Chapter 6 - Betrayal from Within
Back at St. Jude's Private Pavilion, the night had grown deep and unnaturally quiet.
Clara rested against the pillows, her hand resting softly on her abdomen. The sharp cramps had subsided, thanks to the medication, but an uneasy feeling gnawed at her stomach. The hospital room felt too silent. The guards outside in the corridor hadn't paced past the door’s frosted window in over fifteen minutes.
The door handle turned slowly.
A nurse entered, wearing blue scrubs, a surgical mask, and pushing an IV medication cart.
"Good evening, Mrs. Vance," the nurse said, her voice muffled behind the mask. "Dr. Harrison ordered a booster of magnesium sulfate to relax your uterine muscles."
Clara looked at the nurse's badge. It was turned backward.
"Nurse Martha?" Clara asked softly, noticing the woman’s hands were shaking slightly. "Where is the regular night nurse, Sarah?"
"Sarah had to step away for an emergency in room 308," the woman replied smoothly, picking up a large syringe filled with clear liquid. "This will just take a second. It will help you sleep."
Clara’s heart began to pound against her ribs. She remembered what Dr. Harrison had told her earlier: *Every medication given to you must be double-checked by my head nurse, Sarah, and verified by Julian’s guard.*
"Wait," Clara said, pulling her arm back beneath the blanket. "I don't need any more medicine. I feel fine."
"Doctor's orders, Mrs. Vance," the nurse insisted, stepping closer, her tone hardening. She grabbed Clara’s wrist with surprising, brutal force. "Hold still. It's for the babies."
"Let go of me!" Clara yelled, kicking out with her legs and knocking the metal tray off the cart. Glass vials shattered across the floor with a deafening crash.
The nurse lunged forward, pressing the syringe toward Clara’s IV line. Clara fought back with desperate maternal strength, clawing at the woman’s face, tearing the surgical mask away.
Beneath the mask was a face Clara recognized instantly—Brenda, Evelyn’s personal assistant!
"You bitch!" Brenda hissed, trying to pin Clara down. "You’re ruining everything!"
Before Brenda could plunge the needle into the port, the bathroom door burst open.
Julian’s lead security operative, a massive ex-ranger named Miller, tackled Brenda to the ground, slamming her against the tiled floor and twisting the syringe out of her hand. Two more armed guards flooded the room through the main entrance.
"Clear! Room is secured!" Miller shouted, locking zip-ties around Brenda’s wrists.
Clara sat gasping for breath against the headboard, tears streaming down her face, clutching her belly.
Seconds later, Julian stormed into the room. When he saw the shattered glass and Clara shaking on the bed, his heart shattered. He threw himself across the bed, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her tightly against his chest.
"I’m here, Clara. I’m here. Did she hurt you? Did she touch you?"
"Julian... it was Brenda..." Clara cried into his chest. "She tried to inject something into my IV..."
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Julian closed his eyes, pressing his forehead against hers. "It’s over. We’re leaving this city tonight."
***
