The sterile white walls of Dr. Stern's office seemed to spin slowly around me.
"I cannot, in good conscience, continue to support this, Evelyn," Dr. Stern said, his voice trembling with a mixture of professional frustration and genuine sorrow. He pushed the latest electrocardiogram and ultrasound results across his desk. "Look at these numbers. Your ventricular function has dropped by another fifteen percent in just two weeks. The fetus is growing, but it is literally drawing the life out of your heart."
I stared at the medical readouts. I didn't need a medical degree to understand the sharp, jagged lines that indicated my failing body.
"You must terminate the pregnancy immediately," he pleaded, leaning forward. "If you do it now, we can schedule a valve replacement surgery. You have a
