Chapter 4
I had a nightmare that seemed to last forever.
In the dream, I was back in that black basement.
Cold snakes slithered over my body. Sharp fangs sank into my skin.
Pain tore through my abdomen in wave after wave.
I watched my baby turn into a pool of blood and disappear from me.
“No!”
I woke with a violent gasp and shot upright.
The first thing I saw was a familiar hospital room. Then my brother Jack, sitting by my bed with worry written all over his face.
“Emma, you’re awake.”
Relief flashed across his face.
“Jack?”
I looked around and finally realized where I was.
“How am I here?”
“I tracked your phone and found you in that hellhole.”
Jack’s face was grim.
“You were unconscious for three days.”
Three days?
My hand flew to my stomach.
It was flat.
My heart dropped.
“The baby,” I whispered. “Where’s my baby?”
Jack went silent.
That silence slammed into me harder than any answer could have.
I gripped his arm, my voice shaking.
“Jack, tell me. What happened to my baby?”
He turned his face away, unable to look at me.
“Emma… the baby didn’t make it.”
“The doctors said the shock, combined with the snakebite, caused a miscarriage.”
A loud buzzing filled my head.
Miscarriage.
My baby was gone.
The tiny life that had lived inside me for five months.
The baby who had moved. Who had kicked.
Gone.
I sat frozen on the bed as tears spilled down my face. My heart hurt so badly I could barely breathe.
“It was Susan,” I whispered.
“She put the snakes in there.”
“She killed my baby.”
“I’m going to kill her. I’m going to kill her!”
I threw off the blanket and tried to get out of bed.
Jack held me down.
“Emma, calm down.”
“You’re still weak. You can’t move around like this.”
“Calm down?” I screamed.
“How am I supposed to calm down?”
I broke down completely, pounding my fists against his chest.
“My baby is gone. My only child is gone.”
“Do you know how much I wanted him?”
“I bought tiny clothes. Tiny shoes. Toys. So many toys.”
“And now there’s nothing left.”
I couldn’t hold myself together anymore. I fell into Jack’s arms and cried until I couldn’t breathe.
He held me tightly, letting my tears soak into his shirt.
He didn’t say anything. He only patted my back, silently comforting me.
I didn’t know how long I cried. Eventually, my tears ran dry and my voice turned raw.
Jack helped me lie down and tucked the blanket around me.
“Emma, listen to me.”
“The people who hurt you won’t get away with it.”
“I won’t let a single one of them escape.”
His voice was so cold it almost didn’t sound human.
I looked at him and knew he wasn’t joking.
My brother, Jack, had always seemed refined and gentle. Polite to everyone.
But I knew better than anyone how fiercely he protected his own.
And how ruthless he could be when someone crossed the line.
I nodded and closed my eyes.
Joseph. Susan.
Just wait.
This game had only just begun.
