Prologue

'I can't do it anymore,' the slim girl whispered into the dark hallway, edging away from the car seat she had left in the middle of the floor. The third party within the hallway looked at her like she had left a pile of puke on the floor in a science competition in primary school. The slim girl edged away a bit further, before pivoting on her heels to make towards the exit. She hoped she could leave before she was made to explain herself.

'What do you want us to do?' The man said, and the girl stopped. The man had authority over everyone in the room from his gaze; there was no extra sensory perception being used in this situation, but the girl knew better than to ignore him. The girl knew what would happen if she ignored his questions or demands. That was a lesson learnt the hard way. For the last year and a few months, she had escaped his normal demands but she knew that was for a reason. She was pregnant for much of it, and if the man was seen mistreating her it wouldn't reflect on him at all well. After the baby was born in a dingy room with no pain relief and no medical care; just the girl on her own, they were in heavenly sanction from all demands and expectations; she had just weaned the baby off breast milk in preparation for this. She knew it had to be done against her own will but she didn't expect it to hurt like this.

'Take her away, give her to someone who cares,' the girl said softly as the baby gurgled in the car seat. The man looked down at the baby with a face of stone as the girl wandered back over to the child, kneeling down on the floor to give the baby her pacifier again.

'You care,' the man said bluntly and the girl paused.

'I can't do it, she needs her father,' the girl said.

'Not happening,' The man said bluntly.

'He'll care for her,' the girl retorted – the man snorted in reply.

'He'll brainwash her, we can't allow that,' The man replied and the girl remained silent.

'You have to give her to someone who will love her, I left directions in the notepad,' The girl argued back and the man raised his thick eyebrow at her, looking at her in slight disgust as she spoke back to him but the man was silent for a moment debating everything. The silence stretched on for a while, and the girl knelt next to the car seat where her daughter remained awake but not actively doing anything. The girl made sure she had her teddy with her. The man picked up the notepad she had thrown on the floor before she put down the car seat, and nodded.

'Okay, we'll give her to someone who'll care, we'll give her to this girl.' the Man said, walking forward adjusting his three piece suit to pick up the car seat.

'You're taking her now?' The girl asked, shocked.

'Yes,' The man said.

'Let me say goodbye to her,' The girl stood there, isolated and in near tears.

'You gave your daughter up,' the Man said, turning around to her but his soft side gave into the young woman, who stood there with a single tear running down her tear. 'You have five minutes,' He gestured to a door off the dark hallway and gave the girl back the car seat with her daughter inside.

'Thank you, thank you,' the girl said ruefully as the man walked off, holding up his hand. Five minutes to say goodbye to her own daughter. She walked into the small room closing the door behind her, putting the carrier down on the floor as she knelt down. The room was unspectacular as the girl had hoped; grey walls and grey floors, one porthole window leaving the room with a faint glow, and dust bunnies on the floor from lack of human interaction with the room. The girl herself, despite living within this establishment, had never been in this room for the twenty years of her life. It gave her home, though, to get some things off her chest before her daughter was taken away for good.

'Hey, little one, I know you won't ever remember this, but Mummy loves you. She doesn't want to give you up, she really doesn't, but it's the best for you,' The girl said, her voice breaking as tears started to form. 'You can't stay here, beautiful, you need to stay safe,' The girl said as the baby started to kick in her small onesie, her arm holding the teddy more by coincidence than intention. 'You wouldn't be safe with Daddy either, not that he knows about you. If he's going to give you to the person I hope, she'll look after you. Yeah, she'll be fine with you, and when she is wiser, she'll find you your Daddy,' The girl confirmed to her child. She turned around paranoid, looking at the door before she pulled three envelopes out of her waistband, tucking them under the babies back as the baby gurgled at the contact. 'I never expected this, my little girl, but it's for you. I love you,' Whispered words that echoed in the room, she picking up her baby, making sure the three letters were hidden. One addressed to her new carer, who she hoped was her childhood best friend, one addressed to her father, and one addressed to her baby. 'I love you so much,' The girl hugged her tight as the Man walked back into the room.

'Give her over, we've arranged her lift already,' The Man knelt beside her, forcefully taking the baby out of the young girls arms as she wept, hugging herself and curling into a ball as the Man put the infant back into the car seat, doing the buckles up and taking the baby out of the room as her mother cried on the floor, knowing she'd never see her own baby again.