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Holyfuck. I hadn’t been expecting those words to come out of Hannah’s mouth. From the look on Ray’s face, neither was he. The brothers did their best to make sure we got pregnant, but there were still ways for the girls to try and avoid it. We were women, after all.
Adaptable, if nothing else. Most of them were dangerous, but the idea of bringing a child into this world was scarier for a lot of them. Hannah pressed her lips together, her eyes fearful. “Hannah, how the hell did this happen?” I crossed the few steps to my bed, sitting next to her and wrapping my arms around her thin shoulders.
She sucked in a shaky breath. “I have no idea. I was being so careful, every time after he left. So fucking careful...” Her words trailed off as she broke into a silent sob.
“I even fucking prayed. I should’ve known none of those old wives’ tales would work. It was stupid to be so hopeful.”
A baby used to be something to be celebrated. Cherished. Now it only meant another mouth to feed, and another innocent life to protect. And here, in the motel, it meant pain and heartbreak as well. The pregnant girls were hidden away from the rest of us in a separate wing of the motel.
The East Wing. I’d heard some of the other girls whisper that they were watched day and night, leaving them with the bare minimum so they didn’t try to abort the babies – or worse. The Kingsnakes didn’t take any chances with their precious commodities.
I squeezed Hannah’s shaking body, rubbing her arms. “Hey. It’s gonna be okay. We’re going to figure this out.” The bed shifted behind me, and I glanced back to watch Ray shimmy into his pants and pull his shirt on before getting out of bed.
Hannah looked up at me, her pale face streaked with tears. “You can’t know that, Mila. I can only hide it from them for so long. And then they’ll trap me with those other girls, and I’ll either die giving birth or they’ll take my baby away from me and sell him like he’s a loaf of bread.”
“Do you...” I didn’t know how to ask the question. But I knew I needed to support her either way, and figure out a way to help her before the brothers found out. “Do you want to keep the baby?”
“I don’t want him to be sold. But I don’t see what other choice I have. They’re going to find out eventually.” She buried her face in her hands again, crying softly.
I met Ray’s gaze with a helpless look, watching him as he paced the worn wooden floor. “We’re not going to let that happen, Hannah,” he announced. “They’re not going to lay a finger on you or your baby.”
I nodded, my jaw tightening. “Ray’s right.”
She peeked her eyes out through her hands. “How?” For the first time since I had met Hannah, her eyes glimmered with the slightest bit of hope.
I turned to face her. “Ray has a plan for getting us out of here, during the Choosing. You just need to keep it together until then, okay? One more night. Can you do that for me?” I reached out and squeezed her hands.
Hannah stared at Ray, a question in her eyes. “A plan that will actually work?” Ray paused his pacing, looking at both of us. “I wouldn’t risk my sisters’ lives unless I was sure it was going to work.” Ray briefly ran through the plan for Hannah, explaining how he was on door duty tomorrow, and would take out the other guard.
“If everything goes to plan, Mila will be able to grab you before the rest of the girls meet for lunch. Both of you will head down the stairs as quickly as possible, and meet my sisters in the shed.” I turned back to Hannah. She seemed to have calmed down quite a bit with Ray’s explanation. “You’re welcome to come with us. I don’t know where we’ll end up, but it’ll be far away from here.”
“Thank you, but I think I need to go home. Especially with someone else relying on me now.” She rubbed her belly, staring down at it like she couldn’t quite believe what was happening inside her.
“But trust me when I say that’s the last time I go to the grocery store on my own.”
I would’ve laughed, had it not been for the absurd situation we were all living in. But, a thought occurred to me. “Wait. Hannah was going to tell the rest of the girls the doors were unlocked. Who will do that now?”
Hannah perked her head up. “I can still tell Stacy to meet me at my room sometime before the Choosing, but after we’ve left. I obviously won’t be there, but I’ll leave a note for her. She’ll get the other girls out.”
“Good thinking.” I knew Stacy as an acquaintance only. But I knew she would be one of the most reliable ones to get the girls out safely. “Are we good then? Ready?”
“As ready as we’ll ever be.” Ray sighed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “I’m sorry, Hannah. I’m so sorry this happened to you. Nothing in this life is fucking fair anymore.”
Hannah ran her hand through her hair. “Don’t be sorry. You did the best you could. Besides, maybe everything happened for a reason. I don’t think I’d be as quick to jump on your escape scheme if I wasn’t pregnant.” She wrapped her arms around her belly. “I amnotletting this baby be sold. He deserves to know love.”
I looked up at Ray, and he smiled back at me. “I think we all do,” he murmured.
Hannah rose to her feet. “I should head back to my room. And you should get going before your ass ends up caught.” She pointed at Ray. “I can’t believe neither of you told me about this. I can’t believe Laura was right.”
“Shush.” I laughed, walking with her to the door. “Keep it together for one more day, okay? One more day, until we’re getting the hell out of here. Be ready for our normal lunch time. We normally eat earlier anyways, so if anything goes wrong, it won’t seem suspicious.”
She gave me a tight hug. “Thank you,” she whispered. And then she was gone, slipping back into the hallway.
I leaned against the closed door, shaking my head at Ray. “Is it safe? For her to go home?”
“Her parents live on the outskirts of the city, on a small farm. Hannah’s a smart girl, Mila. She’ll make it home no problem, and she definitely won’t let herself get caught again.” He walked over to me, resting his forehead against mine. “Besides, it’s probably safer than trying to have a baby in the wild.”
“You got me there.”
