Mary rubbed her belly again trying to figure out why she was feeling so empty. She wasn’t hungry or at least no food sounded good. Her fingers probed through the thin gown into the soft flesh of her stomach. No muscles felt sore but there was a kind of hollowness deep inside of her that made her feel like something important was missing.

Voices in the hall floated into her stark and sterile room. They were low and secretive. If secrets were being shared outside her room, they likely had to do with her.

Mary strained to listen.

The first voice was urgent, full of tension. “She has a right to know!”

The second voice was calm, almost fatherly. “She isn’t in any condition to take the news. She’s fragile. The wrong words could drive her deeper into her depression. Believe me, there is a time for everything and this is not the right time for this. Just go in and be with her. That’s all you can do for now. Trust me.”

Mary leaned back and feigned sleep as two strange men entered the room.

Who were they?