Murder in the Maternity Ward Read online

  Murder in the Maternity Ward

  Texas-Sized Mysteries, Book 5

  Michelle Francik

  © 2019, Michelle Francik.

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  Cover Design by RockSolidBookDesign.com

  Proofread by Alice Shepherd

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  No part of this work may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher.

  Sweet Promise Press

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  Contents

  Publisher’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  What’s Next?

  You May Also Like

  About the Author

  More from Sweet Promise Press

  Publisher’s Note

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  Chapter One

  “If you call me whiny one more time, I’ll shoot you.” U.S. Marshal Maggie Donahue glared at her partner Reed Donahue, but he just grinned and winked at her. “I’m not kidding, Reed,” she growled. “If you think this pregnancy has thrown off my aim, you’d better think again.”

  Her husband, Garrett Donahue, stepped between his wife and his brother. “All right, that’s enough, you two. Seriously, I can’t take you anywhere.”

  “Take us anywhere? We’re in Sweet Grove Community Hospital because I’m about to have your baby. And if you don’t watch it, I’ll shoot him and divorce you.”

  A laugh sounded from the doorway and Susan Sinclair, Reed’s fiancée, walked in. “Please don’t shoot him, Maggie. At least not until after the wedding.” She leaned down and kissed him on the cheek, adding in a stage whisper, “I’d leave her alone, Reed. I don’t think she’s bluffing.”

  Chuckling, Maggie reached out to give her a hug. “Finally, someone who gets me. Help me out here. Reed called me whiny and Garrett says he can’t take me anywhere.”

  “Reed! This woman is a righteous U.S. Marshal who is about to have a baby. She doesn’t whine, she roars, and don’t you forget it. And you; you’re about to be a father, so you need to treat your wife like the queen she is and not give her a hard time.” Susan turned back to Maggie with a long-suffering sigh. “I swear, it’s like raising two Labrador puppies. They’re cute but you can’t take your eyes off ‘em for a minute.”

  Maggie was full on grinning now and she held up her hand to high five her soon-to-be sister-in-law. She saw her husband watching her, a sheepish expression on his handsome face.

  “I’m sorry, Mags. I was just teasing you.” He rubbed his hand across his stubbled chin and she instantly felt guilty. She knew this was stressful for him, too.

  “I’m sorry too, love. I just don’t know how I’m going to sleep tonight without you.” Maggie’s eyes filled with tears.

  “Don’t cry Mags, it’ll be alright. You just need to rest and follow the doctor’s orders.” Garrett stroked his wife’s face and kissed her on the cheek. “You need to get some shut eye while you can. When our baby gets here, we’ll be blessed with 18 years of sleepless nights.”

  “Definitely something to look forward to,” she replied, a wry grin on her lips.

  “Well, it won’t be all bad. I can think of a few things we can do to while away the time.” He grinned at her cheekily and winked.

  “You do realize I’m never letting you touch me again?”

  He laughed and shook his head. “Don’t underestimate the Donahue charm. Once you’ve had this baby, you’ll be back in my arms in no time.”

  She wanted to tell him his charm wasn’t enough, but as she looked at him a deep longing came over her and she knew she’d never be able to resist him. He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her palm, making her insides melt. They gazed into each other’s eyes, oblivious to everything around them.

  “Okay you two love birds, it’s time for mama bear here to get some rest. Everyone out.” Maggie groaned at the sound of Nurse Jackson’s voice. She was 6’2” of no-nonsense woman, and she stood with her arms crossed in front of her, foot tapping the floor while she waited for them to follow her orders.

  “Good night, Maggie,” Susan hugged her friend, stepping aside to let Reed in.

  “I love you, partner. Take care of yourself and my niece or nephew. We’ll make sure Garrett gets some dinner and makes it to bed early. See you tomorrow.”

  Garrett stepped forward and placed a kiss on his wife’s lips. “Love you,” his husky voice said it all.

  Maggie nodded and ran her fingers across his cheek. “Call me later.” He nodded and grabbed his cowboy hat from the table in the corner of the hospital room. Maggie waved goodbye as the people she loved most in the world left her behind.

  That’s not fair, she told herself. The doctor had admitted her to the hospital for observation and Garrett had to take care of the farm and the animals at home. She knew he’d stay with her if he could, but she still felt abandoned.

  “Alrighty. Now that handsome husband of yours isn’t here to distract you, we have some tests to run and you need to try to get some rest.” Nurse Jackson smiled at Maggie and patted her hand. “I know how you feel, hon. I hate to be away from my Jasper, even for a night.”

  Maggie’s eyes filled with tears again and she struggled to hold them back. “We’re just being cautious, right? The baby’s okay?”

  The nurse took Maggie’s hands in hers and looked her in the eye. “You know I don’t play, right?” Maggie nodded. “You’re here for observation only. As long as your tests continue to look good, you’ll get to go home tomorrow. Your blood pressure was high, and your heart was beating a bit too fast at your checkup this morning, so doc wants to be sure it was a fluke before she sends you home.�
� She patted her hand as she looked at the monitor beside the bed. “See, there you go. Since you’ve been here everything’s been normal.”

  Maggie sighed and smiled at the nurse. “Thank you. I’m not usually so emotional and needy, but this pregnancy has me all out of kilter.”

  “It does that to most women, especially women with a demanding job like yours. You’re used to being in control and then bam, your hormones are all over the place, you can’t think straight, and everything feels overwhelming.” She grinned.

  “I have three kids. My first was tough. I didn’t know what to expect and I was scared stiff. But it was also amazing. Feeling that little life growing inside me, knowing that I was going to be a mom.” She sighed and met Maggie’s eyes. “It’s an incredible thing, having a child, and I’m sure you’ll get through this just fine.”

  Chapter Two

  Maggie reached over and pushed the buzzer to call the nurse--again. She’d been waiting to use the bathroom for what seemed like an hour, although it was probably closer to 10 minutes, if she was being honest. She’d been told not to get up by herself, but her bladder wasn’t going to wait much longer.

  Drumming her fingers on her belly, she felt a sharp kick. “Sorry, baby, mommy’s a little frustrated.” She rubbed her belly to reassure the baby--or maybe herself, she wasn’t sure. She took a deep breath and tried to relax. Anxiety wasn’t going to help her blood pressure any, and it had to stay low so she could go home.

  She waited a few more minutes, trying her best to be patient, but she couldn’t delay any longer. If the nurses were too busy to help her, she’d have to help herself.

  She tossed the covers off and swung her legs over the side of the bed, scooting forward until her feet were flat on the floor. She removed the blood pressure cuff and stood up, keeping her eyes on the door. She was worried she’d get caught in the act, but nope, still no nurse. She walked into the bathroom and pulled the door shut behind her.

  A loud thump sounded from the room above her. She looked up and wondered for a moment what was happening up there. But nature was calling, and she’d kept her waiting long enough.

  As she sat, a knock sounded at the door, startling her. “Yes?”

  “Are you okay? Your call button is lit up.” Nurse Jackson sounded worried, and she felt a twinge of guilt.

  “I’m okay. I just had to use the bathroom,” she replied. “I pushed the call button several times, but nobody answered, and my bladder just couldn’t wait any longer.”

  “Sorry about that. We had several emergencies all at once. Are you almost finished? I can help you back to bed.”

  “Yes, if you don’t mind waiting for just a moment.”

  “I’ll straighten your bed while you finish up. Just call out when you’re ready.”

  Maggie finished her business, stood up and walked to the sink. She almost didn’t recognize herself in the mirror, still astounded by the changes pregnancy had wrought. Her face was rounder and her cheeks were tinged with pink. Her skin was blemish free and nearly translucent. Her long blonde hair, usually pulled back into a ponytail, hung loose, softly framing her face, making her look younger than her 32 years. Her green eyes stared back at her, revealing a contentment that hadn’t been there before.

  As she turned towards the door, something dripped onto her forehead. She reached up and felt something wet. She pulled her hand away and looked at it. On her fingers was a familiar red substance that made her heart start pounding. She looked up just as another drop fell.

  She threw the door open and headed for the hallway. In her panic, she’d forgotten about the nurse, so she jumped when she heard her voice.

  “Maggie, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”

  Even though she was a trained U.S. Marshal, having drops of blood fall on her head was a bit too much. As she struggled to articulate what had happened, the nurse frowned and reached out to touch her face.

  “Is that blood?” she asked. “Did you fall?” Her distress helped Maggie’s training to kick in. Panic never helped in a crisis, so she’d taught herself to detach from her emotions in order to remain calm. Take a deep breath and focus. As she breathed in and out, her mind cleared, and the panic receded.

  “It’s not mine. It’s coming from the bathroom ceiling.” Maggie pointing upwards.

  Nurse Jackson ran into the bathroom and looked up. “It’s coming out of the light fixture. How is that possible?” she muttered. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to make sense of the situation.

  “I don’t know, but we need to get up there right away. Someone might need our help.”

  The nurse grabbed Maggie’s arm as she headed for the door. “You’re not going anywhere, missy.” Her voice was soft, but firm. “Let me get you back to bed and I’ll alert security.”

  Maggie started to argue, but the look in the nurse’s eyes brooked no argument, so instead, she nodded. “I can get myself back to bed. Please go find out what’s happening upstairs.”

  The nurse looked at Maggie, her brows drawn together, obviously battling her need to take care of her patient versus her need to find the source of the blood.

  “Go. I’ll get straight back to bed, I promise.” Maggie had her fingers crossed behind her back, but her fib worked. The nurse nodded and nearly ran from the room, calling out for someone to call security.

  Maggie followed her to the door and looked out. Everyone at the nurse’s station was either on the phone or following Nurse Jackson to the elevator. She slid out the door and walked across the hallway, placing her back against the wall so she couldn’t be seen from the station. She slid sideways hoping to get close enough to overhear something useful. She needed to know what was going on.

  She yelped as a hand reached out and grabbed her arm. Maggie turned, her fists raised, ready to defend herself and her baby.

  “Whatcha gonna do, punch me?” Maggie found herself looking into coal black eyes set in a wide face surrounded by natural, black hair. The woman’s belly was even larger than her own and she was smirking at her. “I mean, you look like you think you gonna punch me or somethin’.”

  “I’m not going to punch you, you just startled me.” Maggie put her hands down. “Why’d you grab me like that? I could’ve shot you.”

  The woman looked her up and down and scoffed. “Unless you hidin’ a gun in your huge belly, you ain’t got nothin’ to shoot me with.”

  “My huge belly? You’re one to talk.” Maggie could feel herself clenching and unclenching her fists. Maybe I should punch her.

  “Yeah, you got me there.” The woman chuckled, then looked sideways at her. “I grabbed you because that big ole nurse came running out of your room and told me to get back inside. When I saw you sneakin’ around, I figured I’d better see what’s up.”

  Maggie considered her words and felt the anger recede. She probably would’ve done the same if the situation had been reversed, so being angry with the woman made no sense. She decided to introduce herself, instead. “I’m Maggie, what’s your name?”

  “I’m Ashanti. And this here’s Jayla,” she rubbed her belly. “Who you got in there?”

  “I don’t know yet. We’re gonna wait until the baby’s born, then decide on a name once we know if it’s a boy or a girl.”

  “For reals?” She made a face and muttered, “white folk be crazy,” under her breath. “So, what’s going on, Miss Maggie? That nurse looked right upset.”

  “I don’t know. I was in the bathroom and I heard a loud thud. Then a couple drops of blood fell on my head.”

  “Excuse me? Did you say drops of blood fell on you? You must scream real quiet, then, cause if drops of blood fell on me, I’d scream my head off. I’d still be screamin’, truth be told.” Ashanti stood with her hands on her hips, looking at her in disbelief.

  Maggie grinned at the woman. “I’m a U.S. Marshal. We don’t scream at the sight of blood.”

  “Well that right there is a straight up lie. My uncle is a policeman and he screams like a little gir
l anytime he gets his blood drawn, so, I don’t believe you for a minute. Maybe you didn’t scream about this, but I’ll bet you scream about somethin’.”

  She had a point, so Maggie shrugged and conceded. “I came out here to see if I can find out what’s going on. I hope it’s nothing serious, but my gut is telling me something bad happened.”

  “Yeah, my nana always said to trust your gut. Of course, I didn’t listen. My gut told me that man was no good, but I still fell for him. At least he gave me Jayla, and that ain’t a bad thing, not at all.”

  “No, it’s definitely not a bad thing,” she agreed. “But I still want to know what’s happening.”

  Ashanti grabbed her arm. “Follow my lead. I got this.” She led her out to the middle of the hallway, strolling casually towards the nurse’s station.

  “Excuse me ladies, but you need to return to your rooms,” a man’s voice called out. Maggie’s heart started beating faster, but she shouldn’t have worried, Ashanti had it covered.

  “Excuse me?” Ashanti’s voice was loud and echoed down the hallway. “I’m about to have a baby up in here and you tellin’ me to stay in my room?” As her new friend’s voice rose, Maggie watched the nurse gulp, his Adam’s apple bobbing frantically.

  “Sorry, ma’am, but it’s for your own safety. I need you both to return to your rooms immediately.”