Free Misjudged (Death Dwellers #3.5) by Kathryn Kelly Page B

husband. He’d left her to think and she’d been scared for him. For them.
    Since she’d miscarried their baby and she’d fallen into such a deep depression, they’d grown apart. Hearing Zoann’s full story—discovering how heartbroken she’d been when she thought Christopher had deserted her—had created a deeper chasm.
    Somehow, Meggie had managed to bridge it with the help of Mortician, one of her husband’s best friends. She’d given him the “crazy” he needed from her and she’d gotten her Christopher back.
    Awakening this morning, the moment she’d lifted her head, she’d gotten dizzy and nauseated and barely made it to the bathroom before she’d thrown up.
    No matter what else they’d gotten through—how much she’d reached him—he didn’t want her pregnant again.
    The snick of the door made Meggie lift her head. Dr. Will had left without answering her pointed question. She pressed a hand to her belly and sat up slowly.
    “Should I call Mr. Caldwell, Meggie?” the nurse, Viola, asked. “I don’t think driving is a good idea.”
    Meggie’s shoulders drooped. She didn’t think driving was a good idea, either. More important, the moment Christopher saw her he’d know. All he had to do was take one look at her and he could read her like a book.
    Lately, all he’d read was sadness and pain.
    Now, this.
    She swallowed and shook her head, rattling off Mortician’s cell phone number, the only person she had to call right now. Zoann had a meeting with her supervisors to discuss the possibility of her returning to work. Bailey was in class. Val was…Meggie wasn’t sure where. She just couldn’t call him right now, no matter how unfair her feelings were. Arrow was with her mother. Dinah hated her and, even if she didn’t, she wouldn’t have the wherewithal to help her out. Bunny was at the tattoo shop. And…Christopher?
    Her Christopher? He was around. If she called, he’d come running.
    Alone, she put her panties and jeans on, then slipped on her wedged sandals and opened the door. Forcing a smile, she nodded to the nurses who sat at their station and headed to Dr. Will’s private office.
    The physician sat behind her desk, her braids clipped up, her brow furrowed, as she wrote in a chart. She looked up and nodded to the seat in front of her desk. “Have a seat.”
    Meggie hovered in the doorway, her hand on the knob. “I’m pregnant.”
    “Yes.” Dr. Will cocked her head, curiosity brimming in her eyes. “Let’s talk about your options.”
    “Op-options?” Meggie disliked the unspoken meaning in that as much as she hated having to face Christopher with the news. “We’ve been very careful…except one time.”
    “One time is all it takes.” Dr. Will’s kindness made Meggie’s heart drop. Not that she wasn’t always kind. Even when Christopher was snapping at her, the doctor’s bedside manner never changed. “Will you come in and close the door so we can talk in private?”
    “Are you suggesting I terminate it?”
    “That’s my recommendation,” Dr. Will answered, blunt and firm, tapping her pen on the opened folder.
    She beckoned Meggie in again.
    “I can’t,” Meggie admitted. “You have my permission to tell me here.”
    “HIPAA laws prevent—“
    “Please. I can’t…I know what you want me to do. And if you lived with me, you’d know there’s no privacy. My husband’s brothers know everything, so I don’t mind if you tell me while I’m standing here and—“
    “Breathe, Meggie,” Dr. Will interrupted with a smile. Everyone knew how she babbled when her nerves were overwrought. “You suffered a very serious injury to your uterus,” she confided in a lowered tone. “Because you’ve had Placental Abruption once, you’re at a greater risk for it to happen again. You’re healing…No,” she decided. “You’ve healed , but I want to minimize the risk of complications.  If anything else happens to you, I can’t guarantee you won’t need a