Kaname looked away stubbornly. "I'm serious," he told the Hinoha.r.s.ensei. "Prove to me that you are indeed this nation's greatest physician."

"I will not fail you, tenka bito," Hinoha.r.s.ensei said resolutely. "A hot bath will help with relaxing her uterus," he added before instructing my maids to make the necessary preparations.

They immediately went off to boil water and prepare the tub. While waiting for the three women to finish, Hinoha.r.s.ensei began forming a bark of some plant into a decoction by macerating it in some hot water, expressing it, and evaporating the liquid to a quarter of its original quant.i.ty. The room was filled with the liquid's aroma.

When the bath was ready, Ryuko-san and the twins helped me change into a lighter robe. Kaname then carefully lifted me and brought me to the bathroom. The contractions continued and I almost lost consciousness again. Kaname was once again harping on the poor doctor; I knew he was only worried but his scoldings weren't helping. He only stopped when the water temperature worked its magic, it effectively eased the pain and calmed my uterus a bit. Inside the tub, I was able to keep myself from crying out. I no longer cared that my robe was practically see-through now and that a man other than Kaname can see my womanly bits, all that mattered was that the surges became less frequent.

A few minutes later, Hinoha.r.s.ensei gave me a dose of the syrup he made. It tasted so astringent I almost wanted to spit it out but stopped myself. When Kaname saw my face, he looked like he wanted to jump into the tub to hug me.

The maids continued to boil me some water for the bath. The water was changed four times and I was given two more doses of the bitter bark syrup before my uterus finally calmed down. Kaname never left my side the entire time and was even the one who fed me my meals. He was so attentive that if I hadn't ordered him to eat, he would've forgotten to take care of himself.

After dinner, I finally returned to the bedroom but was instructed to a.s.sume what I realized was the polar bear yoga position in the event that the contractions return. Everyone worked hard to stabilize my condition and to save my babies for the next thirty-two hours.

~~~

A pair of warm chapped lips kissed my forehead. I slowly opened my eyes to see Kaname lying on his side next to me. I frowned, he looked like he aged during the past few days.

"Did you sleep?" I reached out to caress his face. "You didn't, did you?"

He closed his eyes as if enjoying the feeling of my touch. "I don't need sleep."

"Papa, why are you not taking care of yourself?" I scooted closer and tried to roll to my side but he stopped me.

"What are you doing?" he asked, frightened. This was how he reacted every time I tried to move.

"Hinoha.r.s.ensei said I can do this much," I reminded him. "Now tell me, why do you look like h.e.l.l?"

"I was watching you sleep," it was obviously a lie.

"Kaname, I woke up several times in the middle of the night these past few days to find your side of the bed empty. Don't you dare lie to me. I know you've been leaving my side as soon as I fall asleep."

He sighed. "I can never hide anything from you, can I?"

"Where do you go when I'm sleeping?" my tone warned him not to make me repeat myself.

"To meet with the investigation team," he confessed. "I am so close to finding out who the mastermind behind your failed kidnapping is."

"Do your meetings last all night that you don't get to sleep at all?" I probed.

"No… And yes."

"Explain."

"No, because the meetings don't last all night but despite this, yes, I don't get to sleep at all?"

I narrowed my eyes at him and flicked his forehead. "Your sentence is barely understandable, do you know that?"

"Nonsense," he scoffed while rubbing his forehead.

I raised one brow and watched his expression change from arrogant to sheepish. We heard a soft knock on the door which Kaname gratefully acknowledged to avoid being scolded. It was Megumi and Yoko with my freshly laundered clothes. I froze when I saw the red and gold robe I wore during the festival.

"What's wrong?" Kaname asked when he noticed my rigidness.

I did a very Filipino thing and pointed at the pile of clothes Yoko was going to place inside a chest of drawers with my lips. As he thought that I was asking for a kiss, he covered my lips with his.

"Why did you kiss me?" I asked, forgetting my discomfort.

"Didn't you want one?"

It was my turn to sigh now. I was going to explain to him what I meant but then the memory of Mami grabbing a guard's katana stopped me. I froze again, making him worry.

"Mama? What's wrong?" he automatically touched my belly to check if I was having contractions again. "Does it hurt? Is it starting again?"

Upon hearing his words, the maids stopped what they were doing to look at me anxiously.

"Mami..." I whispered. "Papa, where is Mami?"

His hand that was frantically patting my belly stopped.

"How could I forget about her?" I asked guiltily. "Where is she? I need to see her!"

Kaname grabbed my shoulders to keep me from getting up. "The doctor prescribed bedrest aside from the medicines you're still taking, Hina. You are not allowed to leave this room until he says so."

"But I need to see her, she was the one who kept me safe!" I struggled against his restraining hands. "Kaname, let me go and see her!"

"Calm down, will you?"

"I won't be able to calm down until I see Mami!" I insisted. "Where is she? I need to personally tell her I'm alright!"