Chapter 6 Every passing hour
Emily's POV
A few days later, the lawyer assigned to me arrived to hear my side of the story.
To my surprise, he happened to be my friend from the orphanage—the very person my late husband had been so paranoid about.
My hospital bills were paid with Eugene's money, which I was able to access because I had known the PIN for a long time. I had just been too afraid to do anything about it.
He asked several questions, and I answered them all. He also informed me that there would be a court hearing to prove my innocence and seek justice for the abuse I had endured.
Five weeks later, my lawyer had gathered several pieces of evidence and witnesses to prove my innocence.
I was almost due, just as the doctor had predicted, when I was taken to court.
The prosecutor questioned me about how everything had transpired and how I ended up stabbing my husband.
I explained everything exactly as my lawyer had instructed me to.
I watched the judge go through the evidence my lawyer had submitted.
My glances at him was because I was nervous. Every muscle in my body felt stiff. I convinced myself that if I even breathed too loudly, the judge might sentence me for something I couldn't afford to pay.
According to my lawyer, my actions against Eugene were acts of self-defense and, with the amount of evidence and witnesses we had, I would not be charged with any crime.
My lawyer announced that there were witnesses and sought permission from the judge to present them.
After receiving approval, one of the witnesses stepped forward.
It was the old lady I had run to.
How had my lawyer managed to gather so much information while I was in the hospital? How had he even found the old lady?
She spoke about the day I came to her house. She explained that she had let me leave because she had neither the power nor the evidence to stand against Eugene, but she had prayed that one day I would be free from him.
Well... congratulations to me.
I was finally free and one step closer to living a better life.
The other witnesses were my neighbours, who testified that they had heard violent noises and heavy thuds almost every night.
Whenever they questioned Eugene about it, he lied, and they could never find proof against him.
Then the woman Eugene had cheated on me with, Jennifer, walked in and shared her own experience.
She confessed that she had been his mistress and that he had abused her as well.
She had tried to leave him, but he threatened her every single day.
Silence settled over the courtroom as everyone waited for the judges' decision. This led to a slight dizziness as my heart was hammering head in my chest. I couldn't get the thought of 'what-ifs' out of my head.
The head judge eventually announced that there would be another hearing for the final judgment.
A week later, my lawyer informed me that he would pick me up for the final hearing.
The courtroom filled once again. Today would determine if I was a free woman or not.
When the judge entered, we all rose to our feet.
Every piece of evidence was reviewed briefly before the judge delivered his verdict.
As every second passed by with his silence, my heart raced as I invited thoughts of failing and being thrown behind bars. All my sacrifices to survive would all be in vain. Oh, Lord. I prayed again.
And upon his declaration to the whole court, I was acquitted of all charges because I had acted in self-defense after enduring prolonged abuse.
The good news overwhelmed me so much that I went into labour immediately.
"Ah!" I cried out, struggling to catch my breath. It came to me by surprise.
Goodness...
One moment, I thought I'd die of hypertension, the next moment, I was suffering from labour pain.
I couldn't even understand what was happening to me.
My entire lower body burned as I parted my legs to walk, screaming.
"Ahh..." I cried again.
My lawyer tried to carry me, but it was even more uncomfortable than standing.
Before I reached the exit, an ambulance had already arrived.
They placed me on a stretcher and rushed me inside.
"I feel like I'm going to die," I whispered between breaths, as though those would be my final words.
The nurse checking on me shook her head.
"You're going to make it," she assured me.
"I can't..." Tears streamed down my face as I closed my eyes.
Suddenly, an intense pain shot through my lower abdomen.
"Oh, my God," I groaned as loudly as I could.
"Ahh..." And I shivered.
My body no longer felt like it belonged to me.
The next moment, I was wheeled into what seemed to be an operating room.
The doctor who had been treating me for the past six weeks entered wearing gloves and a surgical gown.
"How do you feel, Miss Emily?" he asked, sounding surprisingly calm for such a serious situation.
The nurse from the ambulance seemed to have handed him the information she had gathered.
He examined me while my legs remained spread apart. Now I was lying on the bed in the hospital gown.
"Will this ever end?" I asked.
"Yes," he answered while looking at the monitor.
"Hmph!" I cried.
"Oh, God..."
"Just a little longer. Your baby isn't ready yet," he said.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
If this was how much pain I was in before the baby was ready, how much worse would it be when the baby actually was?
An hour passed.
Another wave of pain slammed into me, and all I could do was groan through it, hoping it wouldn't kill me.
"Doctor, please... take the baby out. Cut me open if the baby isn't ready," I begged. I had endure this torture for more than an hour!
At that point, they ignored my pleas, waiting for the right moment.
But inside my body...
...was hell.
I felt as though I were falling apart, as though my life was only one step away from death.
"Are you ready, Miss Emily?" the doctor suddenly asked. "I'm going to count to two, and then you push."
I no longer cared what he was saying.
I was ready to do anything.
As everyone focused on me, I grabbed the hands of the two doctors standing beside me.
"One... two... push!"
He gave the order...
...and I pushed.
