Not a flicker of panic crossed his face. He reached over and tucked the blanket around me, then spoke with a tone that almost sounded put-upon.
"You heard that? Look, I had no choice. Beryl said adoption is only approved when the mother has a medical condition that prevents her from having children. Since you were already going in for the termination, I figured we might as well take care of the hysterectomy at the same time. Save you a second surgery."
He noticed the tears slipping from the corners of my eyes and gently wiped them away, his voice carrying a hint of teasing.
"I didn't expect a hysterectomy during pregnancy to cause that kind of hemorrhage, honestly. But lucky for you, the top OB-GYN I brought in for Beryl happened to be on standby at the hospital. You could say Beryl's good fortune rubbed off on you. Saved your life."
My whole body trembled. I gathered every ounce of strength I had left and swung my hand at his face.
The pain in my chest was so sharp it felt like something was being torn apart inside me.
"Dennis Sanchez, you're not human."
But my hand barely grazed his cheek. It didn't even leave a mark.