Desiree slept like a small animal finally allowed to curl up after a long, terrified run. Her breath was even, eyelashes wet from hours of worry, cheeks hollowed by exhaustion. The nap was not deep enough to heal what was happening inside her body, only a thin pause in the tide of nausea and cramps that had become her new baseline. Still, it was the best she had gotten in days.

Dr. Felicia sat at the foot of the bed and folded her hands over her knee, watching the rise and fall of Desiree’s ...