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Looking down at his chart, the doctor paused for aAbel was already choked up just froe Roni was sniffing and wiping tears away again

"Are you the father?" the doctor glanced up from his chart

Abel stared at hiether, frowning since both Roni and Abel were staring at him, dumbfounded "Perhaps she hadn’t told anyone yet She’s a feeeks along in her pregnancy"

Exchanging glances, both Abel and Roni shook their heads "No," Roni brought her hand to her lanced back at Nellie’s lifeless body "We didn’t know, but, yes, he would be the father"

Speechless, Abel was utterly speechless He knew he should be happy, but this only terrified him more

"The bad news is that she had to be put into aher body will require the tubes to flow oxygen into her lungs is not so we can predict, and they won’t be removed until she comes out of it--if she comes out"

The doctor looked up at them, and Abel had to sit down before he passed out Those last four words had made him dizzy

"Now I say if only because I have to make you aware that there is that possibility She could come out of this in a few hours, a few days, or weeks maybe, but there is that small possibility that she may not ever If she does, it won’t be until she’s further along that we can do tests to see if the baby suffered any das with his elbows on his knees, Abel dropped his face into his hands, unable to hold it in any his back "She’s gonna be okay, Abel," Roni cried "She has to be"

That bad feeling he’d felt was back again, and for as ed, he felt co else his mom had been known to say on more than one occasion came to him "You can’t have it all"

His ht have a lotin your life than others, but there is always soives everyone everything He kneas too reedy, but Abel now felt the overwhel need to have both Nellie and his baby ladly trade all his faet better and they’d both co his ain The ht

The only choice he had noas to pray, so he did, harder than he’d ever prayed in his life

Chapter 21