“You may have some swelling. We may have to adjust the strength of the implant a couple times before we get it right. I’m going to run some tests to make sure all the impedances are firing correctly, so we can get some stimulation in the ear canals. I’ll turn it up slowly, as we talk, and you let me know when you can hear. It may seem very loud because you’ve never been able to hear anything before. It will take some getting used to. You will probably feel the vibrations of sound before you hear anything. Okay?”

Morgan was reading his lips now because his hands were busy typing codes into his laptop. She nodded her confirmation. She was more ready than she would ever be. “Now, Ezra here thought it was important for the first voice you heard to be someone special. So, we aren’t going to say anything. I’m going to play something for you, and when you hear it, you let me know.”

Morgan sat still, waiting on pins and needles, as the doctor began turning up the frequency on the implants.

“Can she hear, yet?” Eazy asked, in excitement.

“Shh,” Ethic coached. “Not yet, big man. It’s coming, though. You’ll know when she hears it.”

Morgan frowned, as she waited. She couldn’t hear anything but there was a vibrating in her ears that made them feel like they were itching. She stuck her fingers in them.

“It probably feels odd to her. This is a normal reaction,” Dr. Hamady said, aloud. Morgan winced, as a high frequency ring hurt her ears.

“Does it hurt?” the doctor asked. Morgan was still focused on reading his lips, so he knew she couldn’t hear yet. She nodded. “I’m going to lower the frequency and come back up again. Morgan nodded. She was already feeling defeated. Her disappointment was written all over her. The doctor handed her a pair of headphones. “Press play and try it now.”

Morgan sighed, ready to give up, but she did as she was told. When the deep baritone voice began to play in her ears, tears came to her eyes.

“Let me tell you something, young blood. There is nothing like the love a man feels for his children. Raven and Morgan are the greatest gifts a man could possess. Raven knows it. She knows she’s a jewel, but Morgan, my baby girl doesn’t know it. She was born differently, and she doesn’t realize it’s the rocks with the most flaws that turn into the finest diamonds.”