Laura & Ben Richards, college professors, and members of the lucky, employed class find themselves the parents of a friend's orphan baby boy, Chris Lumiére. A very unusual boy who defies modern medicine's attempts to scan him, and who somehow exudes...
Opening her eyes, Chelsea saw Evan's face and smiled. But the room was unfamiliar. The memory of the struggle with Ingrid came back.
"Relax," Evan said. "Everything's fine."
"Where am I?"
"Home. In Greece. In my family's old house. It's ours now," he said.
Oh my god. She moved her hand to her stomach. Flat! "What have you done?"
"Relax. Everything's fine," he said again. "We had to keep you sedated for the trip here, and once we arrived, Brandon said it would be best to induce labor. Our son is just in the other room. You can see him. He's perfect. We just want to be sure you're well."
Could it be true? The baby's fine? I'm a mother? "What's his length and weight?"
"Fifty-six centimeters," said Evan. "About average. He's perfect."
"You didn't say how heavy. What's his weight?"
The door opened. Ingrid came in holding a swaddled infant, followed by Dr. Cornelius. Everyone had smiles on their faces. Chelsea couldn't help but smile too.
"How's our new mother doing?" asked Dr. Cornelius. He came to her side and helped her sit up.
Ingrid stepped forward.
Chelsea tried to see the baby's face, but he was completely swaddled.
"Careful. He's a solid boy," said Ingrid, transferring the shrouded bundle to Chelsea's arms. Immediately, Chelsea felt the weight—like a boulder. "How heavy?" Without waiting, she freed her left hand, struggling to hold his entire weight with the other arm, and parted the folds from around the face.
He looked normal. His eyes were closed, sleeping. The weight was so very strange. Also, something odd about his skin. She touched his cheek with the back of her finger. The skin was firm. Very firm. Dense was a better word.
"What—is—the—weight?"
"He's 22.6 kilos," said Dr. Cornelius. "Magnificent, don't you think?"
"That's—that's about six times normal birth weight," said Chelsea. "How can that be if he's normal size?"
"He's very special," said Evan. "Brandon explained to me how unique our son is. He'll explain it to you too."
She looked down at her son as his eyes opened.
Chelsea screamed.
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