The sentence left everyone frozen.
While Fernanda worked with another doctor who had just arrived, they began to carefully open Clara’s abdomen. Everything unfolded in tense silence, broken only by the surgical instructions. When they finally managed to access the uterus, the doctor held her breath for a second.
The baby was alive, although his complexion was worryingly pale. After cutting the umbilical cord, they quickly wrapped him in thermal blankets and connected him to a small neonatal mask to give him oxygen.
Álvaro saw when they lifted him. He was tiny, but he was moving his arms. His heart broke.
“Is he… is he okay?” he asked in a whisper.
“He’s alive,” Fernanda replied. But he needed intensive care immediately.
The ambulance arrived just then. The baby was taken to Miguel Servet Hospital, while the police stayed behind to document the procedure. The case required detailed reports, as Clara’s death had been certified, and now it was revealed that the fetus was still alive.
At the hospital, the baby was admitted to the neonatal ICU. Initial tests showed that he had suffered moderate hypoxia due to the time that had passed, but his heart was holding on. The doctors spoke with Álvaro for hours, explaining possible scenarios. Many were uncertain, others hopeful.
“Your son is strong,” Fernanda told him hours later, exhausted but with a genuine smile. “He has a real chance of pulling through.”
Álvaro broke down crying like he hadn’t cried since it all began. It was a cry of pain, but also of relief. He had lost Clara, but not the child they had both awaited with so much love.
The following days were an emotional whirlwind for Álvaro. He spent hours by the incubator, watching his son—whom he decided to call Mateo, the name Clara had chosen—connected to monitors, wires, and a ventilator. Every beep from the monitor drew a sigh from him. Every tiny movement from the baby was a silent victory.
The hospital specialists worked tirelessly. Mateo was having trouble breathing and needed constant monitoring. However, he was responding surprisingly well to treatment. Every morning, Dr. Fernanda visited the NICU to assess his progress, and little by little, her expression became more optimistic.
“He’s fighting,” she told him one day, placing a hand on Álvaro’s shoulder. “Your son wants to live.”Continue reading…
