The Imperium had several hospitals in the capital, but many were full. Eugene made a point of checking in. He noted that the healers were careful to segregate anyone with symptoms of a fever. They didn't need or want another outbreak or plague. After catching a cold once he had been cautioned to not tour the clinic directly. It was also a security nightmare for his guards.
With the queen resting though, he made sure to put in a public appearance from one of the balconies. He kept it short, not willing to distract the healers. He was amused and a bit flattered by the usual smattering of applause and cheers when the natives noticed him.
He felt weird doing that odd wave politicians and royalty had perfected. Sure it was easy on the wrist, but it still felt weird. It was better than some of the Nazi-like salutes some people used though.
He kept it up for a moment, then gave them a light salute and withdrew so the healers could restore order and get back to work.
~~~^~~~
Eugene had just returned from checking on the clinic when they received a radio report from the city of Troy, northwest of the capital. The report was a few weeks old, detailing the pirate attack on the coastal fishing village. The dominus immediately requested help.
Eugene noted Deidra's grim look as they listened to the casualty reports. He quietly passed word to have the First Response Unit of the Flying Legion prepped to go out and respond.
"Send a warning to the coastal towns and villages," Deidra ordered. "They'll need runners to go to the fishing villages; we'll need reports on their status as well, regular reports."
Her staff nodded as they took careful notes.
"First response is prepping to go now," Eugene told her when she turned to him.
"Good. You can't go. Not now."
"Wasn't planning on it," he said, hands up.
She glowered at him but then nodded.
"Later. We'll plan to send a second unit of the legion as a follow-up as soon as we figure out where they'll strike next," he stated.
She nodded.
"I've got that computer model. It's nowhere near perfect, but we've been entering in the basic information like prevailing winds, currents, and tides. I think we can consult it to get a list of possible targets," he said.
Again she nodded. "Do it."
"I should check in with the legion commanders …," he said with a frown.
She shook her head. "No. You need to return to your usual routine so the people will not be alarmed."
"Business as usual?" he asked as she frowned and touched her belly. "You okay?" he asked.
"Just a touch of indigestion. I am not happy with this news."
"Ah. Remember what doc said about stress," he warned.
She nodded. "Go," she ordered imperiously. "Wait."
He paused and turned an exasperated look on her. "Yes?"
"You forgot to kiss me," she said, lifting her chin.
He smiled. "Well, heaven forbid I forget that," he said in a soft voice as he returned to her side and kissed her.
"Better," she murmured when the kiss broke and they looked into each other's eyes. "Now go," she said. "And eat an apple or something; you've got garlic on your breath."
"Yes, ma'am," he said with a shake of his head as he departed.
She groaned as she felt the indigestion sharpen a few minutes later.
She was passing orders when she had another pain, this one sharper that made her hiss. She rested an instinctive hand on her swollen belly and felt tremors as her muscles clenched and then eased. She felt at odds with herself. Then another pain hit and she realized it was not indigestion; she was entering labor."
"Not the best time to make an entrance," she said softly. "But you wouldn't be our child if you didn't set your own stubborn timetable," she said, and then hissed as pain nearly made her double over. She gasped and then motioned to a concerned paige. "Fetch the king and the doctor. Send others to find them. It is time."
"Time?"
"I'm in labor," she gasped out as another pain hit her.
Her guard turned to her in surprise as the paige gaped. "Move!" the guard barked then began to issue orders.
Deidra felt a bit of amusement as bedlam set in for the next few minutes.
~~~^~~~
Doctor Carter cleaned up at a wash basin and then rubbed the back of her neck. She was in dire need of a vacation but she was loving every moment of her work. The free medical clinic was starting to become a labor of love as well as one she was dreading though.
It was great to help so many people but also exhausting and for some cases, heartbreaking. They still needed a proper dentist as well as other specialists. Many barbers did the work on top of trimming hair and a host of other work. Some were even halfway decent about it, though they usually stuck to basic tooth extraction.
Adding new tools helped a bit. So did training and things like ether and medicines. Even the simple addition of penicillin helped. But they were a long way to go and she knew it.
Her third biggest need were optometrists. She had one interested and rather overworked intern in that specialty. Her number two need was of course surgeons. Number four was for general MDs like her.
Sometimes she wondered what Perry and the others had gotten up to and why they hadn't sent reinforcements or interested immigrants.
She shook her hands out and accepted a towel to dry them when a paige found her. He tugged on her arm urgently, still winded from his run.
"What?" she demanded.
"The palace …"
"We're in the palace."
"The queen …"
"Shit," Sue said, she turned to her assistant. "Take over here!" she said urgently as the paige pulled her to others who were coming to the entrance that led to the royal tower.
"The queen is in labor," the paige finally gasped out. "It's coming fast."
"Shit," Sue said again as she took off at a trot.
~~~^~~~
Max had gotten back to the capital a bit ahead of schedule, so he'd decided to find a bit of time to putter around in the lab rather than handle paperwork. He was death on paperwork anyway, and everyone knew it.
He couldn't help but grin a bit over that as he checked on the team working on building various presses and grinders. He winced when he heard an air powered tool in the machine shop go off. He pulled out his ear plugs and put them in. That was something else he'd insisted on, eye and ear protection. They were still working on eye protection though.
"Playing hooky?" he teased as he caught sight of Ryans. The king turned and waved. It was obvious that he hadn't heard Max over the air-powered tools though.
"What's up?" Max asked when he saw Ryans' look. It was clear something was up.
"The first responders just took off for the coast. Pirates," Eugene replied.
"Bloody hell. Pirates," Max grunted. "What more do we need?"
Eugene nodded grimly. He turned to the room he had been about to enter when Max had shown up. Max followed him in.
One of Max's students was on hand servicing one of the 3D printers. She smiled at them and bowed slightly to the king, but he waved for her to continue her work. She nodded and carefully popped the plate off and then put a new one back in its place. She then set the printer to work before it could cool down further and then popped the printed object off the plate.
It looked like it was a model for the schools, Eugene noted. He wasn't the only one who wanted the kids to have a crack at the best education, especially since his own kids would be in that system. Eventually that was.
"Looks good," he murmured, admiring the part. The flash and support material were carefully snipped off and put in a bin for recycling. The part was part of a gear train, typical of Max to focus on engineering models.
"Sire," an urgent voice said at the open door. They looked up to see a paige in the doorway, stopped by the guards. "Come quick, to the palace."
"Problem with the clinic?" Eugene asked. He'd been summoned a few times when tempers had gotten o
ut of hand.
"No, my lord, the queen is in labor," the paige said.
Eugene's eyes widened. He instantly took on a worried look and then rushed off, momentarily outpacing his guards.
"Good luck!" Max called. Eugene waved back but took off at a faster trot.
~~~^~~~
Sue arrived just as the queen gasped out and said she hoped it was a false alarm. The doctor helped her to sit in the special bed they'd arranged for the delivery and then checked her pulse.
"Were your vitals taken?"
"Not since you did it," Deidra said, trying to get comfortable but generally failing. "I'm hoping it's just a false alarm," she repeated as another contraction hit her.
"No, I'm pretty sure that's labor pains," the doctor said as she ran a practiced hand over the queen's belly. "It's a bit early yet. Your water hasn't broken?"
"Not … um …"
Sue noted the wet stain on the queen's thighs. "Perfectly normal. Let's get you cleaned and ready," she said. "What happened?"
"We got a report of a pirate attack on a fishing village to the north," the queen said as she writhed, angry at herself over the timing.
"Yeah, stress can induce early labor or false labor," Doctor Carter stated. She turned. "Clear the room. Anyone who doesn't need to be here can go," she ordered.
Staffers and people who just wanted to watch shifted and then moved out. The palace nurse came rushing up. "Sorry," the woman murmured over and over.
"You were in the clinic?" Sue asked. The nurse nodded as she got the equipment out. "Perfectly fine, we've got time."
She began to issue orders as they helped the queen out of her clothes and into her delivery gown. While they were at it, Sue did a quick dilation check.
They had just gotten the queen situated again in bed when Eugene arrived out of breath. Sue turned to him, examined him and then nodded. "Go change and scrub up," she said.
"It's time?" he asked eyes wide.
Sue gauged his level of fear and commitment. He was scared but he seemed like his usual self in high-stress situations. He was temping that fear and focusing on what to do. She nodded once and then turned to the queen.
"You are dilated to seven centimeters, and the contractions are coming on faster than I'd like. I wish I could give you something to slow them down; the baby is not in position yet."
"An epidural would be nice," Eugene muttered.
"Maybe for the next kid if you and Max can sort out how to make proper needles and stuff for it," she said with a bemused look to him. He spread his hands apart. "Yeah, I know, you are working on it."
"Yes, Doc," he said patiently.
"Well, let me do my job here," she said, running expert hands over his wife. She called additional gear and staff to come.
"Wait, breach birth?" he asked.
"Not if I can help it," Sue said grimly as the nurse began taking Deidra's vital signs.
Sue consulted the medics that arrived away from him as he looked on to Deidra. "Never the perfect time," he said.
She groaned, stroking her belly. "This one has your stubborn streak," she said.
"Mine?" he asked with whimsical amusement. "Well, I think a mix of both," he said. "With a bit of your perverseness mixed in for good measure."
"Oh no, this is all on you," she growled, then hissed as another contraction hit her.
"Don't bear down. It’s imperative you don't bear down. Not until the baby is ready and you are fully dilated," the nurse said.
"Thanks," the queen said as the nurse blotted sweat from her head. They gave her a sip of water from a straw. She was surprised that the water was cold.
Eugene smiled. "Rank has its privileges," he said at her unspoken question.
He looked over to the knot of medics arrayed nearby. Sue wasn't taking any chances; she was planning on every contingency. They even had blood packets and plasma ready. It was a grim reminder to Eugene that labor was a dangerous affair.
Despite the breezy assurances, it took ten hours for Deidra to have the baby. Sue tried to let the natural process turn the baby, but in the end, she had to help out with the process by reaching in and gently guiding the baby into position.
Eugene had long since given up on feeling his feet or hand. But he held in there for both of their sakes.
By the time the child emerged, everyone was tired but elated. Deidra had gone through the various stages of birth psychology, from exhaustion to anger and depression, before rallying for the final push. When the infant cried at the cold air, she relaxed, scaring Eugene briefly until he realized it was relief.
Sue took charge of the infant for a moment, cutting the cord, cleaning her air passages and giving her a light sponge bath. "Definitely a girl," she said, swaddling the baby in a provided pink cloth. "A good four kilos easy," she said as she returned the baby to her parents.
"Thanks, Doc. You do good work," Eugene murmured as they plied Deidra with more fluids to rehydrate her.
"I know. But a lot of this came from you two," Sue murmured, gently stroking the baby and then checking on Deidra.
"Yeah, another heartbreaker like her mother," Eugene said as he cuddled and admired the newborn with his wife.
"Hermione Alannah Ryans," Deidra said. Eugene blinked. "And no, I'm not giving in. I'm just combining the two."
"Okay, that works for me," he murmured, stroking her hair and then kissing her forehead.
~~~^~~~
Sue firmly put her foot down about showing the baby off on a balcony. "Well, we've got to tell them something," Eugene said as he looked out the window below. A crowd had gathered in the courtyard and at the gates to the palace. Lights were lit; people were waiting patiently for news when the word got out. He was touched by the gesture.
Show them a picture or something. They won't know the difference," Sue growled.
"Okay fine," he said, glancing at his mate. She was smiling slightly, dozing as the baby suckled. He went over and stroked her hair and kissed her forehead ever so gently. "Proud of you, honey," he murmured.
She smiled a little more but didn't say anything.
He went out to the main balcony. He smiled to Max. "Girl," he said. Max made a fist pumping gesture. Eugene snorted.
He walked a gauntlet of well-wishers to the balcony, shaking hands with them and thanking them for being there.
When he got to the balcony, a hush fell on the crowd. A microphone had been set up; his speech would be broadcast to receivers all over the Imperium. He looked out over them and then raised his hands up. "The queen has given birth to a beautiful baby girl!" he roared.
That set off a cheer in the crowd. He let it go for a moment and then lowered his arms. Slowly the cheers abated. He smiled. "The queen and our lovely daughter are resting now. It was a fight, but well worth it in the end. I can tell you that our daughter is just as stubborn as her mother."
That earned a laugh from some in the crowd.
"Thank you for being here with us for this momentous occasion," he said, resting a hand over his heart. "Let the party begin!"
That earned another cheer from the crowd.
~~~^~~~
Sue shook her head as she heard the band start up dimly and the party go into full swing. She knew they'd planned for it, a concert outside the palace and free food from the stores they'd built up. It was quite the holiday.
She tried to sneak out to her residence, but she was grabbed and twirled about. She tried to protest. She thought the well-wisher was Max but he handed her off to someone else.
~~~^~~~
"Well, glad that's over," Eugene said in intense relief as he returned to their room and then cuddled up to the side of his sleeping wife and daughter.
Chapter 6
Duluth
Princess Zara was alerted to the birth of her new niece by the radio report. She missed the first announcement, but the computer had recorded it. It was faint but she listened to it over and over, amused and touched.
Those feelings gave way to
annoyance since Eugene was of course light on details. She recorded her congratulations and then demanded more information before sending it off. She waited, but when there was no response, she reluctantly returned to bed.
Hostage Rescue (Princess Rescue Inc Book 2) Page 8