Mrs. Holmes [Book III]

Surprises and a Culprit {Susanna}

I unfold the paper slowly and breathe deeply, staying calm. My breath hitches and I freeze when I see the single word I've been wanting to see for a long time.

Pregnant.

Pregnant.

"I'm pregnant..." I read off and tears well up in my eyes.

"That's certainly preferable to being terminally ill with a pathogen," Zuke chuckles, "Congratulations, Susanna!"

"This is great news!" Percy agrees.

I look at the paper again, "But all the other tests said I wasn't pregnant. How?" Percy takes it and looks it over.

"According to this, the levels of HCG have been present and at anticipated levels for at least a few weeks. So, either your tests were faulty or there is another culprit to blame."

Zuke gets a knowing look, "Do you take any medications?"

I nod, "Yeah. Just one."

"That could have interfered. What do you take?" I give him the name and as much info as I can remember off the top of my head. Zuke inputs this into a computer and five minutes later he jumps up, "Aha! Your medication was recently proven to conceal HCG in urine tests. That explains it!"

I fall back in the chair, "My migraine prescription made the tests show false negatives!?"

"Yep." Percy replies.

I lean against the desk, shaking my head, "I feel like an idiot for not having a blood test done sooner and not paying attention to the medication side effects."

"Don't feel that way. It was only recently discovered. Not your fault," Percy reassures and then tsks, "But you should get a scan as soon as possible."

"Yeah, I need to know what stage I'm at and if the baby's okay," I stand up, "But I don't think they'll let me go for a last minute appointment..."

We all look at each other and get the same idea. Loman-Bullard is a research company. They use all sorts of equipment- including ultrasound technology. And they do do prenatal research and studies. Zuke clears his throat, "Jillian Kelly."

Percy grabs the phone and calls her up. Luckily she's open and she has us come to the clinic immediately. As soon as we get there, Jillian sweeps me into an exam room, "Any idea how far along you are, dear?" She's a very kindly, older lady who's like a grandma to most of us. I shake my head.

"No, I'm afraid not." She nods with a gentle smile.

"Well, I'll be able to tell you that shortly. Come along, hop up."

I get onto the chair, "Okay..."

She turns on the machine and produces a tube of ultrasound jelly, "Lift your shirt up a bit, please."

"O-Of course." I do so, pushing it up to just under my ribs.

"The jelly will be a bit cold, just so you know."

"Whoa!" I gasp as the cold substance is applied to my lower abdomen.

She chuckles and I chuckle too, mostly at myself for my nerves. Then she picks up the wand and I nod for her to continue. Gently, she presses the wand against my pelvis. I look over at the screen as the faint sound of a tiny, quickly beating heart is projected into the chamber, "Healthy heartbeat. Now, lets see if we can find your baby."

She moves the wand across my abdomen and eventually finds the baby. Tiny, but I can make out the head from their body and even see the faintest outline of their arms and legs. My jaw drops, "H-How long? How many weeks?"

She focuses on the screen and moves the wand around a little more before smiling brightly, "Have you missed a period?"

"I've been spotting but today I... I'm supposed to start today."

"Okay. Ready to know how far along you are, dearie?" I nod fervently.

"Yes." She grins.

"A solid eight weeks along. Your baby is about the size of a kidney bean, or a raspberry if you prefer. Today's the twenty fifth of April so that makes your due date... oh..," She thinks for a minute, "January Thirtieth. And from what I can see the baby is healthy and developing correctly. Congratulations, Missus Holmes!"

Eight weeks!? I've seriously been pregnant for eight weeks and I've been getting false negatives for as long?!

"T-Thank you so much for doing this, Jillian."

"Oh, anytime, Susanna! But I'd recommend getting an Obstetrician pronto."

"Of course."

"I'll print out the scan really quick. Here, go ahead and wipe off the jelly."

"Alright." She hands me a towel and I remove as much of the jelly as possible as she prints a copy of the ultrasound.

"Any plans to tell your husband?" I blanche.

"Um, I'm sure I'll figure out something before I go home this evening."

"Well, best of luck to you then."

"Thank you, Jillian."

I carry the ultrasound out, held in between my fingers like a relic, and gaze at the picture the entire way back to my lab where Zuke and Percy are waiting, self sworn to secrecy.

I can barely focus for the rest of the day, but I fit in enough time to come up with how I'll tell Sherlock. By the end of the day I'm so excited that I almost forget my purse on the way out.

Note to self- Email the Neurologist and tell her that the medication successfully meddled with the Holmeses.

Thanks for reading!!