"When she goes into labor, she most likely won't survive." I stood outside the room, listening to the nurses discuss my case. I had two hearts inside my body. One was my baby. The other was a cloned heart that growing inside me for another woman. And my husband had approved this himself. ********** Nine months pregnant. My last ultrasound before delivery. "Both heartbeats sound are strong and healthy." The doctor said. I was confused because every single prenatal checkup showed a single fetus. Outside the exam room, I grabbed my husband Alexander's hand. "The doctor said there were two heartbeats. How could it be? The previous checkups showed it was one." He paused for a split second, then laughed and patted my shoulder. "That's impossible. You misheard. He meant your heartbeat and the baby's are both healthy." He smiled. "Don't overthink it. Once the baby's here, I'll take you to see the Northern Lights. Isn't that what you've always wanted?" I believed him. Just a mix-up. Until that night, when I got up to use the bathroom and passed the nurses' station. Low voices drifted out. "Mrs. Sinclair's organs are starting to fail. Carrying the baby and incubating the cloned heart at the same time—her body can't handle both. " "When she goes into labor, she most likely won't survive." "What about the cloned heart?" "It's perfect. Mr. Sinclair's investment in chimera organ technology paid off. His childhood sweetheart's heart failure finally has a cure." A nurse gasped. "So Mr. Sinclair knows the mother will probably die?" "Of course. He approved this protocol himself." Ice flooded my veins. I didn't storm in to confront them. I clamped my hand over my mouth and shuffled back to my room, step by step. Alexander was still asleep. Moonlight fell across his handsome face. That face had stayed by my side, eyes red from sleepless nights, when my parents died. That face had wept when I was so dehydrated from morning sickness I needed an IV. He'd said, "Natalie, you're the only family I have in this world. I'd give my life to take care of you." I'd believed his words for eight years. The next morning, Alexander brought me a glass of warm milk and a handful of colorful pills, same as always. "Natalie, sweetheart. Take your prenatal vitamins." His eyes were gentle. He kissed my forehead. I looked at those pills. They weren't prenatal vitamins. They were something to keep my body from rejecting the heart growing inside me. For the woman he actually loved. I reached out and took them. I looked him in the eye and tested him. "Alexander, I've been having chest pains lately. The doctor said I might have a difficult labor. If something happens—" He pressed his hand over my mouth and pulled me into his arms, his voice shaking. "Don't say that." "I hired the best medical team. They've assessed everything. The risk is less than one percent." "You and the baby are going to be fine. Just take your medicine. After the birth, we'll be a family of three. We'll never be apart again." He believed I wouldn't die. So to save that woman, he'd put me on a one-percent gamble without a second thought. I lowered my eyes, swallowing the nausea rising in my throat. "Okay. I'll take them." I swallowed the pills in front of him. He smiled, satisfied, and tucked the blanket around me. "I need to run to the office. I'll be back later to stay with you." The door clicked shut. I rushed to the bathroom and shoved my fingers down my throat, purging every last pill. I stared at the bloody mess in the sink and pulled out my phone. I need to find a underground clinic.
Three days after I started secretly spitting out the pills, my body began to revolt. First came a low fever that wouldn't break. Then my joints ached like someone was hammering them with a mallet. At its worst, I couldn't even grip a glass of water. But I never let Alexander see any of it. He came to the hospital every day, bringing me chestnut cake from that bakery across town I loved. "Natalie, did the baby kick today?" He pressed his hand to my belly, feeling for movement. His palm rested right over the place where the extra heart was growing. I watched the smile crinkle at the corners of his eyes. It felt like a knife carving into my chest. "Alexander." My voice came out soft as a breath. "If something goes wrong during the delivery, will you take care of our baby?" His hand froze mid-slice on the apple. The knife slipped and cut his finger. Blood welled up. "Natalie, what's wrong? Why do you keep saying things like that?" He grabbed a tissue, pressed it carelessly to the wound, then came over and took my hand. His voice softened. "I told you, as long as I'm here, nothing will happen to you. I already booked the postnatal care center." "Stop worrying. When this is all over, I'll take you traveling. You've always wanted to see the Northern Lights in Iceland, right?" What a cheap promise. I lowered my gaze to hide the storm inside me. He was so greedy. He wanted to use my body to save his precious first love, and he still wanted me safe and sound, bearing his children, playing the dutiful wife. Did he really think he was playing God, deciding who lives and who dies? Just then, his phone rang. A special ringtone. One I'd never heard for anyone else. Alexander glanced at the screen. His expression changed instantly. "Okay. I'll be right there." He hung up and grabbed his coat. "Natalie, something urgent came up at work. I need to handle it. Get some rest." He didn't even wait for my answer before he was out the door. I didn't ask where he was going. I just walked to the window and looked down. His car didn't leave the hospital grounds. It drove toward the VIP building at the back—the one with security so tight even senior doctors needed special clearance. I changed into regular clothes, put on a mask, and slipped past the nurses. I followed him. Sixth floor of the VIP wing. The door at the end of the hall was slightly ajar. A weak female voice drifted out. "Alex, don't worry about me..." "I won't live much longer anyway. If saving me hurts Natalie, I'll never forgive myself." Alexander's voice came next. Nothing but tenderness. "Lily, don't talk like that. You're not going to die." "The medical team is ready. The cloned heart is perfect." "Just five more days, and you'll be able to live like a normal person." "But Natalie, she—" "She'll be fine." Alexander cut her off. His voice was certain. "I'm using the best medication. The risk is minimal. And even if, worst case scenario—" He paused. His voice dropped. "I owe you this. If you hadn't saved me back then, you wouldn't have ended up with heart failure." "Lily, as long as you survive. I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to Natalie." I stood outside that door, biting down on my lip until I tasted blood. Make it up to me? That’s pure bullshit. All this time, I thought he loved me. Clearly, Lily mattered more to him than me or our child ever would.
After I got back to my room, I started coughing up blood. The rejection was hitting full force. My body was fighting the heart that didn't belong to me. Two forces tearing each other apart inside. Doctors and nurses rushed in. Chaos everywhere. By the time Alexander got back, I was already on oxygen. He thought I was asleep. He grabbed the doctor by the collar. "How did this happen? How the hell were you taking care of her?" For a split second, he looked terrified of losing me. The doctor stammered out an answer. "Mr. Sinclair, your wife's immune system suddenly started attacking the cloned embryo. " "Her liver and lungs are failing. We may need to terminate the incubation—" "No." Alexander let go of him. Didn't hesitate for a second. "The heart needs three more days to mature. If we take it out now, it won't function properly. Lily won't be able to use it." Dead silence. I lay there with the oxygen mask on, watching him through the haze. The man who swore he loved me. When it came down to life or death, he didn't waver for even half a second. The doctor tried again. "Mr. Sinclair, your wife really can't take much more—" Alexander cut him off. "Keep the incubation going. Save the heart." "Give her the strongest immunosuppressant injections. The best drugs. Whatever it costs, you keep her alive for three more days." I closed my eyes and let the tears slide down. He'd just snuffed out the last flicker of hope I had left. The moment the needle pierced my skin, I made my decision. For the next two days, Alexander didn't leave my side. He canceled all his work. Dark circles bruised his eyes. He wiped my face, held water to my lips, sat up holding my hand through the night. "Natalie, hang in there. It's almost over." "When this is done, you can hit me, curse me, whatever you want. Just please, hold on." I looked at how worn down he was and felt nothing but pity. He didn't even know I'd heard everything. He was still dreaming that he'd pull me back from the edge of death and we'd go on being the happy couple. "Alexander." I struggled to pull off the oxygen mask. My voice was barely a whisper. "I want some of that honey walnut shrimp from the place downtown. Fresh out of the kitchen."
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