Vanish: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel

a very stubborn kid in there, Jane.”
    Gabriel sighed. “Just like mom here. Wrestling down perps to the very last minute. Can you please tell my wife she’s now
officially
on maternity leave?”
    “You’re definitely off the job now,” said Tam. “I’m going to get you down to Ultrasound, so we can take a peek in there. Then I think it’s time to induce labor.”
    “It won’t start on its own?” said Jane.
    “Your water’s broken. You’ve got an open channel for infection. It’s been two hours, and still no contractions. Time to hurry junior along.” Tam moved briskly toward the door. “They’re going to get an IV in you. I’ll check with Diagnostic Imaging, see if we can slip you in for a scan right now. Then we need to get that baby out of there, so you can finally be a mommy.”
    “This is all happening so fast.”
    Tam laughed. “You’ve had nine months to think about it. It shouldn’t be a
complete
surprise,” she said, and walked out of the room.
    Jane stared up at the ceiling. “I’m not sure I’m ready for this.”
    Gabriel squeezed her hand. “I’ve been ready for this a long time. It seems like forever.” He lifted her hospital gown and pressed his ear to her naked belly. “Hello in there, kid!” he called out. “Daddy’s getting impatient, so stop fooling around.”
    “Ouch. You did a bad job shaving this morning.”
    “I’ll do it again, just for you.” He straightened and his gaze met hers. “I mean it, Jane,” he said. “I’ve wanted this for a long time. My own little family.”
    “But what if it’s not everything you expected?”
    “What do you think I expect?”
    “You know. The perfect kid, the perfect wife.”
    “Now, why would I want the perfect wife when I can have you?” he said and dodged away, laughing as she took a swing at him.
    But I did manage to land the perfect husband, she thought, looking into his smiling eyes. I still don’t know how I got so lucky. I don’t know how a girl who grew up with the nickname Frog Face married a man who could turn every woman’s head just by walking into the room.
    He leaned toward her and said, softly: “You still don’t believe me, do you? I can say it a thousand times, and you’ll never believe me. You’re exactly what I want, Jane. You and the baby.” He gave her a kiss on the nose. “Now. What am I supposed to bring back for you, Mom?”
    “Oh, jeez. Don’t call me that. It’s so
not
sexy.”
    “I think it’s
very
sexy. In fact . . .”
    Laughing, she slapped his hand. “Go. Get yourself some lunch. And bring me back a hamburger and fries.”
    “Against doctor’s orders. No food.”
    “She doesn’t have to know about it.”
    “Jane.”
    “Okay, okay. Go home and get my hospital bag.”
    He saluted her. “At your command. This is exactly why I took the month off.”
    “And can you try my parents again? They’re still not answering the phone. Oh, and bring my laptop.”
    He sighed and shook his head.
    “What?” she said.
    “You’re about to have a baby, and you want me to bring your laptop?”
    “I’ve got so much paperwork I need to clean up.”
    “You’re hopeless, Jane.”
    She blew him a kiss. “You knew that when you married me.”
     
    “You know,” said Jane, looking at the wheelchair, “I could just
walk
to Diagnostic Imaging, if you’ll only tell me where it is.”
    The volunteer shook her head and locked the brakes on the chair. “Hospital rules, ma’am, no exceptions. Patients have to be transported in a wheelchair. We don’t want you to slip and fall or something, do we?”
    Jane looked at the wheelchair, then at the silver-haired volunteer who was going to be pushing it. Poor old lady, Jane thought, I should be the one pushing
her.
Reluctantly she climbed out of bed and settled into the chair as the volunteer transferred the IV bottle. This morning, Jane was wrestling with Billy Wayne Rollo; now she was getting carted around like the queen of Sheba. How embarrassing. As she was rolled down the hall, she could hear the woman wheezing, could smell the old-shoe odor of cigarettes on the woman’s breath. What if her escort collapsed? What if she needed CPR?
Then am I allowed to get up, or is that against the rules, too?
She hunched deeper into the wheelchair, avoiding the gazes of everyone they passed in the hallway. Don’t look at me, she thought. I feel guilty enough making poor old granny work so hard.
    The volunteer backed Jane’s wheelchair into the