Prototype

Samantha was grateful to be off, not on call, for her OB/GYN appointment. First came the cold squirt of the gel so the ultrasound machine would get a better image, then the machine ran along Samantha’s bare belly. On the screen popped a very small being, but it was recognizable as a tiny human being. Well, sort of.

“Samantha, your baby is doing very well. How far along do you think you are?” Melissa, the tech, asked once the ultrasound was concluded.

“About a month or two probably,” Samantha replied, still elated from seeing the tiny life growing inside of her, even if it was still even smaller than a penny. “I don’t get morning sickness, and my menstruation cycle isn’t regular.”

“You’re a lucky woman not suffering from morning sickness,” Melissa giggled slightly.

“That’s what my mom tells me,” Samantha agreed with her own laugh.

“I’ll go get the doctor for you,” Melissa said while removing her examination gloves. “You shouldn’t have to wait too long.”

“Thank you,” Samantha said.

Melissa stopped before shutting the door, “It was nice to see you again.”

Melissa left the room and Samantha sat up and moved her shirt down. Time passed slowly; five then ten minutes and still no doctor.

Curiosity quickly got the better of her and she stood up and headed close to the door to see if could hear anything being said, pretending she was reading the medical posters on the wall. She couldn’t make out the words, but I could hear the familiar voice of Dr. Granat.

“What is he doing here?”

Before she could turn back toward the door, Melissa entered quickly, pressing a syringe into Samantha’s shoulder before Samantha could react.

“What are you doing?” Samantha asked in a sudden panic, trying to get Melissa and the needle away from her.

“Just relax and let this do its job,” Melissa calmly replied.

Samantha could feel whatever she was just given already taking effect. Her vision became blurry and she felt dizzy. Her eyes felt very heavy and her body went numb from the injection spot in her shoulder all the way down to her toes. She started to lose her balance as five men in white lab coats came in and started to hold on to her. Her senses surged once before she caved into the powerful sedative she was given.

* * *

“Sam?” Thomas was asking her.

Samantha slowly opened her eyes, lying in a hospital bed. She sat up warily, and recognized she wasn’t in the same place she was when she was knocked unconscious. She was somewhere else entirely, and she had no memories after the injection Melissa gave her.

She was wearing a hospital gown, and the bottom was covered in blood. She knew she endured some type of procedure, but she couldn’t be sure exactly what, or why.

A nurse in the room spoke regretfully, “I’m very sorry, while we were checking on your fetus’ vital signs, everything suddenly went flat. We did all we could to save your baby, but we weren’t able to…”

“Your fetus”?

Samantha rubbed her eye and sat up completely, feeling her body ache. She felt her insides pulling, she winced from the pain. She suffered a miscarriage long ago, but this was different. Something was wrong.

Thomas held her hand, “They called me over here as soon as you started bleeding. I’m really sorry about all this Sam.”

“Where’s ‘here’?” Samantha asked.

Thomas looked surprised by the question, “The research hospital.”

“Research hospital?” Samantha repeated, “As in, where I work? Instead of a medical facility?”

“Of course,” Thomas said.

That isn’t where I went for my appointment Samantha told herself. I went to a doctor on the other side of town. Dr. Cletus Granat’s passion is the reproductive system, but I don’t want my boss working on my body…

Samantha looked at Thomas tugging her hand out of his grasp, “This doesn’t make any sense.”

Thomas tried to hold her, to comfort her.

The nurse spoke again, “It’s common for there to be some denial at first. Mrs. Parkhurst, everything is going to be all right. Your uterus will go back to normal by next month, and you and your husband can try again to have another baby.

“We’ve sent a prescription to the pharmacy already to help with the pain.”

“Why was Dr. Granat at my doctor’s office? What injection was I given?” Samantha asked rapidly. “Why?”

“You can go home whenever you’re ready. I’m very sorry for your loss,” the nurse said. Her sincerity appeared authentic, but Samantha wasn’t fooled.

The nurse left the room, leaving Thomas and Samantha to talk about what happened. Thomas took the seat next to Samantha and took her hand before telling her what he wanted to.

“I think this is a blessing in disguise,” Thomas admitted.

“What?” Samantha asked in disbelief.

“I couldn’t handle another child. Our two are enough to handle as it is, three is just too many,” Thomas told her. “I’m sorry you’re in pain, but I really think this is for the best.”

Samantha was dumbfounded by his words. She was unable to even think of what to say next. He seemed so excited about the baby, but now he was saying this?

“I didn’t miscarry,” Samantha said with a small voice. “They stole my baby. Dr. Granat stole my baby.”

Thomas touched her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, “Honey, I know this isn’t easy for you to deal with, but your boss wouldn’t-”

“But my boss did!” Samantha yelled, standing up quickly. “There’s something going on here and you’re considering it a blessing! They stole our baby!”

Why would they steal a baby? She asked herself. She would have to get out of here first, but then she would be able to get to the bottom of whatever was going on. She didn’t care if she would have to do it alone. She was going to find an answer; Dr. Granat was going to have to answer for what he did.