Ignoring the searing, blinding pain from my surgical incision, I pushed myself up in the bed. My body screamed in protest but I didn’t care. Some instinct older than thought took over.
Margaret spun around and struck me hard across the face. My head snapped to the side and hit the bed rail with a dull, sickening crack.Stars exploded in my vision. Blood filled my mouth where my teeth had cut the inside of my cheek.
“Ingrate!” she hissed, turning back toward Noah. She lifted him from the bassinet as he began wailing. “I’m his grandmother. I have the right to decide what’s best for him. You’re nothing but a burden on this family.”With shaking fingers, I reached for the emergency security button mounted on the wall beside my bed. The button that was installed in every suite specifically for situations that required immediate intervention.
I pressed it hard.
Alarms began sounding instantly throughout the corridor. Within seconds, I heard running footsteps. The door burst open and hospital security rushed in, led by a man in a crisp uniform whose name tag read “Chief Daniel Ruiz.”Margaret’s entire demeanor transformed in the space of a heartbeat.
