Jonathan shot Gary a glare. He was clearly blaming him for running his mouth. He turned to Teresa and said, “Don’t be afraid. I didn’t kill her, but she bled plenty. That woman had it coming.”

There was a subtle shift in Teresa’s eyes.

Just then, Michael came running over, tears streaming down his face and calling out for her as he threw himself into Teresa’s arms. “Mommy, you were asleep for so long. I thought you were going to turn into Sleeping Beauty.”

Michael’s little hands clung tightly to Teresa, and she hugged him back just as tightly. “I’m sorry, Mike. I made you worry,” Teresa said.

Teresa lowered her head and kissed Michael’s hair. In her dreams, she almost thought she’d never get to see him again. She let go of Mike and wanted to go to the next room to check on the baby in the incubator.

Jonathan agreed. He picked her up and carried her to see the baby. When they got to the room, Teresa asked Jonathan to put her down.

When Teresa saw the baby she had carried so painfully for months, now just a tiny bundle lying in the incubator, hooked up to all those tubes, her heart clenched. She understood what Jonathan meant.

Just like Jonathan, she wished she could strangle Yalena with her own hands. No mother would stay calm when their children were suffering. She wished she could take all that pain herself instead.

Her hand pressed against the glass. If Jonathan hadn’t been there, holding her steady the whole time, Teresa probably would’ve collapsed right to the floor.

The sound of Michael calling for her again and again just made Teresa’s heart ache even more. This little one in the incubator had almost lost the chance to ever call her “Mommy.”

Miriam and Edward took Michael to get something to eat.

Teresa stayed right by the incubator the entire time. Jonathan stayed with her, too. He spoke softly, “You should eat something. You need to rest.”

“No, I’m not hungry. I want to stay here,” Teresa said. She wiped away her tears. “Go stay with Mike. I don’t want him to be scared.”

“Mike’s being looked after by Miriam and Edward. He’s a really sensible kid. Right now, the one I need to take care of is you,” Jonathan said.

Teresa asked, “What about my brother?” She still couldn’t stop worrying about Lucas.

“If there’s any news about him, Benny will let me know right away, and I’ll tell you immediately. But for now, let’s go eat something.” Jonathan helped Teresa, who had been squatting on the floor, to her feet.

Her legs were already numb. Jonathan looped her arms around his neck and, without another word, carried her back to the room.

Just so she could keep going, Teresa forced herself to choke down a few bites. “I need to rest for a bit. You can go now,” she said.

Jonathan nodded, but he was only gone for a moment to the restroom. When he came back, Teresa had disappeared. He rushed downstairs and found Teresa at the hospital entrance, about to leave. She said she had to go back to Nareigh.

Jonathan grabbed her arm. “Didn’t I tell you? You can’t leave the hospital right now. You need to rest.”

Teresa said, “I need to go back and see Lucas with my own eyes. I won’t be able to rest easy until I do.”

Lucas was a man who’d had a truly tragic life. Years of torment at the hands of Peggy had left him barely human, just a shell of himself. He’d even tried to end it all once with sleeping pills.

And now, after Yalena had people humiliate and ruin him, Teresa couldn’t help but worry if Lucas would try to take his own life again. If he really did, someone must bear that responsibility.

Jonathan said, “Fine, we’ll go back tomorrow. Is that okay? Now, come back to the room with me.”