Fanfiction: National Treasure (G)
Title: Unexpected Treasure
Pairing/Characters: Ben Gates, Abigail Gates (nee Chase), Riley Poole, Jacqueline; Ben/Abigail, Riley/Jacqui
Rating: G
Fandom: National Treasure
Word Count: 2,498
Spoilers: Both, but more the second than the first
Summary: Now that the treasure's been found, it's time to deal with red tape.
Notes/Warnings: Sixteenth chapter of The Treasure Hunters' Tale, again co-written with unicorn_catcher. Beta by unicorn_catcher.
16. Unexpected Treasure
When Jane tried to put Baby Mary down for her mid-morning nap, the little girl began fussing and crying. "What's wrong, ma petite?" Jane knew for a fact that her daughter had been fed, burped, and changed, so none of those could be the reason for her fussing. "Do you miss Papa? Is that it? I miss him, too." Cradling her daughter against her chest, Jane sat down in the rocking chair, hoping to soothe her back to sleep. It was close to noon by the time Mary abruptly stopped crying and promptly fell asleep. Jane stared at the peacefully-sleeping face that reminded her so much of her absent husband. "That was odd."
Shaking her head in puzzlement, Jane carefully set her daughter in her crib and quietly left the room. Just down the hall, Nadya was leaving the room she and Jacob shared with their granddaughter. "Oh, hi, Janie. Didn't you put Mary down for her nap an hour ago?"
"She didn't want to sleep," Jane explained as she and her aunt descended the stairs together. "It took this long just for her to get to sleep."
Nadya frowned at that. "I had the same trouble with Dani. I thought she might be missing Will and Emily Anne."
"I was thinking that Mary was missing Abe." Jane's voice hitched a little as she thought of her husband. She hadn't been sleeping well since Charlie and Meri had returned to DC. Somehow, they made her feel the absence of her own husband much more keenly.
She jumped when Nadya wrapped her arm around her shoulders. "She's not the only one missing him, I imagine."
"Yeah, and on top of that, I have this horrible feeling that Abe's in danger." Jane looked up to meet her aunt's eyes. "Do you think Michelle finally caught up with them?"
Pausing at the foot of the stairs, Nadya drew her niece into a comforting hug. "If she did, I'm sure Abe and the others took care of her without a problem."
"I'll feel better once I see for myself that Abe's okay," Jane muttered, resting her head on Nadya's shoulder with a sigh.
The older woman rubbed the younger woman's back soothingly. "I think we all will, but it's the dead of night over there right now. We can try to catch them tonight, before they head out on the treasure hunt again."
"Thanks, Aunt Nadya." Jane straightened up and kissed her aunt's cheek. "You always know what to say to make me feel better."
Nadya chuckled as they continued toward the kitchen. "That's part of my job as a mother."
"We were just about to send a search party for you two," Jacob quipped when they entered the kitchen. He was seated at the kitchen table with Riley and Jacqui "You missed lunch."
While Nadya went to her husband's side and kissed him softly, Jane stopped between her parents' chairs and kissed their cheeks in turn. "Both Mary and Dani refused to go down for their naps. We had to stay and soothe them."
"For an hour?" Riley glanced at his middle daughter skeptically. "There were times when you didn't want to go down for a nap, but it never took more than fifteen minutes to soothe you."
Jacqui rolled her eyes as Jane moved to make herself a sandwich from the ingredients that waited on the counter. "Maybe for you, but there were times when it took me half an hour to soothe Janie enough for her to sleep."
"That's because she was Daddy's Girl." Riley had Jacqui's hand in his when Jane rejoined them at the table. "She'd always calm down for me."
As Nadya went over to the counter to make a sandwich, Jane answered her father's comment. "I think it was the same for Mary. I think she misses Abe."
"She's not the only one, I think," Jacob commented, eyeing his niece shrewdly.
Jane nodded, smiling sadly. "You're right. I miss him so much. I understand why Grandma Em would have left Grandpa Pat, though I don't think I could leave Abe at all."
"He wouldn't want you to leave him anyway," Riley pointed out, gently squeezing her hand with his free one.
Jane gave him a look that clearly said that was extremely obvious and unnecessary to point out. After she finished eating, Jane excused herself to go upstairs and take a short nap herself. The four adults watched the younger woman disappear upstairs. Nadya turned to her husband once Jane was gone, "Did Rachael fuss at all?"
"No more than usual," Jacob replied, frowning with puzzlement.
Jacqui frowned as well. "It could just be coincidence that only Dani and Mary fussed."
"Not only that, but they apparently stopped at the same time," Riley added, resting his chin on his wife's shoulder.
Nadya frowned, leaning against her husband's shoulder. "You think they sensed that their parents were in danger?"
"It's just a theory," Jacqui admitted, exchanging a glance with her own husband. "If it wasn't that, though, why did Mary and Dani fuss, but not Rachael?"
Slowly, the others nodded and Jacob responded to his twin's question, "That's a good question and one I don't have an answer for."
"I don't think any of us do."
* * *
Since it was so late by the time the treasure hunters got back to their hotel, no one was around to raise an eyebrow at their bedraggled state except the night clerk. Emily Anne offered him a wry smile, "Amerikano."
The clerk nodded and didn't object as they filed onto an elevator together. All three women leaned wearily against their husbands as the elevator carried them upwards, with Ben wrapping an arm around Abe's shoulders. "I'm sorry we didn't listen to you earlier, Abe."
"What do you mean?" He glanced up at his father, puzzled. In all honesty, he'd completely forgotten that he'd tried to warn the others about the impending danger.
"You tried to warn us about the tide coming in and we didn't listen," Ben reminded his son, hugging him gently. "We almost lost Emily Anne and Michelle because of it."
Abigail clung more tightly to her husband. "And you, Ben."
"And me," he corrected himself with a wry smile.
Carson reached over from where he and Michelle stood huddled together, squeezing Ben's arm. "Thank you."
"I had the opportunity to save her," Ben replied, catching Michelle's eyes with his. "I wasn't going to let it pass by."
Michelle nodded as the elevator came to a stop. Without another word, she and Carson stepped from the elevator. The door slid closed and the other five continued on to their floor. "What's our next step, Dad?"
"We're all going to go to bed and get plenty of sleep," Ben answered his older son. "Then, I'm going to contact Bradford and tell him that we've found the treasure."
Will exchanged a glance with his brother. "You're not going to contact the Filipino authorities?"
"Only if Bradford gives me the authority to do so," Ben replied as the elevator stopped and they all trooped off.
Emily Anne gave an exasperated sigh as they walked down the hall to their suite of rooms. "And he's going to ask for Michelle's input before he says yes or no because she's the reason he contacted you in the first place."
"I know, but we have to follow the red tape," he explained for all of their benefit as he unlocked the door, gesturing for them to precede him into the room. "If we don't, they could put us in jail."
All of them stopped to consider that as Ben followed them inside and closed the door behind him. Abigail was the first to break the silence, wrapping her arms around him. "I'll follow your lead, Ben. You've yet to lead me wrong in all the years I've known you."
"Thanks, Abigail." He smiled and kissed her softly.
The others quickly followed their matriarch's lead, promising to do as Ben told them. He nodded, accepting their promises. "Okay. Let's all go to bed and get some rest. I have a feeling we're going to need it."
* * *
"Aloha, Dr. Bradford," Ben greeted the museum curator the following morning. He and Abigail had gone to bed and slept hard and now he felt very rested and energized.
Bradford smiled brightly when he recognized Ben. "Aloha, Dr. Gates! It's good to hear from you. I was beginning to worry that Mr. Poole wasn't able to find you."
"Obviously, he did." Ben grinned, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I'm afraid I was incommunicado for some time, though I do have good news that will hopefully make up for the worry I caused."
The crystal blue eyes sharpened and Bradford actually leaned forward in his chair, causing it to squeak in protest. "Do you, indeed?"
"Yes." Ben nodded, reaching his hand out to Abigail, who moved to stand behind him. As she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, he continued his explanation. "We found the Yamashita treasure. It really does exist."
Bradford's eyes widened and he stared at Ben, quite amazed. "It really does?"
"Indeed it does," Abigail replied, kissing her husband's cheek. "With your permission, we'd like to contact the local authorities about removing it from its current hiding place and returning it to the people it was taken from."
The museum curator looked distinctly uncomfortable as he sat back in his chair, which squeaked once again. "I will have to ask the investor who requested that you search for the treasure in the first place. It should really be their call."
"We understand," Ben replied, smiling reassuringly. "We're not going anywhere for the rest of the day."
Looking quite relieved, Bradford nodded. "I will get back to you as soon as I can, Dr. Gates."
"Thank you, Dr. Bradford. Aloha." Ben was still smiling.
"Aloha." The next moment, the screen was dark as the museum curator disconnected the call.
Before anyone could speak, the laptop beeped insistently. Frowning, Ben hit the button to connect with whoever was calling. "About damn time, Ben!"
"It's good to see you, too, Riley." Ben raised an eyebrow, glancing up as the others gathered around him.
Riley wasn't the only one on the screen. Jacqui and Jane stood at his shoulders, the latter peering worriedly at the screen. Abigail pre-empted Riley's response by asking, "Is everything okay over there, Riley?"
"We're fine." Riley assured her. "We were just wondering how the treasure hunt was going for you guys. Have you gotten any closer to finding it?"
Ben grinned, blue eyes twinkling. "So close that we found it."
"Seriously?" Jane's eyes grew wide. "When?"
Abe leaned over his parents' shoulders to address his wife directly. "A little before midnight last night, so that would have been about mid-morning for you guys."
Jacqui and Jane exchanged glances over Riley's head and Ben frowned. Something about their expressions didn't seem quite right. "Did something happen about that time for you guys?"
"Nothing you need to worry about, Ben," Riley answered quickly as his wife and daughter stepped out of view of the webcam. "What are you going to do now that you've found the treasure?"
"I just talked to Bradford about contacting the local authorities to allow us to recover the treasure and deliver it to the countries it was taken from."
Riley snorted derisively as Will, Emily Anne, and Abe moved away. "That'll take awhile, since he has to contact Michelle and get her permission first."
"I don't think that'll be a problem, considering she was with us when we found the treasure?" Ben kept his voice airy, but he watched Riley's reaction closely.
It was gratifyingly quick and dramatic and accompanied by the return of Jacqui and Jane as well, both women staring at the screen over Riley's shoulder. "WHAT?!"
"Well, suffice it to say that she's had a change of heart, no doubt thanks in part to her husband," Ben sat back in his chair with a satisfied smirk on his face.
Abigail dragged a chair over so she could sit beside her husband. "It turns out that she had a clue to help us figure out where we needed to go, so she went with us."
"Wilkinson all over again," Jacqui muttered, shaking her head a little.
Ben shook his head determinedly. "No one was left behind this time."
"I hope allowing her to help doesn't turn out to be the wrong decision, Ben." Riley looked unusually somber and serious as he said it.
Meeting his best friend's eyes steadily and calmly, Ben replied, "I'm sure it's the right decision."
* * *
"I'm fine, Car! How many times do I have to tell you?" Michelle protested loudly as her husband dragged her out of bed far too early for her liking. "It was just a little water."
Carson didn't listen as he bundled his wife into their rented car. "I'd rather not take any chances, Chelle. Besides, we don't want any complications to develop."
"You're over-reacting." She folded her arms across her chest, looking distinctly put-out.
He shook his head, driving them to the local hospital. "Not when it comes to your health."
"Fine, if it makes you happy, I'll let the doctor look at me." Michelle threw her hands up in defeat and remained quiet for the rest of the drive to the hospital.
Upon reaching the hospital, they were ushered into an exam room right away. At an inquiring look from his wife, Carson explained, "I already called and made an appointment."
"If I didn't love you so much..." Her voice trailed off, but the implied threat didn't have any hold over him because he knew she'd never follow through on it. She loved him too much.
The doctor was a capable, sensible man, dark eyes partly hidden by his spectacles. His skin was distinctly lighter than the other natives they'd met, though his thick hair was just as black. After a brief but thorough examination, he sat back. "I can assure you both that Mrs. Harper is perfectly healthy, though I'd like your permission to run a few tests on her baby, just to make sure he is fine and healthy."
"Baby?" Husband and wife stared at the doctor in shock.
He nodded, frowning at them. "Yes, he's about two months along." He looked from one to the other, taking in their expressions. "I take it you had no idea?"
"She hasn't been throwing up in the mornings like most pregnant women do," Carson explained as Michelle remained silent, resting her hand on the very slight bulge of her stomach. "We thought she was just gaining weight."
"Well, technically, she is, but it's due to the baby," the doctor replied. "May I do the tests?"
Carson glanced at his wife. She met his gaze and slowly nodded. He smiled and turned back to the doctor. "Yes, please do."
End Chapter
Pairing/Characters: Ben Gates, Abigail Gates (nee Chase), Riley Poole, Jacqueline; Ben/Abigail, Riley/Jacqui
Rating: G
Fandom: National Treasure
Word Count: 2,498
Spoilers: Both, but more the second than the first
Summary: Now that the treasure's been found, it's time to deal with red tape.
Notes/Warnings: Sixteenth chapter of The Treasure Hunters' Tale, again co-written with unicorn_catcher. Beta by unicorn_catcher.
16. Unexpected Treasure
When Jane tried to put Baby Mary down for her mid-morning nap, the little girl began fussing and crying. "What's wrong, ma petite?" Jane knew for a fact that her daughter had been fed, burped, and changed, so none of those could be the reason for her fussing. "Do you miss Papa? Is that it? I miss him, too." Cradling her daughter against her chest, Jane sat down in the rocking chair, hoping to soothe her back to sleep. It was close to noon by the time Mary abruptly stopped crying and promptly fell asleep. Jane stared at the peacefully-sleeping face that reminded her so much of her absent husband. "That was odd."
Shaking her head in puzzlement, Jane carefully set her daughter in her crib and quietly left the room. Just down the hall, Nadya was leaving the room she and Jacob shared with their granddaughter. "Oh, hi, Janie. Didn't you put Mary down for her nap an hour ago?"
"She didn't want to sleep," Jane explained as she and her aunt descended the stairs together. "It took this long just for her to get to sleep."
Nadya frowned at that. "I had the same trouble with Dani. I thought she might be missing Will and Emily Anne."
"I was thinking that Mary was missing Abe." Jane's voice hitched a little as she thought of her husband. She hadn't been sleeping well since Charlie and Meri had returned to DC. Somehow, they made her feel the absence of her own husband much more keenly.
She jumped when Nadya wrapped her arm around her shoulders. "She's not the only one missing him, I imagine."
"Yeah, and on top of that, I have this horrible feeling that Abe's in danger." Jane looked up to meet her aunt's eyes. "Do you think Michelle finally caught up with them?"
Pausing at the foot of the stairs, Nadya drew her niece into a comforting hug. "If she did, I'm sure Abe and the others took care of her without a problem."
"I'll feel better once I see for myself that Abe's okay," Jane muttered, resting her head on Nadya's shoulder with a sigh.
The older woman rubbed the younger woman's back soothingly. "I think we all will, but it's the dead of night over there right now. We can try to catch them tonight, before they head out on the treasure hunt again."
"Thanks, Aunt Nadya." Jane straightened up and kissed her aunt's cheek. "You always know what to say to make me feel better."
Nadya chuckled as they continued toward the kitchen. "That's part of my job as a mother."
"We were just about to send a search party for you two," Jacob quipped when they entered the kitchen. He was seated at the kitchen table with Riley and Jacqui "You missed lunch."
While Nadya went to her husband's side and kissed him softly, Jane stopped between her parents' chairs and kissed their cheeks in turn. "Both Mary and Dani refused to go down for their naps. We had to stay and soothe them."
"For an hour?" Riley glanced at his middle daughter skeptically. "There were times when you didn't want to go down for a nap, but it never took more than fifteen minutes to soothe you."
Jacqui rolled her eyes as Jane moved to make herself a sandwich from the ingredients that waited on the counter. "Maybe for you, but there were times when it took me half an hour to soothe Janie enough for her to sleep."
"That's because she was Daddy's Girl." Riley had Jacqui's hand in his when Jane rejoined them at the table. "She'd always calm down for me."
As Nadya went over to the counter to make a sandwich, Jane answered her father's comment. "I think it was the same for Mary. I think she misses Abe."
"She's not the only one, I think," Jacob commented, eyeing his niece shrewdly.
Jane nodded, smiling sadly. "You're right. I miss him so much. I understand why Grandma Em would have left Grandpa Pat, though I don't think I could leave Abe at all."
"He wouldn't want you to leave him anyway," Riley pointed out, gently squeezing her hand with his free one.
Jane gave him a look that clearly said that was extremely obvious and unnecessary to point out. After she finished eating, Jane excused herself to go upstairs and take a short nap herself. The four adults watched the younger woman disappear upstairs. Nadya turned to her husband once Jane was gone, "Did Rachael fuss at all?"
"No more than usual," Jacob replied, frowning with puzzlement.
Jacqui frowned as well. "It could just be coincidence that only Dani and Mary fussed."
"Not only that, but they apparently stopped at the same time," Riley added, resting his chin on his wife's shoulder.
Nadya frowned, leaning against her husband's shoulder. "You think they sensed that their parents were in danger?"
"It's just a theory," Jacqui admitted, exchanging a glance with her own husband. "If it wasn't that, though, why did Mary and Dani fuss, but not Rachael?"
Slowly, the others nodded and Jacob responded to his twin's question, "That's a good question and one I don't have an answer for."
"I don't think any of us do."
* * *
Since it was so late by the time the treasure hunters got back to their hotel, no one was around to raise an eyebrow at their bedraggled state except the night clerk. Emily Anne offered him a wry smile, "Amerikano."
The clerk nodded and didn't object as they filed onto an elevator together. All three women leaned wearily against their husbands as the elevator carried them upwards, with Ben wrapping an arm around Abe's shoulders. "I'm sorry we didn't listen to you earlier, Abe."
"What do you mean?" He glanced up at his father, puzzled. In all honesty, he'd completely forgotten that he'd tried to warn the others about the impending danger.
"You tried to warn us about the tide coming in and we didn't listen," Ben reminded his son, hugging him gently. "We almost lost Emily Anne and Michelle because of it."
Abigail clung more tightly to her husband. "And you, Ben."
"And me," he corrected himself with a wry smile.
Carson reached over from where he and Michelle stood huddled together, squeezing Ben's arm. "Thank you."
"I had the opportunity to save her," Ben replied, catching Michelle's eyes with his. "I wasn't going to let it pass by."
Michelle nodded as the elevator came to a stop. Without another word, she and Carson stepped from the elevator. The door slid closed and the other five continued on to their floor. "What's our next step, Dad?"
"We're all going to go to bed and get plenty of sleep," Ben answered his older son. "Then, I'm going to contact Bradford and tell him that we've found the treasure."
Will exchanged a glance with his brother. "You're not going to contact the Filipino authorities?"
"Only if Bradford gives me the authority to do so," Ben replied as the elevator stopped and they all trooped off.
Emily Anne gave an exasperated sigh as they walked down the hall to their suite of rooms. "And he's going to ask for Michelle's input before he says yes or no because she's the reason he contacted you in the first place."
"I know, but we have to follow the red tape," he explained for all of their benefit as he unlocked the door, gesturing for them to precede him into the room. "If we don't, they could put us in jail."
All of them stopped to consider that as Ben followed them inside and closed the door behind him. Abigail was the first to break the silence, wrapping her arms around him. "I'll follow your lead, Ben. You've yet to lead me wrong in all the years I've known you."
"Thanks, Abigail." He smiled and kissed her softly.
The others quickly followed their matriarch's lead, promising to do as Ben told them. He nodded, accepting their promises. "Okay. Let's all go to bed and get some rest. I have a feeling we're going to need it."
* * *
"Aloha, Dr. Bradford," Ben greeted the museum curator the following morning. He and Abigail had gone to bed and slept hard and now he felt very rested and energized.
Bradford smiled brightly when he recognized Ben. "Aloha, Dr. Gates! It's good to hear from you. I was beginning to worry that Mr. Poole wasn't able to find you."
"Obviously, he did." Ben grinned, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I'm afraid I was incommunicado for some time, though I do have good news that will hopefully make up for the worry I caused."
The crystal blue eyes sharpened and Bradford actually leaned forward in his chair, causing it to squeak in protest. "Do you, indeed?"
"Yes." Ben nodded, reaching his hand out to Abigail, who moved to stand behind him. As she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, he continued his explanation. "We found the Yamashita treasure. It really does exist."
Bradford's eyes widened and he stared at Ben, quite amazed. "It really does?"
"Indeed it does," Abigail replied, kissing her husband's cheek. "With your permission, we'd like to contact the local authorities about removing it from its current hiding place and returning it to the people it was taken from."
The museum curator looked distinctly uncomfortable as he sat back in his chair, which squeaked once again. "I will have to ask the investor who requested that you search for the treasure in the first place. It should really be their call."
"We understand," Ben replied, smiling reassuringly. "We're not going anywhere for the rest of the day."
Looking quite relieved, Bradford nodded. "I will get back to you as soon as I can, Dr. Gates."
"Thank you, Dr. Bradford. Aloha." Ben was still smiling.
"Aloha." The next moment, the screen was dark as the museum curator disconnected the call.
Before anyone could speak, the laptop beeped insistently. Frowning, Ben hit the button to connect with whoever was calling. "About damn time, Ben!"
"It's good to see you, too, Riley." Ben raised an eyebrow, glancing up as the others gathered around him.
Riley wasn't the only one on the screen. Jacqui and Jane stood at his shoulders, the latter peering worriedly at the screen. Abigail pre-empted Riley's response by asking, "Is everything okay over there, Riley?"
"We're fine." Riley assured her. "We were just wondering how the treasure hunt was going for you guys. Have you gotten any closer to finding it?"
Ben grinned, blue eyes twinkling. "So close that we found it."
"Seriously?" Jane's eyes grew wide. "When?"
Abe leaned over his parents' shoulders to address his wife directly. "A little before midnight last night, so that would have been about mid-morning for you guys."
Jacqui and Jane exchanged glances over Riley's head and Ben frowned. Something about their expressions didn't seem quite right. "Did something happen about that time for you guys?"
"Nothing you need to worry about, Ben," Riley answered quickly as his wife and daughter stepped out of view of the webcam. "What are you going to do now that you've found the treasure?"
"I just talked to Bradford about contacting the local authorities to allow us to recover the treasure and deliver it to the countries it was taken from."
Riley snorted derisively as Will, Emily Anne, and Abe moved away. "That'll take awhile, since he has to contact Michelle and get her permission first."
"I don't think that'll be a problem, considering she was with us when we found the treasure?" Ben kept his voice airy, but he watched Riley's reaction closely.
It was gratifyingly quick and dramatic and accompanied by the return of Jacqui and Jane as well, both women staring at the screen over Riley's shoulder. "WHAT?!"
"Well, suffice it to say that she's had a change of heart, no doubt thanks in part to her husband," Ben sat back in his chair with a satisfied smirk on his face.
Abigail dragged a chair over so she could sit beside her husband. "It turns out that she had a clue to help us figure out where we needed to go, so she went with us."
"Wilkinson all over again," Jacqui muttered, shaking her head a little.
Ben shook his head determinedly. "No one was left behind this time."
"I hope allowing her to help doesn't turn out to be the wrong decision, Ben." Riley looked unusually somber and serious as he said it.
Meeting his best friend's eyes steadily and calmly, Ben replied, "I'm sure it's the right decision."
* * *
"I'm fine, Car! How many times do I have to tell you?" Michelle protested loudly as her husband dragged her out of bed far too early for her liking. "It was just a little water."
Carson didn't listen as he bundled his wife into their rented car. "I'd rather not take any chances, Chelle. Besides, we don't want any complications to develop."
"You're over-reacting." She folded her arms across her chest, looking distinctly put-out.
He shook his head, driving them to the local hospital. "Not when it comes to your health."
"Fine, if it makes you happy, I'll let the doctor look at me." Michelle threw her hands up in defeat and remained quiet for the rest of the drive to the hospital.
Upon reaching the hospital, they were ushered into an exam room right away. At an inquiring look from his wife, Carson explained, "I already called and made an appointment."
"If I didn't love you so much..." Her voice trailed off, but the implied threat didn't have any hold over him because he knew she'd never follow through on it. She loved him too much.
The doctor was a capable, sensible man, dark eyes partly hidden by his spectacles. His skin was distinctly lighter than the other natives they'd met, though his thick hair was just as black. After a brief but thorough examination, he sat back. "I can assure you both that Mrs. Harper is perfectly healthy, though I'd like your permission to run a few tests on her baby, just to make sure he is fine and healthy."
"Baby?" Husband and wife stared at the doctor in shock.
He nodded, frowning at them. "Yes, he's about two months along." He looked from one to the other, taking in their expressions. "I take it you had no idea?"
"She hasn't been throwing up in the mornings like most pregnant women do," Carson explained as Michelle remained silent, resting her hand on the very slight bulge of her stomach. "We thought she was just gaining weight."
"Well, technically, she is, but it's due to the baby," the doctor replied. "May I do the tests?"
Carson glanced at his wife. She met his gaze and slowly nodded. He smiled and turned back to the doctor. "Yes, please do."
End Chapter