The mother opened her eyes.
At first she could answer only simple questions.
She knew she was in a hospital. She knew she had newborn twins. She knew she had an older daughter waiting somewhere nearby.
What she did not understand was how much time had passed.
When a clinician told her, she stared at him.
“Three days?”
Her voice was barely audible.
Then her eyes widened.
“The babies.”
He told her they were alive and receiving care.
She tried to sit up.
The effort lasted only a second before the staff stopped her.
“My daughter?”
“She’s safe too.”
That was when the mother began crying.
Quietly at first.
Not because she had heard bad news.
Because she had finally heard enough good news to understand what could have happened.
The six-year-old was brought in after the staff agreed her mother was stable enough for a short visit.
The girl entered slowly.
