Chapter 19
“Mama, you got fat!” Ana giggles.
“I guess I did.”
I give her a side eye, wondering how it took her a full week to realize it. Then again, my belly grows by the day. I’m happy my daughter is focusing on my looks rather than the fact that a monster tried to kill me.
It’s odd that neither Em nor Erin have asked me about my bulging belly. Of course, what is there to ask? It’s obvious that I’m pregnant, although I look more like eight months than four weeks.
Erin knocks on my door three times before letting herself in.
“Heeyy! How are my girls doing?” Ana runs over and throws her arms around Erin’s torso. Traitor.
“Great!” Ana giggles. “But look at Mama’s belly.” My daughter points to me. “She got fat!”
“Gee, thanks. Now go collect the eggs.”
Ana grabs her basket. “Will you braid my hair extra special when I get back?” She asks Erin—not me. That’s it, no more sleepovers for these two.
“Of course! Hey, I have an idea. Why don’t I do your hair too?” Erin looks at me, her eyes lighting. Life in the forest must be boring her to tears. “I can weave flowers in it to show Ana how hers will look. And we can chat.”
“I don’t think so.” I can’t talk to Erin. She might ask who the father is. Though I guess that is pretty obvious, too.
“Pleeease, Mama! Pleeease.”
“Go get the eggs!”
Neither of us says anything as Ana heads out back. Erin opens two bottles of water and drops a brimberry in each. She swirls them around and hands me one.
“Have you seen him?” Shit. Em must have spotted him in the forest. “No, and I don’t intend to.” She opens her mouth, but I cut her off. “Don’t tell me that I’ll change my mind in time. I hate him.”
“He’s a good man, Masha.”
“He’s not good. And he’s not a man.” I remind her.
“He’s man enough.” Her eyes drift to my bulging belly. So she doesn’t get the world’s most oblivious woman award, then.
“I need to check on Ana.”
*
“Ana!” I call for my daughter with mounting panic. There’s no trace of her; I looked everywhere. “Anastasia, answer me right now!”
“Mama!” Her faint voice grows more distant by the second.
Once I have her in my arms, I should walk out of this forest and find a house in a gated community. I’m done living here. Done with having a false sense of security. Em and his animal brigade aren’t enough to keep us safe.
“Ana!” I shout, rushing through the gate in my backyard. Nothing. No response. “Ana!” The scream that tears through my suddenly dry throat keeps the sound of my voice muted and causes me to cough.
Unable to get another word out, I run in the direction of her voice, only to fall to the ground as a sharp pain rips across my belly. Shit. This can’t be happening. Not now. I need to find my daughter.
“Ana!” I cry. “Come back here right now!” There’s no way she can hear me. I barely hear myself. Tears trickle from my eyes as a feeling of helplessness overwhelms me. “Ana, come back!”
“What’s wrong?” Erin drops to her knees beside me.
I shake my head, struggling to fight through the pain and string a sentence together. “Ana.” I pant. “Gone.”
“Em!” Erin calls, sounding as frantic as I feel.
Leaves crunch and twigs snap as Ana’s giggle comes closer. And footsteps. Not Ana’s footsteps; they’re too heavy. Em has her. I close my eyes and take a relaxing breath before forcing it out in short spurts and starting over again. The walking stops, and I tell myself to relax. Hopefully, whatever is happening will pass now that Ana’s here, safe with Em.
“Mama and I are going to have our hair braided. Can Aunt Erin braid your hair, too?”
They’re behind me, but I don’t have the strength to turn around and encourage it. I’ll never let Em live that down.
“I like how you braid my hair better.” The rich, melodious voice sends me into a panic.
“NO!” Ana’s with Finn.
I roll over on my hands and knees to see my daughter in Finn’s arms, laughing as she gathers his blonde hair in her hands.
“Mama, are you okay?”
“Don’t . . . touch . . . my . . . daughter!” I struggle to warn Finn through a series of pants.
“Masha,” Em appears out of nowhere. He and Finn drop to their knees, one on either side of me.
Wrapping my arms around my belly, I roll to my side and cry, letting out a piercing scream.
“Is the baby coming?” Em asks.
“It’s too soon,” Finn answers before I can.
“Then what’s wrong with her?”
Finn takes a few seconds to answer while placing his unwelcome hands on my belly. I want to push him away, but I can’t. All I can do is try to get through the pain.
“I think the baby’s coming early.” He looks from me to Em. “It’s in distress.”
If I could stop crying, I’d ask him where he got his medical degree. How would he know what’s happening inside my body?
“What do we do?” Erin asks.
Finn nibbles his lip, thinking. “The spring.”
“No!” I protest as he lifts me into his arms. “Stay away! You’ve done enough.”
Just like Em, Finn doesn’t listen. He cradles my swollen body against his chest. With a resigned breath, I give up and lean my head in the crook of his neck and cry.