The sentence came from my twin brother, Ryan, only moments after his daughter was born.
“I can’t take her home.”
I was still exhausted from the delivery.
My body was weak, my mind was foggy, and I was lying beneath the harsh fluorescent lights of the hospital room.
For a few seconds, I honestly thought I had misunderstood him.
Then I looked at the newborn girl in his arms.
And I realized he meant every word.
But that moment came after something much darker.
Something I had never imagined would happen to me.
The Hospital Room
