Chapter 433

• They had been informed that the baby had been shifted to the NICU, the Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit. The Delano children hung about, looking in through the glass partition, in awe of the little fellow who had decided to ‘pop out early,’ as Beatrice had put it when she came to visit Proserpina. The children knew that their mother had gone through a lot and it had taken a toll on her. Ria sat on the sofa now, outside her mother’s suite, her hands tightly locked . Melissa Lord had stayed behind although her husband had left, promising to return in a few hours.
• *
• Later, after Melissa had gone, and the dark , snowy night was whipping a storm around the hospital, Ria sat comfortably leaning her head against her father’s strong shoulder. They had all taken turns to go back home to wash, change into a fresh set of clothes and return, even the younger boys. Lucien Delano was adamant; all his children would be with him, under the same roof as his wife.