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“I prefer to live and not worry about what comes afterward. A skill you might want to start learning if you are ever going to make it to nine months. Or do you actually think Dom won’t get tired of your shit and kill you? You wouldn’t be the first surrogate that went night night.” Those were memories I really didn’t want to think about.
“He’s going to kill me either way. I know he will not let me walk out those gates after he has my child. He’s not going to risk having a witness to his horrific crimes. If I am going to die, I would rather go down fighting. But I guess that’s a concept you don’t seem to understand. All you are capable of is following your master’s orders like a good little bitch.”
“Ok, I’m done,” I snapped, as I grabbed her bicep in a grip that was most likely too tight, but I was sick of this shit tonight.
I dragged her toward the stairs; she was fighting as she tried to get out of my grip, but it was pointless. I got her ass back up the stairs and tossed her into her room before I slammed the door shut behind me. I quickly locked it so she couldn’t try another stunt like that again. I was over this shit tonight. I stormed down the hallway until I reached the last bedroom and went inside, slamming the door behind me.
Once alone, I leaned against the closed door and ran my hands over my face. This was not how my day was supposed to go. I had no idea I would be stuck in this house with yet another walking corpse. None of this should be bothering me, it wasn’t that bad three years ago, but now it felt like I was being rapidly stabbed every time I had to bring another woman here. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep doing this. That was dangerous because that was when mistakes were made, and I couldn’t afford any.
I let out a deep sigh as I dropped my arms and headed over to my bed. I had been here so damn fucking much that I even kept clothes here. I kicked off my boots before getting changed into just some sweats before crawling into bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long ass fucking day, and right now, I just needed some sleep to recharge and be able to handle it. Maybe a night in her room would make Natalie realize she wasn’t going to get what she wanted out of this, so she might as well play nice. But I fucking doubted it.
Chapter five
Natalie
Holy hell, kill me.
I had gotten a handful of hours of sleep before my stomach decided I didn’t need my liver anymore. I’m reasonably sure I have thrown that up along with my spleen at this point. I’ve been stuck laying on my bathroom floor for hours now. The only nice part about it was that it was cold. The coolness against my skin felt nice, but it was doing nothing to calm my raging stomach.
I had expected morning sickness to start at some point, but I wasn’t expecting it to hit me the next day I got the news. I swear it was like my mind had been able to trick itself into feeling good until someone said the words, you’re pregnant. After that, it was a complete free for all, one I was currently losing.
My world of misery was interrupted by the sound of the lock to my bedroom disengaging. The last thing I wanted was to see that stupid face of Armando right now, but apparently I didn’t get a say when he showed up. I heard him walking toward me and it took more strength than I cared to admit for me to sit up and look somewhat presentable.
It wasn’t for him, but for my own pride and dignity. I didn’t want him to think I was weak and vulnerable to him. I had to keep my walls up and not let him see just how terrified I was. When he walked into the bathroom, he was carrying two things in his hands that I was not expecting.
“Saltine crackers and ginger tea. They will help to settle your stomach,” he said, placing them down on the edge of the tub so I could reach them without having to stand up. Under different circumstances, I would thank him for his thoughtfulness and generosity. However, he kidnapped my ass, so fuck him.
“Well, you certainly know the drill by now. What is this, your thousandth captive situation?” I asked, giving him the dirtiest look I could muster.
“Not quite. I’ve only been doing this for three years and despite how hard-working Dom is, he’s not that good. But to answer you partly, there is a constant supply in the kitchen along with vanilla ice cream and chicken noodle soup. I have to go out and pick up your anti-nausea medication and prenatal vitamins. I’m leaving shortly.”
“You really wanna help? Drive eighty without wearing a seatbelt and hit a telephone pole. I’m not one for gore, but I would love to have those crime scene photos poster-size on my wall.”
He wasn’t going to be getting any gold stars from me. He was only doing any of this to try and give the baby the best chance, so he or she could be sold off. This was a product to them, and they were just ensuring their product was of good quality. He didn’t deserve any credit or praise for any of this.
“Lorenzo will be here shortly to take over guarding you. I highly recommend you stay in your room. And should you feel the strong urge to repeat your antics from last night, fight it. Lorenzo isn’t like me. He isn’t as understanding as I am and will have no problem hurting you. Be smart and don’t put yourself or your baby at risk. Just stay in the room and he won’t bother you.”
“I’ll get right on that,” I said sarcastically.
I had no interest in going out of my room or meeting with any of the other goons within his organization. That didn’t mean I would let him think I was being a good lap dog, doing what I was told. I had no desire to make this easy for him. He didn’t even acknowledge what I had said. He just turned tail and headed out, but that was fine with me.
I was losing the battle with my stomach again anyway, and the very last thing I needed was for him to see me puking my guts out. If I was going to be miserable, I preferred to do it alone.
Slowly, I lowered myself back onto the cool tile and closed my eyes, trying to will my stomach to settle. I have always hated being sick, but this was worse because, at least with the flu, you know it will end. You will feel like complete crap for a few days, a week at most, and then you will be better. This was different, though, because I had no idea how long this would last. Some women never get morning sickness, others get it for the first trimester, and then there are the poor bastards that get it for the whole pregnancy. There was no rhyme or reason for which one you would be, and I hated it. I hated all of this.
***
I woke a couple of hours later with a start, still on the bathroom floor. I must have fallen asleep at some point, but at least this time, I didn't wake up to an upset stomach. I actually felt a bit better, much to my relief. Being very careful, I moved slowly up into a sitting position, and when the room didn’t spin, and my stomach stayed settled, I stood up.
I picked up the crackers and ice-cold tea and moved them to the bathroom counter. I needed to brush my teeth. My breath was horrid, and my teeth felt like fuzz was growing on them. Being careful to not upset my stomach again, I put a very tiny amount of toothpaste on a new toothbrush and made quick work of getting my mouth clean.
With that taken care of, I needed to get myself looking and feeling more human. I was in desperate need of a shower and had to take advantage of the time I had when my stomach was content. It wasn’t happy; to be honest, I was feeling a bit hungry, but that could come after I got cleaned up from all of the damp sweat that had dried on my skin. I stripped off my clothes and got under the hot water.
It felt amazing against my skin, and I could forget about where I was for a moment. I let the hot water take me away to a place where I was safe. Where I could be pregnant and enjoy it. I could plan for a nursery and pick out baby names. A place where all of my hopes and dreams would come true. I would have loved to stay under the stream forever, but I also knew that too much hot water wouldn’t be good for me. It could make me dizzy or lightheaded, and I didn’t want to faint.
After shampooing my hair and washing my skin, I got out and wrapped quite possibly the fluffiest towel I have ever seen around my body. I walked into the bedroom and grabbed some clothes that were my size. I had no idea who had worn them before me or what came of them, something I refused to consider. All that mattered was that they fit and they looked comfortable.
Now that I felt more human, I decided to spread my wings, fly, or at least try to fly. I needed to get a better look at the grounds and with Armando gone. Hopefully, I might find a weak spot in the fence. There were trees on the property, and if there was a large enough one, it might have branches that go over the fence, allowing me to walk across. It was most likely a long shot, but I needed to check it out myself.
