Chapter 32
CHAPTER
NORA CLAPPED HER hands together like a kindergarten teacher trying to get her students’ attention. “Alright, everyone—time to focus. The nurse will be here any minute. We need to get Jenna to the back bedroom and start preparing.”
Max turned to Madison. “I’ll get her arms, you get her feet.”
I watched in horrified shock as they carried Jenna’s unconscious body past the kitchenette and down the hallway. My mind was racing. They’re going to kill Jenna … and frame me for it. Like they’ve already framed me for her disappearance.
Madison returned a moment later. She put a black bottle and the white cloth away in a black leather duffel bag that sat on top of a stack of diaper boxes. When she turned around to face me again, I noticed she’d taken something out of the bag too.
A gun.
She ran her hand over the dark barrel as she walked toward my bed.
“It’s very simple, Savannah. You can survive this, knowing that Baby Charlie is well taken care of, in a loving home …
or you can die. I’ve come too far; I’m not going to let anything screw this up for Max and me.
Not this time.” She pointed the gun directly at my head, and I felt all the breath leave my body. “Do I make myself clear?”
I nodded wordlessly. Madison smiled.
It was unnerving—she used to look like a supermodel when she flashed her pretty smile. Now only her right side remained pristine. Purplish-black bruising surrounding a long line of swollen stitches on the left side of her face gave her a nightmarish, two-faced quality.
Just like her duplicitous personality. All of the upper peninsula thought she was Miss America, but I knew the truth—she was a callous, insensitive, ruthless witch who, apparently, was willing to kill to get what she wanted.
“Good.” She put the gun back into the duffel bag.
A bright light shone through the blinds of the window next to the front door and swept across the room. I heard tires flattening dirt and rocks, then the sound of a car door opening and closing. Someone had arrived.
Within seconds, there was a knock on the door.
“Ah! That must be her,” Nora said.
Nora’s heels click-clacked on the wooden floor. She opened the door. “You must be Colleen.”
“Yes, I’m Nurse Colleen. Here to help with the birth,” said a deep female voice.
“Please, come in,” Nora said.
“Whoa—what is this?” said the nurse as her eyes fell on me on the bed.
Scream for help! my instincts cried. Tell the nurse to call 911! But my voice wouldn’t cooperate. If I did anything they didn’t like, who knew what they might do?
“Now, now, please have a seat while my daughter and I explain,” Nora said in a bossy, take-charge voice.
“Colleen, this is my daughter, Madison. The woman in the bed is her surrogate. She is a very troubled woman who long ago agreed to carry a child for my daughter and her husband, Max. This is their child. But she has mental issues, which we weren’t aware of, and she can be …
erratic sometimes. The restraints are just a precaution. ”
Madison’s eyes flickered over to me, the look in them a warning to stay quiet as the nurse approached me.
“Why is her head bleeding?” Colleen asked, her brow furrowed.
“This is what I mean—she was getting worked up earlier, getting very anxious and nervous about labor, and hit her head against the side of the door when we first got here. We should probably have you take a look at that. I’m not sure if stitches are needed.”
“This is highly irregular,” said Colleen. “Is she in active labor?”
“Yes, she is,” said Nora, “but I asked you to bring the oxytocin to help things along. The longer this labor drags out, the more agitated she’s likely to get. You understand.”
“I did bring the oxytocin, just in case. But I wanted to discuss that with you—usually labor stimulants are only used in a hospital, while the patient is monitored by MDs. They require the use of a constant IV drip.”
“Yes, I’m aware—but I’m afraid a hospital environment is too stressful for Savannah. That’s why I asked you to bring all of that equipment here with you. You did bring it all—right?” Nora’s tone failed to hide her underlying irritation. She obviously didn’t like her plans being questioned.
“Yes … I did. I’m just not sure about this, Mrs. Clark. This feels a little off to me.”
Madison chimed in. “There’s nothing to worry about. I work in an obstetrician’s office. I’m familiar with the labor and delivery process as well, and I can assist.”
“You already agreed to take the money. You accepted the down payment. This is the plan. You do want the full twenty-five thousand, don’t you? To help pay off your debts, and help your son pay for college?” snapped Nora.
I watched Colleen breathe in and out a few times as she obviously struggled with whether or not to go along with the plan.
“Yeah, yeah, I do,” she said finally. “But there are rules for midwives assisting with home births—I don’t want to lose my license.”
Max reentered the room and smiled at Colleen. “Hello. I’m Max, the baby’s father.” Colleen shook his outstretched hand warily. “Everything’s going to be fine. All of Savannah’s checkups so far have been excellent, so I’m sure everything will go smoothly.”
Colleen’s eyes darted back and forth between the three of them, and then over to me. I stared back at her, too frightened to react.
Finally, Colleen sighed. “Alright—but if any part of this starts to go south, I’m calling 911.”
“If that makes you feel better. But like Max said, I’m sure it’s all going to be just fine,” said Nora.
“Now, Colleen, why don’t you follow me into the other room where you can wash up and start preparing.
I even got a little pushcart for all your supplies …
here, it’s this door on the left …” Nora’s voice trailed off as the two women left the room. I was alone with Madison and Max.
Madison approached the bed and looked down at me. Silent tears slid down my cheeks. She smiled, as though my misery amused her.
“Madison—” I choked out. “I’m not due for another three weeks. It’s too early for the baby to come. You can’t do this.”
“Nonsense. Babies are born at thirty-seven weeks all the time. It’s perfectly safe.”
“Madison—babies come when they’re ready. If the baby isn’t coming on his own, it means he’s not ready. You can’t force it just because you’re impatient. I thought you loved this baby. I thought you loved …” Could I say it? I had to. I had to appeal to her any way I could. “… Baby Charlie.”
If me using the name she’d chosen surprised her, she didn’t show it.
“You’re right, this wasn’t the original plan. You have your friend Jenna to thank for the early delivery. If she had just minded her own business, we could have waited until forty weeks.” She stood up straight. “Max, please turn on some more lights so we can get ready.”
Max obeyed, moving about the room, flipping on the overhead lights.
I blinked in the overwhelming brightness. I had to keep trying. “Madison, this is dangerous. What if something goes wrong during labor? We need a doctor—you can’t mess around with drugs like oxytocin.”
“Colleen is a professional. We have nothing to worry about. Baby Charlie will be here before we know it. Max and I will finally have our child, and we can be a happy family.”
At the word family my head snapped up, as I suddenly remembered something. “What did you do to my mother?”
“Oh, she’ll be fine. She’s just … taking a nap.”
A wave of nausea spread throughout my body. More tears spilled down my cheeks. “What do you mean? Where is she?”
“Relax, Savannah,” Madison snarled. “For God’s sake. Stress is not good for the baby.”
“Where. Is. My. Mother?” I snarled back. “If you don’t tell me, I’ll scream, I swear.”
Madison sighed in annoyance. “In her car, sleeping peacefully, thanks to a little chloroform. Don’t worry, I cracked a window.”
Madison bent over me again. It took everything in me not to lurch forward and head-butt her—but my head had already taken quite a beating.
I wasn’t sure it could take any more. She touched a spot above my left ear, at the edge of my hairline.
I winced as it sent a sharp, shooting pain through my temple.
“Yeah, I think we should probably have Colleen give you a few stitches before labor starts. Don’t need you bleeding out through the head during all the important stuff.”
She stood back up and shrugged. “Sorry about the baseball bat. Originally, I’d planned to tase you, but …
I guess the electrical current can damage the baby’s brain?
And the studies on chloroform during pregnancy all seemed iffy.
I didn’t want any bad effects on Charlie. So it had to be a baseball bat.”
“You will never get away with this, Madison.” I glared at her.
Madison laughed. “Well, you’re already in trouble with the law for assaulting me, and under investigation for Jenna’s disappearance. So, really, I don’t think we’re going to have any trouble at all.” She gave me a maddening smile that sent a chill down my spine. This woman is pure evil.
Nora and Nurse Colleen reentered the room. Colleen had changed into scrubs and latex gloves.
Madison clapped her hands. “Good, you’re back! It’s time to get started. Colleen, please check Savannah’s head wound.”
Colleen looked at me with grim, emotionless eyes as she bent over and examined my head.
I had heard her earlier hesitancy—maybe I could appeal to her human side?
I tried to whisper so my captors couldn’t overhear. “Colleen—don’t let them talk you into this. I am not a surrogate. I’m this baby’s real mother. And I’m only thirty-seven weeks. It’s too early for my baby to be born.”
Colleen had been resolutely avoiding my eyes as she used a damp cloth to clean the dried blood from around my wound, but at those words, her eyes locked onto mine. She paused and looked down at the ground; I hoped it was a sign that I was getting through to her.
She stood up, and turned to look at Max, Madison, and Nora. “You said she’s in active labor? When’s the last time she had a contraction?”
Nora rolled her eyes again, obviously tiring of Colleen’s questions.
As she answered, she busied herself refolding a pile of onesies.
“She was having several, but then they slowed down. This is why I think we need to start oxytocin as soon as possible, to keep things moving.” She looked up and gave a phony smile—it was eerie, seeing the same evil-disguised-as-sweetness look that so often painted Madison’s face.
Like mother, like daughter. “I mean, we don’t want to prolong her pain any longer than we have to, do we? ”
“I suppose that makes sense.” Colleen turned back to look at me.
“No!” I screamed. “Colleen, they’re lying—I haven’t started labor yet. You can’t do this. Please! It’s too early! And I don’t want to have this baby here—I don’t even know where here is! I want my mother with me. And my best friend Ellie! This is not how I want to have my baby!”
I pulled against my wrist and ankle ties, trying to free my limbs.
You can’t give me an IV drip while I’m thrashing around, I thought.
But the effort made my head throb. I felt a fresh dampness on my left temple.
My belly ached, and I started panting. I wouldn’t be able to keep this up for long. Then what would I do?
“Miss, please stop, you’re going to hurt yourself.” Colleen frowned as she placed her hands on my shoulders to try and make me lie back down.
“No! I will not stop! I won’t let you do this!” I struggled, jerking my body back and forth until she let go, her hands up in surrender.
“You’re right, Mrs. Clark, she’s very combative. This is going to make it very hard to proceed.”
Madison sighed dramatically. “I had a feeling this was going to happen. Mother?” She looked expectantly at Nora, who met her eyes and nodded.
As Madison rummaged around in the black leather duffel she’d pulled the gun and chloroform out of earlier, I felt my body break out in a cold sweat.
This time, though, she pulled out a hypodermic needle.
“Colleen, let me assist you,” Nora said, taking the nurse by the elbow and walking her over toward my head. Nora pressed down hard on my left shoulder, and directed Colleen to take my right.
“What is that?” Colleen nodded toward the needle in Madison’s hand.
“A little Stadol. Just to help her sleep. Induction can take a while to take effect, so it’s best that she rests now, wouldn’t you agree?
Plus, it will help with any painful contractions.
And, as you know, Stadol is safe during pregnancy.
” Madison prepped the injection. Little droplets blossomed on the tip of the needle.
“As I mentioned before, I work in an obstetrician’s office. ”
While Nora and Colleen held me down, Madison tied a rubber tourniquet around my arm, pinching my delicate skin.
She tapped my inner elbow with the pads of two fingers to find a vein, then, with trained precision, inserted the needle, gradually pumping the liquid into my body.
I watched, stunned, knowing if I thrashed now, I’d just hurt myself even more.
A rush of warmth traveled through me. I could almost feel it swim through my bloodstream, causing my vision to blur and my fingertips to tingle.
“No … please …” I begged. But as Nora and Nurse Colleen loosened their grips on my upper body, a different, unseen force seemed to press down, more gently, but firmly, as though pushing me under the surface of water. It felt like I was slowly sinking down into the dark depths.
I heard only one last thing as I slipped down into the darkness—Nora.
“Good. Now—time for my baby to have a baby,” she said, her voice gradually sounding farther and farther away. “Let’s get started.”
Then more darkness.
Then only sleep.