Chapter 2: The Edge of Darkness
Chapter 2: The Edge of Darkness
Her hand descended like a hammer.
The heavy palm cracked against my cheek, sending a blinding white flash behind my eyes. I lost my balance completely, my heel catching on the edge of the rug as I tumbled backward. I landed hard against the plush cushions of the sofa, but the sudden, violent movement jarred my body to its core.
A violent shockwave of pain tore through my abdomen—far worse than the contraction moments earlier. It felt as if a hot blade had been dragged across my lower belly. I gasped, clutching my stomach with both hands, my vision swimming in tears.
"Vanessa... please..." I wheezed, my voice barely a whisper. "Something's wrong... the babies..."
Vanessa stood over me, her chest heaving, her eyes wide and bloodshot. For a brief second, a flicker of horror crossed her face as she looked down at me curled in a defensive ball. But then her eyes darted to the front door, then to her watch, and finally to my phone sitting on the counter.
Desperation had completely swallowed whatever humanity she once possessed.
"You're lying," she muttered, though her voice trembled. "You're just trying to buy time until Daniel gets back."
"I'm not lying!" I sobbed, a fresh contraction hitting me with brutal intensity. I could feel my stomach hardening like concrete. "I'm in labor, Vanessa! Thirty-four weeks... it's too early! Call an ambulance!"
Instead of reaching for her phone, she stepped backward toward the door. She grabbed my purse off the entryway table, unzipped it with frantic fingers, and pulled out my car keys and home security fob.
"You brought this on yourself," she whispered, her voice chillingly cold as she tried to justify her cruelty. "If you had just signed the papers, none of this would be happening."
"Vanessa! Don't leave me!" I screamed, struggling to push myself up from the couch, but another wave of agony pinned me down.
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She turned the deadbolt, stepped out into the pouring rain, and slammed the heavy oak door shut behind her. The sharp sound of the lock turning from the outside echoed like a gunshot through the empty house.
I was locked inside. My phone was gone. My husband was six thousand miles away in the air. And my unborn children were fighting for survival inside me.
