**Five Months Later – The Goodwill Mansion**
The air in the sprawling Goodwill mansion hung thick with it—anticipation sharp as a blade, tension coiling like smoke, fear whispering in shadowed corners, happiness bubbling beneath like champagne ready to burst. Kiss was days from labor, her belly a taut drum of life, and she'd chosen home for the delivery. No sterile hospital; the mansion's east wing had transformed into a state-of-the-art birthing suite. Medical experts milled about, sterilizing equipment, stocking monitors, prepping birthing pools. Adrian's father barked orders at contractors reinforcing the delivery room; Grandma fussed over linens scented with lavender; Miss Wilson arranged herbs for "good energy." Even the kids sensed the storm, their play subdued, eyes wide.
Isaac clapped Adrian on the back in the hallway. "Brother, you're pacing like a caged lion. Triplets incoming—breathe."
