Chapter 176: New Life

Jane's scream, raw and primal, shattered the remaining whispers and gasps in the ballroom. The doctor, his face etched with years of experience, wasted no time. With practiced ease, he ushered Olivia and Hyacinth to the side, creating a makeshift barrier around Jane. "Alright, Jane," the doctor's voice was a calm anchor in the storm, "I need you to focus. You're going into labor." Jane felt a tidal wave of relief mixed with terror wash over her. Labor. It was finally happening. But the terror quickly took hold as another wave of pain, stronger than the last, ripped through her. Her breath hitched, and a strangled cry escaped her lips. Olivia, her face pale but resolute, held Jane's hand, her touch a grounding force in the sea of pain. "You can do this, Jane," she whispered fiercely. "Push when you can, breathe deeply in between." Jane clung to Olivia's words like a lifeline. Each agonizing contraction felt like a battle; a grueling push against a tidal wave of pain. She gritted her