Silence Tells the Cruelest of Lies

I was shocked to the core that Matt was forcing me to choose between my son and the man I loved. How could I live without either one of them? This ultimatum was eating away at my insides, and making it very hard to do what was best for my unborn child. I spent every second of every day in Ryder's infirmary with Aileen, praying that he would wake up soon.

A nurse told me several days after Ryder's admittance that they could find no source for his illness, and that it would be best to just make his 'transistion' as comfortable as possible. But I knew better, and I would not stand by and let my son die. 

At the four-month point in my pregnancy, Ryder still remained in the infirmary, miraculously still alive. I had my suspicions that Matt wanted his death to be as long and painful as possible. The baby inside my stomach had recently become very active, and I had arranged an appointment with a nurse for my first ultrasound. I would have to bring Aileen along, but I was wary of leaving Ryder's side. But his nurse assured me that he was in good hands, and that I needed to tend to the needs of my unborn child.

"Miss Calyx, would you please lay back on the table and lift your shirt to your breasts?" the ultrasound nurse asked. I did as she asked and she applied the gel to my stomach. I inhaled a sharp breath at its coldness, and Aileen giggled a baby giggle. "Alright Miss Calyx, your baby looks to be healthy for its gestation," she informed me as the wand glided the taut drum of my stomach. "Would you like to know the sex of your baby?"

Yes, I would, I said eagerly.

"Well Miss Calyx, it looks like you're going to have a baby girl," the nurse said with a smile. "Congratulations."

Oh, a little girl! I hoped she had my blonde hair, and Jimmy's enchanting blue eyes, and…oh. Jimmy. The excitement of discovering I was having another little girl was tainted by the scary fact that I wasn't even sure who her father was. I hoped and prayed that it was Jimmy, but if my unborn daughter happened to be of Matt's seed, I would love her nonetheless.  

Thank you so much, I said to the nurse as I left the room, Aileen in my arms.

I went straight to the nursery to put Aileen down fo her afternoon nap, then decided I would pay Ryder a visit in the infirmary. But first there was something I needed in my bedroom. I didn't expect Matt to be there, and he was not. But he had left something behind that he obviously didn't mean to leave behind. On his bedside table sat a small serum jar, the label affixed to the front reading 'Mononecrosis Cure' 

Mononecrosis… That must be the deadly toxin Matt had infected Ryder with! And he'd left the cure sitting right out on the table! I wouldn't have to choose between Ryder and Jimmy after all. I darted across the room as best as my belly would allow me and snatched up the small jar, then hurriedly left the bedroom.

When I arrived in Ryder's room, a nurse was there already, measuring his vital signs. I touched my hand to her shoulder and when she turned around, I placed the serum jar containing the cure into her palm.

Give this to Ryder, I commanded.

The nurse cocked an eyebrow at me. "Miss Calyx," she started. "I can't just give this to-"

Give. This. To. Ryder, I said again, very slowly so that she could read my lips very carefully.

"A-Alright, Miss Calyx," the nurse agreed warily. She fetched a syringe from a drawer and drew out a fair amount of the cure serum, and then inserted the needle into Ryder's IV. "Okay, Miss Calyx. I gave your son the drug, as you requested. But I really don't see how this is going to-"

The nurse stopped midsentence as Ryder, borderline comatose since his arrival in the infirmary, began to writhe on his bed. Soon enough, my son blinked and opened his eyes, glancing around the room with a glazed look in his crystal blue eyes. 

His eyes first landed on me. "Mommy?" he asked softly. "Where am I?"

You're in the hospital, baby, I mouthed to him, petting his soft brown hair. You were very sick, but you're all better now.

"Mommy, da big mean man made me eat someting nasty and it made feel bad," Ryder explained, and I felt my stomach lurch. That man had harmed one of my children for a second time, and I would not stand for it.

Well Mommy's going to have to have a talk with the big mean man, aren't I?, I asked precociously.

"Tewl him he's a big, bad meanie!" Ryder shouted with a toddler-like giggle. "Make him go in time-out, Mommy. He been bad."

I'll try my hardest, sweetheart, I said to Ryder. I was marveling how quickly he'd returned to good health. It seemed that the cure, unlike its partner disease, worked quickly and painlessly.

"When can I weave dis pace?" Ryder asked, whining. "It's boring!"

Here in a few days I'm sure, I mouthed to him.

I stayed with Ryder until he fell asleep, which was actually quite late. Content my son would recover from his illness, I hoped I could sleep well tonight also. I kissed his forehead before I left, then started on the long walk back to my bedroom. Truth be told, I was a bit nervous about confronting Matt. Ah, but perhaps I should take the same approach I did with the amnesia drug and not tell him I'd stolen the cure to Ryder's illness.

When I stepped inside, the bedroom was empty, and I expelled a sigh of relief. I slipped into a comfortable pair of pajamas and laid down in my big fluffy bed, placing an extra pillow beneath my ever-expanding stomach so that I could sleep comfortably on my side. However, just as my eyes were slipping closed, the bedroom door opened with a very loud slam, and I looked up groggily to see Matt standing in the doorway. And he was livid.

"You stole the cure and gave it to that bastard son of yours, didn't you, Calyx?" he hissed.

Well what did you expect me to do?, I snapped, sitting up in the bed. He's my son and I wasn't going to let him die!

"You stupid bitch!" Matt yelled. He took a step towards me, and I was thankful to note that the Reaper Blade was not in his hands. But that did not mean I was safe. "That bastard's son was supposed to die so that he would learn not to threaten my Realm."

But Ryder would not have had to die for Jimmy to learn that lesson!, I shouted. 

Far more quickly than I could blink, Matt flew across the room and closed his hand around my throat. I clawed at his hand, but his grip was too tight. "How many times must I tell you that I decide how things are done around here? That I decided who lives and who dies?" I began to gasp; his hands were depriving me of oxygen and my vision was quickly fading to black. "You'd better watch how you act, Calyx. Because if you don't learn to behave, you're next."