frayed in spots, a big plastic table in the middle, a chipped counter, and a bulletin board covered in outdated information. Still, the employees had made a valiant effort to spruce up the place for the Christmas party. Red and green curled streamers hung down from the drop ceiling, a small Christmas tree stood at an angle in the corner, drooping with mismatched ornaments, and there’d been plenty to eat and drink, some of it halfway delicious.
EMP Catastrophe | Book 3 | Erupting Chaos Page 24