Deadly Silence (complete) Chapter 179

Pregnancy was supposed to be a magical thing; your body was creating a tiny, living person. All her life, Annie had wished to experience this for herself, but her body just hadn’t wanted to cooperate. It was why they’d chosen surrogacy for their three boys, and the two other children she’d wanted to add to the mix in the coming years.

Then she’d been abducted. Annie had been on her way to the pharmacy when it happened. For a few days she hadn’t been feeling well; something was off, and she figured it was a simple cold that some over the counter medication would cure. In the following years, she often wondered if she’d just stayed home that day, would she still be with her family?

She’d gotten pulled over and forced into the back of a police car, all while she demanded answers for her treatment, and that she had the right to call a lawyer, or at least her husband.

The next thing she knew, she was being kept in a studio apartment-like space. The windows were fastened shut, and nothing she did made them budge even a little; the only door leading outside was just as secure, with a reinforced frame to prevent anyone from breaking through.

Two weeks into her captivity, she was struck with near constant nausea. The man who’d grabbed her, and stayed with her in the apartment to play the role of loving husband, brought a doctor in to see what was going on.

Annie tried to tell the doctor she was being held against her will, but it didn’t take long for her to realize it was pointless. He already knew what was going on, and showed no sign that he cared how she felt about the matter.

He’d said the words she’d never thought she would hear: ‘congratulations, you’re pregnant.’ It made her want to vomit at the thought she was carrying her captor’s child, but then had a sudden realization. What if she’d been feeling off prior to her abduction because she’d already been pregnant?

Had Samuel somehow given her this miraculous gift? Had her body finally cooperated and allowed a pregnancy to happen?

Due her medical conditions, she was immediately placed on bed rest. Annie didn’t fight this, as it gave her the perfect excuse to turn the man, who said his name was Paul, away whenever he wanted attention. “No. I was told to rest. I won’t do anything to endanger the baby.” She knew the moment she gave birth that excuse would no longer work, but like hell if she didn’t take advantage of it while she could.

Pregnancy turned out to be horrible. Morning sickness was an all day affair throughout the first trimester. Constant exhaustion and discomfort decided to show up at the nine week mark, sticking around until the very end. Then came the heartburn, frequent pee breaks, and swelling in her hands and feet. Throughout all this, Annie marvelled at how her body was creating life. The swell of her belly was the most amazing thing and she couldn’t stop touching it.

The doctor came for weekly checkups. He wasn’t as equipped as an OB-GYN or hospital, but enough that he could at least do an ultrasound, and make an educated guess on when the baby would come. At least, it was thought he knew what he was doing.

When Annie went into labour, it was two and a half weeks before the due date they’d been given. She’d begun to bleed heavily, and Paul caused a scene until the doctor arrived, who took one look at her and said they needed a hospital. Now.

There was a shouting match that ended when the doctor screamed, “If you don’t want her to die, you will take her to a hospital. Her death will be on you, not me.”

She was warned to say nothing to the staff once they arrived, or they’d go after her family. Annie thought of her little boys, of the man she loved with all her heart, and agreed. To lose them would make her life feel meaningless, nor could she afford to lose the baby in her belly.

They were forced to cut her open to get the baby out. In the process, they had to perform a full hysterectomy due to complications.

Annie would never carry another child, nor have eggs to harvest for future surrogacy. It broke her heart when she woke up and heard what they’d done. How could they do that to her?

Then they’d placed the tiny bundle in her arms and nothing else mattered anymore.

It was a little girl; a perfect, beautiful, little angel, with huge blue eyes that would turn brown over the coming months, and a mop of dark hair. Tears streamed down Annie’s face as she stared in awe at the life her body had created. She’d done this, all on her own.

“Veronica,” Paul whispered in her ear, breaking the spell she’d been under.

Annie shook her head. “No. I always wanted to name my little girl Genevieve. Her name is Genevieve.” A dark look passed over Paul’s face at her defiance, but she already knew how to deal with him. “Her middle name can be Veronica, but her first name has to be Genevieve.”

It took him a minute to wrestle with this, but he eventually caved. “Fine. Genevieve Veronica Clark.”

“Clark-Lamont.” Another dark look, but again Annie had already thought about this, too. “If she is our child, she should have both our names.” In truth, she wanted the baby girl to be a Devreaux, but she was the only one aware he wasn’t the child’s real father. She didn’t want this little angel to be stuck with Paul’s last name, so she knew a compromise would be needed. Using her maiden name, instead of her husband’s, made sure the baby would be able to find her real family. Someday.

It took a few more words to get Paul to agree to the full name.

Annie had never thought of using the name Genevieve for a daughter. It had only come to mind because it was a way of being defiant towards this horrible man, while simultaneously telling Samuel that she still loved him dearly.

Genevieve had been his mother’s name. She’d been alive to see the birth of Sebastian and Gabriel but, sadly, passed just before Laurent was born. It had hit Samuel hard, losing his mother, as they’d been thick as thieves. It had taken a single month from her being diagnosed with stage three pancreatic cancer before it claimed her life. There’d been no time to come to terms with the diagnosis, let alone the loss. Naming their little girl after her grandmother would honour the kind woman she’d been in life, and tell the world that Annie hadn’t forgotten her family.

Once the name was out of the way, Annie turned her attention back to the perfect baby in her arms. Paul left her alone soon after.

“One day… I’ll tell you all about your real family,” she whispered to the sleeping child. “I’ll tell you all about your older brothers and how amazing they are.” Annie began to cry again. She’d only had a few short weeks with Laurent, and by now he’d be nearly a year old. What was his personality like? Was he still a happy baby?

What about Sebastian, who would be almost done the second grade? Was he getting good marks? Was he still enjoying school? Did he need help with his homework yet?

Gabriel would be in pre-primary. Was he getting along with the other children? Had he made friends? Was he having fun?

And Samuel… her beloved. The man she’d fell head over heels for and never stopped loving. How was he holding up, raising the three boys on his own? Did he blame her for suddenly leaving them? No… no. He would never blame her for this; he knew all too well she’d never abandon them. She knew he was looking for her, and would continue to do so until the day they were reunited.

Until then, Annie vowed to make sure little Genevieve knew all about them. Somehow. She’d raise her little girl with everything she had; she’d teach her child what love is, how to give and receive it, and that her mother would always be there. Paul might think he was the father, but it was already apparent he wasn’t fond of having a baby in the mix.

Good. Annie didn’t want him to bond with her and Samuel’s baby.

Even if it took eighteen long years, the plan was raise the girl to be strong; so when she stepped out into the world, she would have the strength to find her real family — the one her mother will have told her all about — and make sure Paul suffered for what he’d done.

Because Annie already knew she wouldn’t be able to do it herself; not with a baby. Escaping had already been impossible with just herself, and she couldn’t chance Genevieve’s life like that. If they were caught, Paul would undoubtedly punish them. Would he get physically violent? It was a chance she couldn’t take.

There would be no escape, only waiting. Whether it was five, ten, twenty or more years, Annie would bide her time. One day… one day Paul would pay for what he’d done, for what he would do in the coming years. If she couldn’t be around to witness his comeuppance, then she hoped her husband would in her place.

For their daughter’s sake.