Author: Amy Lock
Story: No Greater Love
Disclaimer: Not mine
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Callista sat in contentment, sipping her decaffeinated hot chocolate with a soft smile on her lips. Earlier that morning, she had been bugged mercilessly about tonight, but Callie could care less. Instead, she had giggled when they had called him 'soldier boy', and had clarified any disillusions about her having a fancy for him. Truth be told, he reminded her of her friend, Dale, who had always been like a big brother to her. At least, before she had taken to the streets.
Cassie was the only other one who had seen him. He worked nights, and only once or twice a week. The rest of the time, he was working where the children were. Everyone else had been asleep, like they were supposed to, but that night Callista had been plagued with a massive case of insomnia, and Cassandra had been kind enough to stay up with her. When they had heard him walk in the door, they had been frightened, for the rules were very clear that they were to be in their rooms at 11 p.m. nightly. But when he had seen them sitting in the living room, staring at him in slight fear, he had just smiled and whispered a greeting. After that, he joined them, although he periodically left to check on the other women as was his job. He had stayed with them until 2:00 in the morning, talking about everything that came to mind. Callie had sat, enthralled. He was gorgeous, that was for sure. His dark green eyes had sparkled with friendly fire, his brown hair falling constantly into them. And his well muscled body was defined perfectly by his uniform. But Callista had no romantic interest in him at all. Instead, she found his words soothing. He didn't treat her like a prisoner or a run-away or a whore, instead he treated her like she was his sister - someone he cared about. And that was something she hadn't felt in quite sometime.
So, she had figured out his schedule, and the next time that he was on duty, she was waiting on the couch. Once again, his smile lit up his face, and he sat with her until early morning when he insisted that she go to sleep for the health of her baby as well as her own. And so the pattern had continued, which was why Callista sat, hot chocolate in hand, waiting patiently on the now vacated couch.
She didn't have to wait long. Within ten minutes of settling herself, she heard the main door creak open, and she saw Scott standing at the door.
"Well, fancy meeting you here," he joked quietly, his bright smile sweeping across his lips.
Callista returned his expression with a grin of her own.
"Hey Scott."
"How's it goin' Callie?" Scott hopped into the reclining chair opposite of her as he talked, "Is the baby getting a little anxious to come out and see the world?"
Callie giggled. "If he is, he sure isn't making that clear. I don't know, Scott. All the other women were early, even if it was just a few days."
Scott nodded thoughtfully. "Well, what do the doctors say?"
"They say that they don't want to induce yet. The other babies developed faster than normal, but they say that this little guy wants to take his time. They told me it's nothing to worry about, that the different genetics will cause the babies to develop differently."
"That's probably true then. If there's one thing that you can say about Manticore doctors, it's that they sure know what they're doing."
Callista looked much more relieved at Scott's answer.
"He sure is a basketball player, though."
Scott looked up with a chuckle. "Basketball? Don't you mean soccer?"
Callie's cocked eyebrow made Scott laugh even harder. "Are you the one carrying this baby, Mr. Know-it-all? I meant what I said. He sure as hell feels more like he's bouncing around instead of just kicking."
Scott held up his hands in a mock surrender. "Okay, okay. Don't bite my head off."
"Well, you should've learned by now that you don't annoy a girl who's nine-months pregnant."
Scott smiled at her comment and laughed ruefully. A comfortable silence took conversations place for a few moments.
"Callie, what are you gonna do - after I mean." The silence was broken by Scott's curious but compassionate voice.
Callista looked up, surprise clear in her eyes. "I...I don't know exactly. I've been on my own for so long that I didn't think it would bother me to go back to it. But, I think I'm gonna miss the company and...warmth of these girls. At least now I'll have the money to get me off the street." Callie sighed and a far-away look claimed her eyes. "I've always wanted to go to Brooklyn and see the bridge at night. Maybe I'll try my luck there. I'll take the money and get myself an apartment. Go to high school. I could even try to make something big of myself and go to post-secondary school after I get my diploma. Gosh, my diploma. I would always dream about that whenever my life got particularly shitty. I'd imagine myself up on a big stage in those awful robes, shaking the principals hand and grinning like a fool. I never thought I'd get the chance, though."
Callista looked at Scott then, with tears in her eyes. He looked concerned, but his expression encouraged her to continue.
"You know, everyone always calls America the land of opportunity. If it's such a wonderful place, then tell me why a fifteen year old with no family left in the world has to sell her own baby for a chance at an education."
Scott sat quietly, his heart burning in anger. What answer did he have to such a question asked from the mouth of a young teenager? So many people would have answered cynically - that she could have always gone to a foster home. But would that have been any different? In the more abhorrent parts of the country, would a foster home be any better for a young girl trying to stay alive and keep her dignity in tact? What other choice did she have? She knew nothing of what Manticore really was. Instead, she had been approached by a man in a black suit, a man more distinguished looking than any she had ever seen, and he had offered her a chance of a lifetime. She would escape the dark hell she lived in, make money, and save lives while doing it. Giving up a child was the last thing she was ready to do and the only thing that she could do.
Instead of speaking empty promises, Scott chose to reach out and squeeze her hand. He kept it there until her tears subsided, and calmer conversation took over. Then he brought his hand back to his lap, and listened intently while Callista once again became the giddy fifteen year old that she was meant to be.
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Eve awoke to soft voices coming from the living room. Stretching sleepily, she glanced at her clock and her brow furrowed in puzzlement. 12:30 am. Nobody was supposed to be up now, and there was only ever one guard on duty at a time. The first thought that popped into her head was that it was two of the other women having a late night conversation. No longer tired, Eve shrugged into her robe and slippers and quietly padded out her door.
As she neared the living room, however, Eve became aware that one of the voices was masculine. Her curiosity escalating, she quickened her step, but quieted it at the same time. Peering into the living room, Eve saw Callie talking animatedly, and the back of a soldier sitting in the chair across from her. As Eve peeked in, Callista looked up and spotted her.
"Eve!" she said in excitement. "Come here. I want to introduce you to somebody. Scott, this is Eve. Eve, this is..."
But Eve wasn't paying any attention, for the soldier had turned around and was now staring deep into her brown eyes, horror reflecting in his own. His mouth had fallen open and his breathing had nearly stopped. This was a man that she knew all too well. This was a man who's touch sent her reeling. This was a man who had shown her exactly what kind of paradise love could be
"Nash."
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Callista giggled. "No, his name is Scott."
Eve swallowed hard. Scott. No, this was definitely Nash, no doubt about it, there was no mistaking the first person you ever fell in love with. She could state every fact about him: where he had been born, his parents names, the scar from the bullet that he had taken to save her life. She knew that if she were to lift his shirt it would be there, larger than the one she had to show and twice as serious. But Callista had said that his name was not Nash, it was Scott. Eve flinched as the implications hit her. Just that morning, the girls had been bugging Callie about 'soldier boy'; an apparently 'hot' young man by the name of Scott. He had been here for weeks.
Eve took a deep breath and shot Nash a pointed look.
"Sorry. You reminded me of someone that I once knew." She extended her hand to shake his, but at the contact of his skin against hers she pulled away to conceal the quiver that overtook her body.
Her entire being screamed at her to call him by his name, to pull him into her arms, but she knew better. She had messed up one of his assignments before, not knowing of the dangers of his true job, and it had just about cost him his life. She was fully aware of what her wishes would do, and so she tried her best to keep them at bay. There was a reason why he was at Manticore under the alias of Scott, and she knew that in due course all would be revealed to her. Until then, she would play upon the acting skills that she had held so dear growing up. Whatever it was, Callista had no need to get mixed up in it.
"Yeah well, I get that a lot." Nash raked a shaky hand through his cropped brown hair. Eve noticed with a slight smug feeling that she was faring better at this acting thing than he was.
Turning her attention to Callie, she joined the younger girl on the couch.
"Watcha doin' Cals? It's way past lights out time, and you need all the sleep you can get. Chances are that in the next few days you might not be getting much at all."
Callista smiled and squeezed Eve's hand with sisterly love. "I know, Eve, but I just wanted to stay up and say hi to Scott. I probably won't get the chance again. I'll go to bed now, though, don't worry." Getting up from her position on the couch, she walked over to Nash and gave him a brief hug. "Thanks for everything."
Nash smiled softly at Callista, Eve momentarily forgotten. "You take care of yourself, young'un. And promise me that you'll go and check out the Brooklyn bridge for me, okay?"
Callie looked at him with determined eyes. "I promise."
Nash winked at her. "Good. Now go to bed. Eve's right, you need all the rest that you can get."
Callie felt tears welling up in her eyes, and she turned to Eve in an attempt to distract them. "You coming?"
Eve bit her lip as she looked into the young girls eyes. "In a minute. I've got another craving for milk, and I don't think I'll be able to get back to bed if I don't have some."
"All right then. See you in the morning."
And with that, Callista disappeared from the room, leaving Eve and Nash in vicious silence.
Eve closed her eyes and tried to steady her racing heart. It didn't help, though. He was too close, and nothing was going to help except for distance.
Standing up, Eve crossed the room, her back to Nash. "Why are you here?" She hadn't meant for her voice to come out that cold, but it had and she cringed at the steel laced in it.
Turning around, she found that Nash, too, had stood up, but he was looking at her with an intensity that made her want to cry.
"Are you...are you a surrogate?" His voice came out in ragged gasps, any semblance of control gone from his voice.
"Nash, I want you to let me explain..."
"Are. You. A Surrogate?" Tears caught in his throat, causing each word to be pronunciated harshly.
Eve stared into Nash's eyes and saw a hurt there like she had never seen before. She could still remember the feeling of safety when he wrapped his arms around her, the fear she had felt when she had realized her declaration of love. She could taste the sweetness of his lips upon her and the shadow of what could have been overpowered her as pain filled every inch of her body.
"Yes."
Nash had never known that a simple word could tear a hole that big and that easy. He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him, and he stumbled back visibly at the blow.
/"I love you."/ The words echoed with a cruelty that he had never felt before. This was a woman that had once proclaimed a sentiment that had killed her to say, but had needed to be said anyway. And now here she stood in front of him, with a baby growing inside of her. A baby that would be doomed to go through far worse than even young Callie had experienced.
He turned his back to her and leaned his head against the wall. Control, he needed control. If he was going to be of any help to her, he needed to keep himself together.
Turning back around he fought to speak. "Do you...know what this is?"
She stared at him, a look of utter incomprehension on her face.
"Eve," his voice had risen, but he couldn't help it, "do you understand what you have gotten yourself into?"
Again she stared at him, the same blank look on her face.
"Do you know what Manticore is?" He fairly yelled his last question, but he didn't care anymore.
It was then that realization hit Eve like a tidal wave. Nash didn't go undercover because an operation was legitimate and ethical. He went undercover because... Horror washed over her, and she turned a pale shade of white.
"Nash...why are you here?"
Nash didn't answer, and Eve's panic spread.
"Nash, please. Tell me why you're here."
Nash looked up and met Eve in the eye. "Eve, I need you to promise me something."
Eve shook her head, fear causing the room to spin around her.
"Promise me that you'll leave. Wait until the guards mess up one night, and no one is watching and run."
Eve was trembling so hard that she could barely control her breathing.
"Nash, this is a good operation. They're not gonna hurt the kids."
"Eve..."
Eve backed against the wall. "Nash tell me they're not gonna hurt the kids."
Nash closed his eyes, and looked for a minute as if he were going to start to cry. But when they opened again, there was no traces of tears. Instead, a fiery anger consumed them. Letting out a frustrated yell, he slammed his fist into the wall. Breathing heavily, he turned to Eve.
"Just promise me."
Then with that, he whirled on his heel and walked out the door.
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Mandy lay very still, her breathing radically uneven. She tried with all her might to fall back asleep, but Eve's words rang over and over in her head.
'Tell me they're not going to hurt the kids.'
Mandy turned her head towards the wall hoping she had been dreaming. But Eve's quiet sobs on the other side of the wall told her that she was not.
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Eve had the most troubled sleep of her life that night, but somehow managed to drift off. She woke early the next morning to more sounds in the living room, these ones much less soft and gentle than the ones of the previous night. From the sounds of it, every woman left in Manticore was in the living room. Eve barely had any time to think about the implications of that before Mandy broke into her room, completely out of breath.
"Callie's in labor."
Eve shot straight out of bed. "What?"
"Callie's in labor. Her water just broke, but she wants to see everyone before she lets soldier boy take her to the doctor."
Eve was up and out of bed in seconds flat, and together the two women raced to the living room. Callie sat on the very couch that she had been just hours before, Nash was beside her holding her hand.
Looking up Callista noticed Eve, "Hey," she managed weakly.
"Hey yourself. How are you feeling?"
Callie laughed and then groaned in pain, "Not too swell. I wanted to see you before I left."
Eve smiled softly and crossed the room to hold her other hand. "Well here I am."
"I'm scared, Eve." she whispered softly, tears filling her eyes.
"It's gonna be okay. The doctor's here are the best in the country. They know exactly what they're doing..."
"I know. But I'm not scared about that."
Eve looked at her, confused.
"I don't want my baby to grow up and think that I abandoned him. I just wish there was some way to talk to him, to let him know that I love him and that I didn't want to do this. What if they hurt him? What if he gets sick? I just want...augh." Callie's face contorted and tears spilled down her cheeks.
"Hey Callie?"
Nash's voice caused everyone's head to turn to him. He glanced quickly at Eve with a deliberate look and then his attention was directed straight back at Callista.
"These people are good. They're not going to hurt him, and if he gets sick, they'll make him better. There's no safer place for him to be. And if you promise me that you'll do this and then go make a life for yourself - the one that you've always dreamed of having- then I'll make you a promise okay?"
Callista stared at Nash with glazed eyes and choked breathing. She clung to his hand and his words for dear life.
"I promise that everyday I'm working here I will tell him just how much his Mom loved him. He may not understand it, but somewhere he'll know. Okay? But you've got to be strong. For the baby. Can you do that for him?"
Callie nodded, pain and tears causing her voice to be rendered mute.
"Good. Now, we need to get you to the doctor, because as well trained as I am, I do not want to be delivering this baby."
Callista managed to smile weakly as Nash helped her to her feet. He started towards the door, but she stopped him.
Turning around she managed another faint smile. "Thanks you guys. I love you all. Good luck." Then with a blown kiss in Cassandra's direction, Nash and Callista disappeared out the door.
Slowly the crowd of women dissipated to return to their beds, but Eve stayed behind staring at the door which Callie had left through.
'Please,' she thought silently, 'please let Callie and the baby be all right. Please let her find that life and most of all, please, please, please let Nash be wrong."
But as she turned to head for her own room, she noticed a small speck on the wall. Squinting she leaned in closer and what she saw there caused her breath to hitch in her throat. Where Nash's ring had contacted the wall the previous night, a tiny patch of pure, white paint had been scraped off. And revealed underneath it was a cold, grey cement.
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Okay, okay I know what you guys are thinking. "Amy, this is turning into a soap opera." But I promise you that everything put in this chapter was absolutely necessary for the continuation of this story. I needed Nash in there for reasons not yet explained.
Secondly, you will absolutely not see a chapter within the next week, b/c it is the last week of school, and final projects and exams are looming above me mercilessly.
Thirdly, I am the biggest procrastinator in the world. I also love to start things and not finish them. This applies in particular to my stories. So pleeeeeeeease review. I need a fire lit underneath me at all times, otherwise I will just give up, and you guys will never know the ending.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful week.
Story: No Greater Love
Disclaimer: Not mine
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Callista sat in contentment, sipping her decaffeinated hot chocolate with a soft smile on her lips. Earlier that morning, she had been bugged mercilessly about tonight, but Callie could care less. Instead, she had giggled when they had called him 'soldier boy', and had clarified any disillusions about her having a fancy for him. Truth be told, he reminded her of her friend, Dale, who had always been like a big brother to her. At least, before she had taken to the streets.
Cassie was the only other one who had seen him. He worked nights, and only once or twice a week. The rest of the time, he was working where the children were. Everyone else had been asleep, like they were supposed to, but that night Callista had been plagued with a massive case of insomnia, and Cassandra had been kind enough to stay up with her. When they had heard him walk in the door, they had been frightened, for the rules were very clear that they were to be in their rooms at 11 p.m. nightly. But when he had seen them sitting in the living room, staring at him in slight fear, he had just smiled and whispered a greeting. After that, he joined them, although he periodically left to check on the other women as was his job. He had stayed with them until 2:00 in the morning, talking about everything that came to mind. Callie had sat, enthralled. He was gorgeous, that was for sure. His dark green eyes had sparkled with friendly fire, his brown hair falling constantly into them. And his well muscled body was defined perfectly by his uniform. But Callista had no romantic interest in him at all. Instead, she found his words soothing. He didn't treat her like a prisoner or a run-away or a whore, instead he treated her like she was his sister - someone he cared about. And that was something she hadn't felt in quite sometime.
So, she had figured out his schedule, and the next time that he was on duty, she was waiting on the couch. Once again, his smile lit up his face, and he sat with her until early morning when he insisted that she go to sleep for the health of her baby as well as her own. And so the pattern had continued, which was why Callista sat, hot chocolate in hand, waiting patiently on the now vacated couch.
She didn't have to wait long. Within ten minutes of settling herself, she heard the main door creak open, and she saw Scott standing at the door.
"Well, fancy meeting you here," he joked quietly, his bright smile sweeping across his lips.
Callista returned his expression with a grin of her own.
"Hey Scott."
"How's it goin' Callie?" Scott hopped into the reclining chair opposite of her as he talked, "Is the baby getting a little anxious to come out and see the world?"
Callie giggled. "If he is, he sure isn't making that clear. I don't know, Scott. All the other women were early, even if it was just a few days."
Scott nodded thoughtfully. "Well, what do the doctors say?"
"They say that they don't want to induce yet. The other babies developed faster than normal, but they say that this little guy wants to take his time. They told me it's nothing to worry about, that the different genetics will cause the babies to develop differently."
"That's probably true then. If there's one thing that you can say about Manticore doctors, it's that they sure know what they're doing."
Callista looked much more relieved at Scott's answer.
"He sure is a basketball player, though."
Scott looked up with a chuckle. "Basketball? Don't you mean soccer?"
Callie's cocked eyebrow made Scott laugh even harder. "Are you the one carrying this baby, Mr. Know-it-all? I meant what I said. He sure as hell feels more like he's bouncing around instead of just kicking."
Scott held up his hands in a mock surrender. "Okay, okay. Don't bite my head off."
"Well, you should've learned by now that you don't annoy a girl who's nine-months pregnant."
Scott smiled at her comment and laughed ruefully. A comfortable silence took conversations place for a few moments.
"Callie, what are you gonna do - after I mean." The silence was broken by Scott's curious but compassionate voice.
Callista looked up, surprise clear in her eyes. "I...I don't know exactly. I've been on my own for so long that I didn't think it would bother me to go back to it. But, I think I'm gonna miss the company and...warmth of these girls. At least now I'll have the money to get me off the street." Callie sighed and a far-away look claimed her eyes. "I've always wanted to go to Brooklyn and see the bridge at night. Maybe I'll try my luck there. I'll take the money and get myself an apartment. Go to high school. I could even try to make something big of myself and go to post-secondary school after I get my diploma. Gosh, my diploma. I would always dream about that whenever my life got particularly shitty. I'd imagine myself up on a big stage in those awful robes, shaking the principals hand and grinning like a fool. I never thought I'd get the chance, though."
Callista looked at Scott then, with tears in her eyes. He looked concerned, but his expression encouraged her to continue.
"You know, everyone always calls America the land of opportunity. If it's such a wonderful place, then tell me why a fifteen year old with no family left in the world has to sell her own baby for a chance at an education."
Scott sat quietly, his heart burning in anger. What answer did he have to such a question asked from the mouth of a young teenager? So many people would have answered cynically - that she could have always gone to a foster home. But would that have been any different? In the more abhorrent parts of the country, would a foster home be any better for a young girl trying to stay alive and keep her dignity in tact? What other choice did she have? She knew nothing of what Manticore really was. Instead, she had been approached by a man in a black suit, a man more distinguished looking than any she had ever seen, and he had offered her a chance of a lifetime. She would escape the dark hell she lived in, make money, and save lives while doing it. Giving up a child was the last thing she was ready to do and the only thing that she could do.
Instead of speaking empty promises, Scott chose to reach out and squeeze her hand. He kept it there until her tears subsided, and calmer conversation took over. Then he brought his hand back to his lap, and listened intently while Callista once again became the giddy fifteen year old that she was meant to be.
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Eve awoke to soft voices coming from the living room. Stretching sleepily, she glanced at her clock and her brow furrowed in puzzlement. 12:30 am. Nobody was supposed to be up now, and there was only ever one guard on duty at a time. The first thought that popped into her head was that it was two of the other women having a late night conversation. No longer tired, Eve shrugged into her robe and slippers and quietly padded out her door.
As she neared the living room, however, Eve became aware that one of the voices was masculine. Her curiosity escalating, she quickened her step, but quieted it at the same time. Peering into the living room, Eve saw Callie talking animatedly, and the back of a soldier sitting in the chair across from her. As Eve peeked in, Callista looked up and spotted her.
"Eve!" she said in excitement. "Come here. I want to introduce you to somebody. Scott, this is Eve. Eve, this is..."
But Eve wasn't paying any attention, for the soldier had turned around and was now staring deep into her brown eyes, horror reflecting in his own. His mouth had fallen open and his breathing had nearly stopped. This was a man that she knew all too well. This was a man who's touch sent her reeling. This was a man who had shown her exactly what kind of paradise love could be
"Nash."
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Callista giggled. "No, his name is Scott."
Eve swallowed hard. Scott. No, this was definitely Nash, no doubt about it, there was no mistaking the first person you ever fell in love with. She could state every fact about him: where he had been born, his parents names, the scar from the bullet that he had taken to save her life. She knew that if she were to lift his shirt it would be there, larger than the one she had to show and twice as serious. But Callista had said that his name was not Nash, it was Scott. Eve flinched as the implications hit her. Just that morning, the girls had been bugging Callie about 'soldier boy'; an apparently 'hot' young man by the name of Scott. He had been here for weeks.
Eve took a deep breath and shot Nash a pointed look.
"Sorry. You reminded me of someone that I once knew." She extended her hand to shake his, but at the contact of his skin against hers she pulled away to conceal the quiver that overtook her body.
Her entire being screamed at her to call him by his name, to pull him into her arms, but she knew better. She had messed up one of his assignments before, not knowing of the dangers of his true job, and it had just about cost him his life. She was fully aware of what her wishes would do, and so she tried her best to keep them at bay. There was a reason why he was at Manticore under the alias of Scott, and she knew that in due course all would be revealed to her. Until then, she would play upon the acting skills that she had held so dear growing up. Whatever it was, Callista had no need to get mixed up in it.
"Yeah well, I get that a lot." Nash raked a shaky hand through his cropped brown hair. Eve noticed with a slight smug feeling that she was faring better at this acting thing than he was.
Turning her attention to Callie, she joined the younger girl on the couch.
"Watcha doin' Cals? It's way past lights out time, and you need all the sleep you can get. Chances are that in the next few days you might not be getting much at all."
Callista smiled and squeezed Eve's hand with sisterly love. "I know, Eve, but I just wanted to stay up and say hi to Scott. I probably won't get the chance again. I'll go to bed now, though, don't worry." Getting up from her position on the couch, she walked over to Nash and gave him a brief hug. "Thanks for everything."
Nash smiled softly at Callista, Eve momentarily forgotten. "You take care of yourself, young'un. And promise me that you'll go and check out the Brooklyn bridge for me, okay?"
Callie looked at him with determined eyes. "I promise."
Nash winked at her. "Good. Now go to bed. Eve's right, you need all the rest that you can get."
Callie felt tears welling up in her eyes, and she turned to Eve in an attempt to distract them. "You coming?"
Eve bit her lip as she looked into the young girls eyes. "In a minute. I've got another craving for milk, and I don't think I'll be able to get back to bed if I don't have some."
"All right then. See you in the morning."
And with that, Callista disappeared from the room, leaving Eve and Nash in vicious silence.
Eve closed her eyes and tried to steady her racing heart. It didn't help, though. He was too close, and nothing was going to help except for distance.
Standing up, Eve crossed the room, her back to Nash. "Why are you here?" She hadn't meant for her voice to come out that cold, but it had and she cringed at the steel laced in it.
Turning around, she found that Nash, too, had stood up, but he was looking at her with an intensity that made her want to cry.
"Are you...are you a surrogate?" His voice came out in ragged gasps, any semblance of control gone from his voice.
"Nash, I want you to let me explain..."
"Are. You. A Surrogate?" Tears caught in his throat, causing each word to be pronunciated harshly.
Eve stared into Nash's eyes and saw a hurt there like she had never seen before. She could still remember the feeling of safety when he wrapped his arms around her, the fear she had felt when she had realized her declaration of love. She could taste the sweetness of his lips upon her and the shadow of what could have been overpowered her as pain filled every inch of her body.
"Yes."
Nash had never known that a simple word could tear a hole that big and that easy. He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him, and he stumbled back visibly at the blow.
/"I love you."/ The words echoed with a cruelty that he had never felt before. This was a woman that had once proclaimed a sentiment that had killed her to say, but had needed to be said anyway. And now here she stood in front of him, with a baby growing inside of her. A baby that would be doomed to go through far worse than even young Callie had experienced.
He turned his back to her and leaned his head against the wall. Control, he needed control. If he was going to be of any help to her, he needed to keep himself together.
Turning back around he fought to speak. "Do you...know what this is?"
She stared at him, a look of utter incomprehension on her face.
"Eve," his voice had risen, but he couldn't help it, "do you understand what you have gotten yourself into?"
Again she stared at him, the same blank look on her face.
"Do you know what Manticore is?" He fairly yelled his last question, but he didn't care anymore.
It was then that realization hit Eve like a tidal wave. Nash didn't go undercover because an operation was legitimate and ethical. He went undercover because... Horror washed over her, and she turned a pale shade of white.
"Nash...why are you here?"
Nash didn't answer, and Eve's panic spread.
"Nash, please. Tell me why you're here."
Nash looked up and met Eve in the eye. "Eve, I need you to promise me something."
Eve shook her head, fear causing the room to spin around her.
"Promise me that you'll leave. Wait until the guards mess up one night, and no one is watching and run."
Eve was trembling so hard that she could barely control her breathing.
"Nash, this is a good operation. They're not gonna hurt the kids."
"Eve..."
Eve backed against the wall. "Nash tell me they're not gonna hurt the kids."
Nash closed his eyes, and looked for a minute as if he were going to start to cry. But when they opened again, there was no traces of tears. Instead, a fiery anger consumed them. Letting out a frustrated yell, he slammed his fist into the wall. Breathing heavily, he turned to Eve.
"Just promise me."
Then with that, he whirled on his heel and walked out the door.
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Mandy lay very still, her breathing radically uneven. She tried with all her might to fall back asleep, but Eve's words rang over and over in her head.
'Tell me they're not going to hurt the kids.'
Mandy turned her head towards the wall hoping she had been dreaming. But Eve's quiet sobs on the other side of the wall told her that she was not.
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Eve had the most troubled sleep of her life that night, but somehow managed to drift off. She woke early the next morning to more sounds in the living room, these ones much less soft and gentle than the ones of the previous night. From the sounds of it, every woman left in Manticore was in the living room. Eve barely had any time to think about the implications of that before Mandy broke into her room, completely out of breath.
"Callie's in labor."
Eve shot straight out of bed. "What?"
"Callie's in labor. Her water just broke, but she wants to see everyone before she lets soldier boy take her to the doctor."
Eve was up and out of bed in seconds flat, and together the two women raced to the living room. Callie sat on the very couch that she had been just hours before, Nash was beside her holding her hand.
Looking up Callista noticed Eve, "Hey," she managed weakly.
"Hey yourself. How are you feeling?"
Callie laughed and then groaned in pain, "Not too swell. I wanted to see you before I left."
Eve smiled softly and crossed the room to hold her other hand. "Well here I am."
"I'm scared, Eve." she whispered softly, tears filling her eyes.
"It's gonna be okay. The doctor's here are the best in the country. They know exactly what they're doing..."
"I know. But I'm not scared about that."
Eve looked at her, confused.
"I don't want my baby to grow up and think that I abandoned him. I just wish there was some way to talk to him, to let him know that I love him and that I didn't want to do this. What if they hurt him? What if he gets sick? I just want...augh." Callie's face contorted and tears spilled down her cheeks.
"Hey Callie?"
Nash's voice caused everyone's head to turn to him. He glanced quickly at Eve with a deliberate look and then his attention was directed straight back at Callista.
"These people are good. They're not going to hurt him, and if he gets sick, they'll make him better. There's no safer place for him to be. And if you promise me that you'll do this and then go make a life for yourself - the one that you've always dreamed of having- then I'll make you a promise okay?"
Callista stared at Nash with glazed eyes and choked breathing. She clung to his hand and his words for dear life.
"I promise that everyday I'm working here I will tell him just how much his Mom loved him. He may not understand it, but somewhere he'll know. Okay? But you've got to be strong. For the baby. Can you do that for him?"
Callie nodded, pain and tears causing her voice to be rendered mute.
"Good. Now, we need to get you to the doctor, because as well trained as I am, I do not want to be delivering this baby."
Callista managed to smile weakly as Nash helped her to her feet. He started towards the door, but she stopped him.
Turning around she managed another faint smile. "Thanks you guys. I love you all. Good luck." Then with a blown kiss in Cassandra's direction, Nash and Callista disappeared out the door.
Slowly the crowd of women dissipated to return to their beds, but Eve stayed behind staring at the door which Callie had left through.
'Please,' she thought silently, 'please let Callie and the baby be all right. Please let her find that life and most of all, please, please, please let Nash be wrong."
But as she turned to head for her own room, she noticed a small speck on the wall. Squinting she leaned in closer and what she saw there caused her breath to hitch in her throat. Where Nash's ring had contacted the wall the previous night, a tiny patch of pure, white paint had been scraped off. And revealed underneath it was a cold, grey cement.
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Okay, okay I know what you guys are thinking. "Amy, this is turning into a soap opera." But I promise you that everything put in this chapter was absolutely necessary for the continuation of this story. I needed Nash in there for reasons not yet explained.
Secondly, you will absolutely not see a chapter within the next week, b/c it is the last week of school, and final projects and exams are looming above me mercilessly.
Thirdly, I am the biggest procrastinator in the world. I also love to start things and not finish them. This applies in particular to my stories. So pleeeeeeeease review. I need a fire lit underneath me at all times, otherwise I will just give up, and you guys will never know the ending.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful week.