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ivpapaemeritusiv · 2 months

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Chapter 16: Kaisarion, A Prophecy Told

Summary: In this chapter, Addy and Papa joyfully welcome their sweet baby boy, who embodies all their dreams. Despite their current happiness, however, their biggest challenges still lie ahead.

Word Count: 5,300 words

Addeline had her reservations at the beginning, but Sister proved to be a great caregiver. She ensured Addy ate well, helped her with daily tasks, and even arranged Papa's nightly calls. Sister's support extended to assisting Addy during showers and accompanying her to appointments. Despite Addeline's initial doubts, she found herself grateful for Sister's help, even though she suspected Imperator’s motives weren't entirely selfless. Deep down, she knew the woman couldn't wait to get her hands on her son.

Late one night, Addy could hear the woman approaching her room, with Elizabeth in hand, "Tell Papa goodbye, baby," a faint voice said. The sound of her daughter's voice became louder as Sister barged into her room with the phone, "Your husband, dear," she said, handing Addy the phone, "And bid your daughter goodnight."

Addeline reached out for the phone as she pinched her daughter's toes, "Good night, my angel."

“I’m taking her to bed,” Sister informed the woman, “Don’t stay up too late.”

Addeline scoffed as she watched Imperator walk out the room and pressed the phone to her ear, “Hi, Papa,” Addy cried out excitedly as she did each night since the day he departed.

“Hello, my little Tesoro!”

“How was the show tonight?” she wanted to know.

“Without you? It is a little less enjoyable.”

“But the fans loved it?”

“As always,” He chuckled. “I hear from Sister that our son is doing well, yes?”

“Yes, and I have a name picked out.”

“Ah-ha, do you now?” Papa was intrigued. “Well, are you going to tell me or make me wait?”

“I will make you wait.”

“Then I will wait with much anticipation my sweet Tesoro.”

Addy laughed, “What else has Sister said?”

“She says you are doing quite well obeying her. I think you deserve a reward.”

A reward, she thought. Addeline longed to receive the type of reward the man was speaking of. Suddenly, she felt needy and longed to feel Papa next to her. She let an exaggerated moan slip from her lips.

“Now tell me,” Papa continued, “Are you behaving? No touching yourself while thinking of me, no?”

Addeline rolled her eyes, “No, but I can’t say I haven’t thought about it.”

“Well, try not to think about what I am going to do to you after that little one is no longer in your womb.”

“That’s not helping, Papa.”

“Sorry, my dear. I will let you get some rest,” he said, “I’ll talk to you tomorrow night.”

“Yes, tomorrow night,” she responded. “I love you.”

“Love you, Amore.”

She held the phone firm against her ear until she could hear the dial tone and then she tossed it to the edge of the bed. She lay there; her thoughts consumed by the absence of Papa’s familiar presence. It had been a little over three weeks since she’d seen his face, and there was still almost a month left until he returned to her. As she gazed into the darkness, a question lingered in her mind - was the separation weighing on him as heavily as it was on her? The room fell silent, with only the soft rustle of the curtains in the night breeze echoing her unanswered thoughts, leaving her heart heavy with longing.

Addeline woke up in the early morning hours, her stomach growling with hunger. She walked to the kitchen and noticed the time on the stove read 3:00 AM. The witching hour she thought. She walked over to the fridge, opened it and tried to find something she could quickly snack on. As she reached for some leftovers, she felt a stab from inside her abdomen, “OUCH!” she grabbed her stomach. The sensation was enough to knock the wind out of her. That was weird.

Just as she went to go heat the food up in the microwave, she heard Sister call out from the darkness of the room. This made Addy jump and drop the leftovers.

“Shit! Sister, you startled me.”

“There’s no need for that language, dear.”

“Sorry,” she apologized.

“Never mind that,” the woman said, “I thought I heard you scream.”

Addy grabbed some paper towels and attempted to clean up the mess she made, “I’m fine. I’m just looking for food.”

“Are you sure?” Imperator wasn’t convinced, “It sounded like you were in pain.”

Addeline stood up with towels full of chunks of food, “I’m sure,” she said, walking to the trashcan to discard of the mess. As she made her way back toward the counter, a gush of water poured out from underneath her T-shirt, mixing with the food on the floor. Sister's mouth fell open in astonishment as she witnessed the fluid trickling down the woman's legs. Addeline's gaze shifted from the floor to meet the woman's eyes.

Sister, wanting to remain calm, started planning the next steps in her head, "That's fine, dear. Don't worry about that mess," she reassured Addeline. Seeing tears welling up in the girl’s eyes, she sternly stated, "Darling, listen to me. I'm going to get the keys and Elizabeth, and we'll head to the hospital." Addeline nodded, and Sister continued, "You're not going to make a scene because it will frighten your daughter, okay?"

Addy silently agreed, wiping her tears away and rushed to put on her shoes while Sister picked up the sleeping toddler.

Imperator continued talking Addy through her anxiety, “It’s fine, okay? You’re 36 weeks now. There’s a 100% chance the boy will be fine at this stage.”

Addeline sniffled and dried her eyes with her forearm, “What… what do we do?”

“Go get your hospital bag…” Sister Imperator paused, noticing the blank look in Addy’s eyes, “Addeline, look at me,” she wanted the girl to focus, “You’re going to get your bag, we’re going to jump in the car, and I want you to tell me when you start feeling contractions, ok? Can you do that?”

“Yes,” she said in desperation, “I can do that.

“I’m going to call Papa right now. They finished up a show tonight, so the next one isn’t for two days. I’m sure he’ll come right away.”

Addy complied with the woman's instructions, and they swiftly headed to the car with Elizabeth in tow. Inside the car, Sister promptly dialed Papa. After three attempts, a groggy Papa Emeritus IV finally picked up the phone and snapped, "Do you know what time it is?"

“Listen, don’t freak out but we’re on the way to the hospital.”

Copia sat up immediately, now wide awake and fully alert, “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing is wrong. Addeline’s water broke so the baby is coming. You might want to—”

“—I’m on my way,” He was running to his car before Sister could even get the words out.”

“How fast can you get here?” she asked

“I’m almost 3 hours away but I’ll drive fast.”

“Perhaps you should fly,” she suggested, “Someone wants to talk to you.”

Sister Imperator handed the phone to her daughter in law, “Papa?”

“My darling!” he changed his concerned voice to a happy and cheerful tone. He had to be strong for her, “Will you be giving me a son tonight?”

“I plan on it,” she said anxiously, “I’m really scared though.”

“I know you are,” Copia felt regret for not being able to be with his wife. He could hear the fright in her voice.

“I wish you were here,” she said.

The words stung him like a thousand tiny pin pricks all over his body. He was remorseful and felt he had put his career over the well-being of his family, “I am coming, my pet. Do not fret, I will be there.”

The same sharp pain that Addeline felt the night of her preterm labor returned in an instant and she quickly handed the phone back to Sister as she writhed in pain.

The woman could hear Papa on the line asking if everything was okay.

“Everything is fine, C. Addy just started having contractions so I’m going to let you go so I can time them.”

“No!” he shouted, “Keep me on the phone until you get there. I’ll be a wreck unless I know you made it.”

“You want me to carry the phone into the hospital… with you on it?”

“Well…” the Cardinal thought for a second, “If it is possible.” He was very concise in his response.

Of course, it was the ghoul’s job to take his orders and not challenge them.

“Cardi?” Sister began.

“Yes,” he asked.

“Get on a plane and get here.”

The man was met with the abrupt sound of the dial tone. Imperator had disconnected the call, dismissing his inquiry in an instant.

“Cazzo,” he cursed, “That woman!”

He wasted no driving promptly to the airport, managing to catch a short-haul flight departing in just 15 minutes. He was at the hospital in no time.

He ran through the doors of the entrance and, now knowing where the maternity ward was, he ran straight up. Katie, the same nurse that led him to his wife the first time was there again.

“Papa Emeritus!” She called, “Your wife came in a few hours ago.”

“Ah, Nurse Katie, Yes?”

“You remember my name?” she asked, giggling like a schoolgirl.

“Is she in the same room?” Papa wanted to know.

“No, no she’s in a bigger room. I’ll take you to her.”

Katie made small talk as they walked toward the opposite side of the building. She had recently attended a concert since the Cardinal had given her tickets the last time he was there, and she wanted him to know how grateful she was.

As he approached a door, second from the last at the end of the hall, he saw Sister come out. He ran to her right away.

“Sorella, how is she? Did I miss it?”

Sister urged him to calm down due to Elizabeth being in her arms. Papa carefully took the child from her as they walked away from the door, “No, she’s still in labor. She’s fine but she’s having a tough time.”

The Cardinal shook his head, his body mimicking the movements, “My poor, Amore.”

“Mama, baby?” Elizabeth pushed out a few words.

Papa held her close and stroked her hair, “Yes, Eliza. Mama is having a baby.” Still focused on Sister, he waited for more information.

“When we first got here her contractions were about 30 seconds long and they were maybe 15 minutes apart. She was tolerating that well enough but now… Now, she’s dealing with minute long contractions every 5 minutes—”

Copia shook his head, “—Ugh”

“Yes, it’s brutal,” Imperator continued. “The medicine they gave her isn’t really working but she’s complaining about her legs being numb, so they won’t give her anymore. I had to get out of there to get something to eat. And it’s really not something Elizabeth should see.”

“No, I agree,” he said, handing his daughter back to the woman.

“Papa,” she tried to cling to the man as Sister held tightly to her.

“Papa needs to stay with mama, Eliza, but I will come get you when mama has the baby, ok? You stay with Sistra.”

“Listen,” Imperator began, “The cafeteria isn’t open yet, so I’m getting breakfast at the diner next door. Do you want anything?”

“No, I’m not hungry,” he said, too worried about his wife to think of food, “Just feed Eliza.”

When Sister walked off to fetch food he barged through the door of the room and saw Addeline laying on her side with her hand over her forehead. She was trying to keep the light out of her eyes. Noticing this, he flipped off one of the light switches so that it wouldn’t be as bright in the room.

“Cara Mia,” he said, rushing to her bedside.

She perked up instantly, “Papa!” She tried to reach out to him but couldn’t quite touch him. She was also quite weak and could not extend her arms very far.

Copia instead leaned in to hug her and placed a kiss above her eyes. He pulled up a chair as close to the bed as he could get it, taking her hand into his and rubbing sweat soaked hair off her face.

“My darling, how are you?”

“Better now that you’re here,” she smiled meekly. “I can’t believe you’re in front of me right now.”

“Are you kidding,” he asked rhetorically, “I would have canceled all my shows for it.”

Just as he said this, he could see from the monitor that another contraction was on the horizon.

“Brace yourself, my love. Squeeze my hand if you must.”

Addeline’s nose wrinkled up as she clenched her teeth tightly together. The pain was so great it took her breath away, “Papa,” she cried out to him, tears falling from her already red and swollen eyes.

“Breathe, my sweet.”

She squeezed his hand with the force of a grown man. It was actually very uncomfortable for Copia. He couldn’t believe such a tiny woman could inflict such a force, but he wanted to help alleviate her pain. Addy began breathing in and out rhythmically, trying to push through the agony.

“That’s it, Tesoro, it’s almost over.”

The doctor walked in just as this was happening. She was very touched at how well the cardinal handled the young woman.

“There,” he kissed her again, “You did it. It’s over.”

“Hello Papa Emeritus,” the physician interrupted the couple.

Papa was free from make-up and ornate attire. He looked very much like a normal gentleman now, older, but very handsome despite just having rolled out of bed only an two hours earlier.

“You’re looking very dashing this morning,” she complimented him.

“Oh well, thank you,” He accepted the flattery, realizing how different he must have looked when compared to the last time they bumped into each other.

Doctor Jenkins attention turned to Addy, “Well, hello, sunshine!”

She managed to squeeze out and exasperated, “Good morning.”

The doctor walked over to the monitor so she could read the girl’s contractions, “You’re progressing quite nicely—just as I expected.”

“Can we give her something for pain?” Copia asked, “She’s miserable. How much more of this can she take?”

“Childbirth is hard,” the doctor kindly reasoned, “And we’ve given her a lot of medicine but she’s not responding very well to it.”

“I can barely feel my legs, Papa,” Addy interjected.

Dr. Jenkins nodded, “See, that’s why we need to hold off on administering anything else. We need your wife to be able to push when the time comes. If she can’t feel anything below her hips, then she’s not going to be able to do that for us.”

“I see,” he accepted the doctor’s explanation.

“Addy, I want you to lay on your back for me,” she looked at Papa, “If you want to take her arm and help her that would be wonderful.”

Addeline, with Papa’s help, was able to roll over flat with her tummy pointing toward the ceiling.

“Great! I’m going to see how far along you are now,” the doctor said, placing a hand under the blanket to check Addeline’s dilation, “9 centimeters! This baby will be here soon!”

The doctor took off her gloves and tossed them into the waste bin, “Now, Addy if you feel any pressure I want you to tell the nurse and she’ll come to get me, okay?”

She nodded, just as another contraction came on. The physician didn’t stay to see Addy shrivel up in pain, but the fan nurse walked in to help turn her back over to her side.

“Cazzo!” Papa cursed, “I hate to see her in this much discomfort. And what can I do? Niente!”

“It’s tough,” Katie sympathized, “You’re very supportive though and that makes a world of difference.”

He walked to the opposite side of the bed and sat down, trying to avoid the many wires. He made a tight fist and with his knuckles he began to press pressure points in Addeline’s back which seemed to calm her down, “There you are, Amore. Relax.”

“My husband sat in a chair and watched a football game when I was having our kid,” the nurse revealed, “I was screaming in pain and he was screaming, ‘touchdown’.”

“Ridiculous,” Copia rolled his eyes.

“God, I’m so hungry,” Addeline complained, “I was making food when my water broke. Sister scared me to death, and I dropped everything and—” she began to cry again.

“There, there,” Papa patted her on the head, “When you push out our dear boy, I will make sure you get whatever you want to eat, yes?”

“Papa,” Addy wept.

“Yes, my love?”

“I… I think… I feel pressure down there.”

Nurse Katie, upon hearing this, had Addy roll over once more so she could check her dilation. Instead, she was met with the top of the baby’s head, “Addeline, you’re crowning.”

“WHAT?” Papa screamed, elated at the words.

“Would you like to see, Papa?” asked the nurse.

“Yes, yes, I would love to see,” as if he would answer in any other way. He followed the nurse’s instruction to peek between his wife’s legs and there he saw a head of black hair, “Magnifico,” he was awestruck, “My darling, he is right there!”

“I’ll get the doctor,” Katie said as she disappeared from the room.

Dr. Jenkins popped in, putting on a fresh pair of gloves. She brought three more nurses with her, “I hear we’re ready to have this baby,” she announced. The room turned into a stage. Papa could see the resemblance—a big bright spotlight on the ceiling shining down on his wife, the elaborate tray of tools to her right and the audience surrounding her. It was a high he’d never achieved before and this time he wasn’t the frontman.

The doctor positioned herself in front of Addy, “Alright Mr. Copia, I’m going to have you stand behind me so you can watch,” she instructed Addy, “Addeline, whenever you feel a contraction, I want you to give me a big push, ok? The biggest you can give!”

As soon as she felt the paralyzing agony of a contraction, she pushed with all her might.

“Yes, amore, there you go!” Papa encouraged her, “We see him now!”

The woman tired out quickly and gave up.

“Okay, Addeline,” the doctor began, “Same thing when you feel another one.”

Again, she pushed as hard as she could through another contraction but became too fatigued to continue.”

“Addy,” Dr. Jenkins began, “I know you’re tired but we’re almost there, okay? I need you to keep those pushes coming until the contraction is over.”

The doctor turned to the Cardinal and very quietly requested, “Talk to her. I think she’ll respond better if the encouragement comes from you.”

Copia, caught by surprise, shook himself out of the bubble he’d placed himself in. On high alert, he waited for his wife to wrinkle her face, as she had been doing each time she felt pain, from the moment he arrived. As soon as he saw that look of dread appear, he sternly spoke, “Addeline, push darling. Push with everything you’ve got!”

When she got tired and seemed as though she were going to stop, Papa grew harsh, “You do not have permission to stop, Cara Mia! Now, push!”

The command startled everyone in the room. The doctor glanced in his direction and nodded, subtly informing him that he could tell his wife to take a break.

“Addeline, dear, you may stop now.”

She did.

“You’re doing great, Addy,” the doctor boasted.

Her contractions had grown very close together and when Copia saw another on the monitor he again instructed her, “Push, and do so until I say you can stop.”

The physician was surprised that she responded so well to this authoritative approach. It elicited a submissive response from her that was working to their benefit, “Alright, tell her she can stop.”

“Amore, you may rest now.”

Addeline exhaled deeply, allowing her tension to dissipate as she let her head sink into the soft embrace of the bed. A flush of crimson colored her face, and her hair glistened with beads of sweat, a testament to the intensity of the moment.

“Okay, Addeline a shoulder is out so the rest is going to be a cake walk! One more big push when it’s time and that baby will be here.”

One last contraction reared itself and Copia shouted, “Push Mia Bella!”

The young mother gathered up every ounce of energy she had left and pushed. The sound of crying filled the air and their son entered the world.

“Mio Ragazzo, my boy,” Papa cried.

Addeline gained a newfound energy and sat up in bed to lock eyes with the Cardinal. He rushed to her side, kissed her forehead very gently and proudly said to her, “You did wonderful, Tesoro. He is beautiful.”

“Would you like to cut the cord,” Katie asked Papa as he sat comforting his wife. “Absolutely!”

He rushed to finish the task and was handed his son after he severed the cord of life that linked his wife to his baby. He brought the future Papa Emeritus V over to Addeline and placed the child in her arms, “Here he is, my love. Meet our son.”

She was overtaken with joy. Emotion flooded her body and the idea that she had fulfilled this prophecy, which the clergy had placed upon her, was all too overpowering. She cried while she held her baby—while she held onto Papa. Papa too embraced his sweetheart, staring down at their new little addition.

The nurses in the room began to exit one by one, wanting to give the family a moment before they took the baby to the nursery.

Papa, with his large hand resting on top of their son's head, inquired about the name Addeline had chosen for their child, "Well, darling. Will you tell me now what his name is?"

Addeline, looking at her son in awe, replied, "His name is Kaisarion."

"Kaisarion," Copia echoed, "Yes, I love that."

By this time Sister entered the room, holding young Elizabeth, “Eliza,” she directed the young tot’s attention to the baby in Addeline’s arms, “There is your brother, darling.”

“Baby,” she said, pointing toward the infant.

“Oh, Cardi, he is magnificent,” the woman praised her son, “I am just thrilled. I’m very pleased with you, dear boy and I know the clergy will be too.”

“Well, thank you. Thank you very much but I didn’t really do anything. In fact, it was fun for me to make a son,” he chuckled, “but less so for Addeline, here have him.”

“Oh yes, Addy, darling you did well,” the woman praised the young mother as she handed Elizabeth back to her father, “We will begin with proceedings once we return home.”

“Proceedings?” he asked.

“You know, there will be paperwork of course. He needs to be formally presented to the Clergy and ordained as your son in front of all the important people.”

“Ah, yes,” he agreed, “Well, we can talk business when we get back home.”

Sister Imperator gave Elizabeth a playful pinch on the cheek, causing her to laugh hysterically, “And our little girl has a birthday very soon.”

Papa bounced his daughter up and down on his hip as he continued to listen to Sister’s plans, “Now, Cardi, I am leaving the rest of the tour up to you. Elizabeth and I are flying home tonight. We’ve had enough of life on the road, I’m afraid.”

Papa looked at his wife who was nodding in agreement that it was probably best for her daughter to go home. She wanted to be able to focus on her newborn.

“Alright, Sister, well I do thank you for all you’ve done for us while you’ve been here.”

The woman kissed him on the cheek, “Oh, anything for you my C.”

Doctor Jenkins and Katie were conversing out by the nurse’s station and the physician couldn’t help but bring up the scene from the delivery room, “Did… did you notice how he got a little bossy with her back there?” she asked. She wanted to make sure it wasn’t all in her head. “And she responded to it quite well.”

“You know what?” Katie recalled, “I did see that.”

“It’s quite unlike how he usually is with her, isn’t it?”

“Well, Dr. Jenkins, you did ask him to encourage her.”

The physician paused, recalling something from Addeline’s first visit, “You know, when Addy first came in to see me, I recorded in her chart that she had some mild abrasions to her genital area, and some noticeable bruising around her neck, wrists and ankles.”

The nurse remained unanimated, waiting for the doctor to make a point.

“She had some marks on her body that were healing too. I didn’t know what they were at the time but now I’m certain they were bite barks.”

“You… you think he did that to her?” the nurse asked reluctantly.

The doctor gave Katie a cunning smile, as if she had figured something out, “I haven’t seen anything new on her since I told them no sex.”

A lightbulb went off in the nurse’s head, “You think they’re into BDSM?”

“I think they’re into something,” the doctor responded.

“Well, lucky girl,” the nurse was turned on a bit by the thought.

“Hmm,” the physician let an elbow rest in her palm while she placed a thumbnail between her teeth, “It’s a delicate subject but before they get discharged somebody needs to talk to them about sustaining from any kind of sexual activity for at least 6 weeks.”

Katie pointed at herself, “Me? You want me to do it?” she laughed hysterically, “Oh, no. I can’t talk to that man about sex. Are you kidding?” she continued laughing.

“Fine, I’ll do it,” the doctor accepted the task. “Judging by the age of Addeline’s daughter it appears she got pregnant 3 weeks after her last pregnancy so I think that talk should also include contraception.”

“They stay busy,” Nurse Katie blushed.

“Indeed, they do. It’s amazing a man that age can keep up with a young woman like that.”

“Well, you should watch him on stage,” Katie said, “He’s got plenty of energy.”

Doctor Jenkins bid her nurse farewell and went to check on her patient. She slowly walked to the room as Sister Imperator was leaving, “Addeline, I just want to say again what a soldier you were earlier today.”

“Thank you,” she smiled.

Papa, on her bedside, buried a kiss into her hair to let her know he agreed, “A most splendid job, my darling.”

“And your little boy is perfect,” she continued, “Handsome, like his father.”

“Oh, doctor, you flatter me.”

“We’re going to let you guys go home in the morning,” the physician explained, “Nurse Katie has informed everyone that there’s a show the day after tomorrow and you guys have quite a drive ahead of you, so we’ll get you out of here as soon as we can and get you on the road granted mom and baby’s lab work all come back normal.”

“Why thank you, how considerate,” Papa gushed.

“I just want to go over some after care instructions with you guys.”

“Of course, of course,” the Cardinal seemed to be answering all the questions. Addeline was too in love with her new bundle of joy to look up.

“Addeline, you should follow up with me or you doctor at home in about six weeks.”

“She nodded,” playing with Kaisarion’s fingers.

“We’ll send you home with everything you need to take care of things down there. I’m sure you already know how to use them since this isn’t your first baby.”

“She will be most taken care of,” the Cardinal assured the doctor.

Dr. Jenkins braced herself for the uncomfortable part of the conversation, “Pelvis rest isn’t necessary anymore but let’s keep the no penetration rule going for about 6 weeks.”

This grabbed Addy’s attention and she finally looked up from the child in her arms. The cardinal patted her on the head, “Ah, my dear, we just got some things put back on the menu,” he joked.

The doctor continued, “Papa Emeritus… Addy, I need you two to be very careful this next month while you heal. Be careful with down below and be careful with your abdomen. You can injure yourself very easily right now.”

“I understand,” she quickly agreed after a moment of silence.

"Papa Emeritus, you got that? Be gentle with your wife, ok," she winked.

Papa returned the gesture, revealing to her that he understood quite perfectly, “We will be very vanilla in the bedroom.”

Feeling very awkward, Addy covered her face to hide her partial smile.

“Alright, Addeline. Hopefully, I’ll see you before checkout.”

With her face still covered, she let the palm of her hand slide down her features, hooking her bottom lip with her fingers, and nodded as the doctor took her leave.

The Cardinal looked over to his wife, “Well, I guess I won’t be putting you into a strappado any time soon.”

Addy slowly turned her head in his direction as if she were Linda Blair in the exorcist. She stared into Copia’s eyes without blinking, looking like a demon possessed.

"Too soon for a joke?” he asked.

“Too soon for anything, apparently,” she replied, disgruntled and sexually frustrated.

“Nevertheless, my dear, we have some things to discuss.”

“What kind of things,” she wanted to know what her husband was speaking about.

“Well, mainly how long we will remain here in Paris. You’ll be ready to see the doctor in a month. Coincidentally, when the tour ends, so I say we do that and we’ll take our leave, yes?”

She nodded, “Yes, Papa.”

“Then that’s settled.”

“Next thing’s next, are you fine to stay at the hotel again,” in the back of his mind the Cardinal knew his wife would protest this.

“I thought the whole reason for me needing to stay at the hotel was because I was on bedrest and needed to be near the hospital. I’m not pregnant anymore so why the need?”

“Just as I have stated about Elizabeth,” he explained, “A tour is no place for a baby.”

“No,” she objected, “I don’t want to stay behind again. I’ll look after him, Papa, please! I’ll make sure he stays safe.”

Copia tapped the tips of his fingers together, as though he was considering his next move in a game of poker, and then he hopped up from his wife’s bed.

“Papa—?”

“—I’m thinking,” he shouted, throwing one arm up in the air so that his palm faced her direction, “Give me a moment.”

“Don’t leave us behind,” she grew worried that he might actually say no.

“I’m not going to leave you behind,” he said, putting her fears to rest. “Is that what you’re thinking? No, I’m thinking of a way to make a tour bus a comfortable place for a band, a baby and a postpartum mother.”

“You and I can buy a bassinet for Kaisarion, and we can take the bed in the back of the bus. It’s smaller but it’s away from everyone.”

The cardinal nodded, “Yes, and I might move some people around. Not all the ghouls are baby friendly. And in any case, we’ll be in a hotel most of the time.”

“So, we can come?”

“You can come, Tesoro.”

“Thank you, Papa,” she was elated. The thought of being separated from him again made her sick. It took everything she had to make it through the past few weeks. She couldn’t do another month. Now that Papa had come back to her, she refused to let him go again.

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