Moments later, Harper and Nicholas both woke with a start. crystals falling from them and shattering on the ground in a puff of blue-green smoke.
They felt an unreal surge of energy, as though every cell in their body had been ignited by a cooling fire.
They looked around the room, the doctor and nurses were still standing there, statuesque.
Harper spoke first.
''Emily,'' she said, then bolted out of the room.
The pain tearing through her body meant nothing. Her legs were still raw and trembling, but all she knew was that her baby needed her.
Nicholas followed, then quickly turned back into the room, grabbing her clothes and stuffing them into a bag. Instinctively, as though it were something he had done before, he snapped his fingers, and the doctor and nurses came out of their trance.
He chased after Harper, who bounded down the stairs in her hospital gown, not caring who she knocked this way and that. As he ran after her, he prayed in his heart that their worst nightmare would not come to pass.
He caught up to Harper at the entrance of the hospital. She ran left and right, not sure where to go, then she ran toward the parking lot about twenty meters to the left of the entrance, running around the place, looking under vehicles and asking anyone she came across if they had seen her child.
She was almost manic.
Describing Emily to them, telling them she was not even a day old and that some strange people had just come and taken her. He was with her the whole time, trying his level best to keep it all together. A few people stopped, but he told them to leave, and they immediately obeyed, as though they were put under a spell.
She ran as close to the street as Nicholas would permit and started to do the same thing.
''Harper… Harper…. Harper, stop.''
''don't you dare,'' she screamed.
''Harper, you need to put on your clothes.''
''You're crazy,'' she said to him in a way that said I can't believe you care about how I look right now, vilifying him for being more concerned about dignifying her appearance while she made frantic effort at finding their newborn daughter.
''Harper….'' Nicholas started.
''you let them take her…my girl! My baby girl!''
Then she sank to her knees, head in her hands, and let out a scream from the shadowy depths of sorrow itself. It sounded like a heart-rending cross between a shriek and a mournful bellow.
She could still feel the weight of Emily in her arms, still smell that faint, milky sweetness newborns carried... and now she was gone.
Nicholas, shattered and desperate to get them out of there, he imagined the most peaceful and secluded place he could go to be alone with his love. Then he instinctively reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, and in a blink, they were in a corner of Central Park.
''wh… how…'' Harper mouthed.
''I don't know… I just wanted somewhere to be alone with you, and here we are'' Nicholas said.
''oh, so you've been busy just showing off your new abilities while our daughter is God knows where…huh'' she cried. ''we were supposed to protect her. It's our only job.''
''Harper,'' Nicholas said, half sternly. It stung him deeply that she would even think he wasn't feeling every bit as much anguish as she was.
''take me back to the hospital,'' she said, straight-faced.
''The Glades would have already sent reapers…''
Harper cut him off.
''I don't care about the f*ucking glades!'' she screamed ''I'll kill them all… take me back right now!''
''do you hear me, Nic…I SAID TAKE ME BACK!''
Her hair lit up in a ferocious green fire. At the same time, her eyes turned the same color. Nicholas stepped back. He had never seen her do that. For the first time, he felt she might hurt him. And all he did was wait. Wait for the blast or whatever it was, a part of him wanting to escape the anguish he knew would come for him in the ensuing moments and days.
''They took her from my arms'' he said, sinking to the floor, sobbing.
Harper remembered the somner crystals. Five of them. One was supposed to be enough to render them docile enough that they could literally have their way with them, but the kidnappers came with five crystals. Yet Nicholas resisted them all in such close proximity. She remembered he had to be struck hard with a baton before they could take their child from his arms. She was certain that no one had withstood a single crystal in such close proximity, let alone five.
Harper softened. She walked over to him, noticing the blood on his head from where he was struck. But not noticing any wound.
She tried to put herself in his position, having to live with the memory of your newborn daughter being dragged away from your arms while being helpless to prevent it. It was unenviable.
They were in this together, of course she knew that. She hadn't doubted it for a second. But her beautiful hour-old daughter had just been taken from her, and she had to instantly blame the world and everything in it, every rock, pebble, and grain of sand, and for the time being, that had to include her darling Nicholas. But she knew they would always be in it together.
She put her arms around him, and they sobbed, together.