1 GIMME A HAND
(July 2018,
Sabie – 1 month)
"Have you seen the kid, Lara?" Rebecca asked, and the tall dark haired woman nodded.
"She's cute like an angel. The weirdest thing is that she's already coordinating her moves somewhat, even tries to roll onto her stomach."
"Wow, really?!" She nodded, "I was shocked too, as she's barely a month old, but you
know, she isn't human, who knows how it goes by them?"
Lara shook her head "It always goes weird by muties. Thank God she doesn't have those laser rays coming out of her eyes."
Rebecca made wide eyes "Is that possible?!"
She nodded, "It sure is! Remember those mutants we've seen on TV? One of them had a visor on his face, and it was said he has those rays coming out of his eyes 24/7."
Rebecca gagged, "24/7?! Is that possible?! That means he can't see without that visor,
right?!"
She nodded, "Right."
Rebecca shuddered, "Poor parents." Lara stated, "By the way, where do those mutants come from?"
She shrugged, "Dunno. No one really knows. They just come from nowhere, save the
day and disappear back to nowhere."
"Do they actually
save the day?"
"I wouldn't say so. Maybe they just work for some candidate so we'll vote for him when it gets known what he done for us, saving us from… hmm, did they actually save someone?"
"Must have. At least that's what I've heard. They also made a mess of the Statue of Liberty."
"Wow, really?! I thought it was just a rumor."
"It was closed for two weeks after that, remember?" Rebecca took a deep breath.
"Yeah. Well… I'll go see if Sabie is okay?"
"Yep, look after her, maybe she had already crawled out of the bed and
chewed away all your dinner." They both giggled at that and separated.
As Rebecca came into the nursery, the cub turned her
head and purred. She was long ago fascinated by
Sabie's manner to let out a cat-like purr where other
kids would coo. It was actually the first mutant kid
she got so closely in touch with. That meant the kid
had an obvious mutation, not like those with different
color of eyes or like telepaths, but it was obvious
she was a mutant. That in it self was exciting.
The kid reached out her hand and made a grabbing motion.
"I'm commin', dear," Rebecca soothed, reaching out for
kid's palm. Tiny fingers curled around her finger and
a smile made its way onto her face. She took the kid
into her crooked arms and rocked her slightly.
Sabie turned her head to the side, observing the world
from the new height. Now, that was a big world, full of
different things the meanings of which she couldn't
comprehend yet. Not that she tried to comprehend them
though, they were just things, they were her
surroundings for now.
The only thing she knew was that
scent near her. It meant warmth and comfort and the
new observation of the world the high position gave.
She turned her head to the side to where the light was
coming from, when her stomach felt some weird itching
and she let out a searing yell.
"Shhh…" Rebecca rocked the kid for some seconds, but
the yell just got louder. "Okay, okay, if you mean
it's time to feed you already, let's go get some milk
then…" she carried her out of the room to another one
on the same floor.
Thank God, Helen had the milk
surplus and had nothing against feeding other two
orphan mutant cubs in the med-center.
Must be because her
own son was a mutant. Beside the weird orange skin, he
had quills all along his spinal cord.
As she entered the room, Helen was sitting in the
armchair with her kid in a small bed near her. She
rose her eyes and smiled at the sight of Rebecca.
"Hungry again?" She nodded, motioning to the child
with an apologetic look on her face.
"She eats twice
as much as a normal kid. Dunno why, but I just can't
do a thing about it."
Helen shrugged indifferently.
"Simon almost doesn't eat at all, so they're gonna
balance each other." Rebecca handed her a pack, and
Helen removed the sheet from cub's face. Sabie smiled
and cooed/purred to her, stretching her hand in
woman's direction. "Wanna get a hold of me?" Helen
questioned with a grin and bared her right breast to
feed the kid.
###
In the evening Rebecca put the kid back into the bed
and watched her fall to sleep. Weird, but along with
extra-eating, Sabie was developing faster than any
other kid she knew. She was hearing and seeing
perfectly at the age of a week when the other kids do
it about two weeks later. Besides, she wasn't sleeping
in the daytime, so Rebecca had to be with her the
entire day. Not that she objected though. She didn't
have much work for now, so most of her time was free.
She had spent time with Sabie almost the entire month,
almost from the first day of the kid's life.
At first she
just had to, as she had to watch the orphan cubs in
their first weeks at the center. But now she felt she
was getting closer to that little frail in the bed.
Rebecca took a deep breath. Maybe it was that she
didn't have her own kids nor a family. Maybe it was
the green-eyed wonder Sabie that took more of her
attention.
Anyway, now it wasn't just one of those
kids their moms left, but it was beginning to be
something more special.
Silently, Rebecca switched the light off and stepped
out of the room that was filled by the soft snoring of
the kid.
###
Next day she was stopped by a nurse she hadn't seen
before. "You're Rebecca, right?" She nodded. "Have you
seen Sabie's birth-card?" Rebecca shook her head.
"Anything wrong?" she questioned worriedly, her
imagination already drawing her pictures of dying kid.
"Yeah. I can't find that damn card, and as you seem to
be close to that kid, I just hoped you may have her
birth-card."
Rebecca frowned. "And why do you need the
card so soon?" Maybe there were some rules in this
center of those she didn't know yet? She had been
working here for only two months anyway, so it was
possible.
"The kid is almost a month old, so we're giving her away soon." Rebecca's heart stopped.
"Where?" she managed to ask. The woman rolled her
eyes.
"Have you fallen down from the moon or what?!"
"Sorry…" she mumbled "It's just that I haven't worked
with… homo superior kids yet, so I just dunno…"
The woman sighed. "At the age of one month mutant kids
shall be taken from the med-center to go to FOH's
boarding-school, see? Sabie's about a month old
already, so it's just time to shake her off, and I
can't find the damn card…" she mumbled, walking past
Rebecca along the corridor, desperate to find the
card. Rebecca's heart sank and she sighed. A month
old. She knew Sabie was born on 12th of June. It was
4th of July today. There was only 8 days left. She
spun on her heel and paced to kid's quarters.
###
Sabie felt the familiar scent approaching.
Instinctively she reached out with her arms to the
frame that bent over to her. In a moment the world
around spin as she was lifted up. Here she could feel
more scents flying around, and she smiled as her nose
caught a nice one coming from the window. She let out
a purr, so the frail will bring her to the window, but
it didn't understand.
Sabie let out another purr and
turned her head to where the scent was coming from.
The frail soothed something and moved right where
Sabie wanted it to move. The scent got sharper. As
much as Sabie could comprehend, it was coming from
bright rosy things that were attached to green things
and stood on the window. She examined them for some
moments, then reached out to take one, but was
suddenly pulled back as the frail stepped aside
bringing the scented thing out of her reach. Sabie
sobbed, then let out a sudden catlike yell.
###
5th of July, 7 days left
"What's that FOH boarding school mean?" She asked. The
woman with raven black hair sipped coffee out of the
paper cup and replied
"It's like every boarding
school. Here the mutant kids live till they get 21 and
can face the court."
"And?"
She shrugged. "And the
judge decides whether the mutant is dangerous or not.
If he's dangerous – he gets the death sentence, the
death penalty follows. If not – then he lives the
normal life, though his rights are limited."
Rebecca
kept silence for some time, then asked "And… what
limits do their rights have?"
Lara shrugged "Like,
hmm… they can't move to another state without
permission, they shall always warn their employer
about their mutation… let's see what else… oh, they shall not use their mutation without
permission."
Rebecca made wide eyes "What do you
mean?"
"I mean that they write an obligation to use
their mutation only if it's permitted by the
parliament or president. The permission is needed for
each case if using mutation."
"But… doesn't it mean
they have ever so thin chance for using their gifts?"
Lara nodded "Practically no chance. By the way, why do
you ask?" Rebecca dropped her eyes. "It's 'cos of
Sabie, right?"
She nodded. Lara put her hand on
Rebecca's shoulder. "You see, I understand you on
that. She's a cute kid and all, but you can't help her
with that. She's a mutie and it's her fate anyway. By
the way, you even don't know who her father was, and
her mom… wasn't much of a reliable person, you know.
So… I think it's for the best if they take her to the
boarding school. At least she'll be with those like
her. Well?" Lara smiled.
Rebecca nodded. "Yeah, I know
it's not my problem what's gonna happen. It's just…
dunno, maybe I got too close to her." She shrugged.
Lara smiled even wider. "She's the first mutant kid
you nursed, right?"
Rebecca nodded "Then it's all
clear. It usually happens like this the first time.
People try to save them. but then, after the third
kid, they understand even the cutest of them are
nothing but freaks. Even Sabie, you see?" Rebecca
nodded.
###
At home she put some "Whiskas" in a plate for Furry
and eased down on the chair. Why was she actually
worrying about the kid? Was it hers anyway? No and she
had nothing to do with it. Even more, she shouldn't
care about every mutant she meets, she's no kind of
Charity Fund. All mutants live in those boarding
schools, so why shouldn't Sabie be there too, huh?
Maybe she'll even be proclaimed safe, get a job and
live a normal life, huh?! Who is she to change her
fate if anything?…
She sighed. It all sounded fine, but it was just that
she couldn't let this kid go into nowhere. "Damn" she
whispered and got up, grasping form the phone. "Why
shall it be 'nowhere', actually?"
###
"It's okay there, you see?" Miles said, walking beside
her. "Just like any other boarding school, well?"
Rebecca nodded. "I know, but I wanna see it with my
own eyes, so I'll be sure about her future."
"Muties
don't have a good future anyway," he muttered. "Every
FOH member says so,"
she parried, "but I object."
He shrugged. "Ya'r choice then." They walked into the
gray building and went along the corridors. Soon they
stopped at the door. "This is where the kids from 2 to
4 years old live," Miles mumbled, opening the door.
Rebecca went in. The walls were covered with
multicolored papers, and thick yellow carpet covered
the floor. Different dolls and cars and other kid's
stuff were lying everywhere. Here was the bunch of
kids too, playing around and making that deafing noise
that always claims the kindergarteners. "Ya see now,"
Miles questioned, bored.
Rebecca nodded. And why
did she ever think it was bad here? The kids seemed
happy, well fed and cared about, so why did she think
it could be bad at all? "Yeah, I see. It was nice."
Miles smiled to her reply, when the pager on his
waistband beeped. "Damn… I gotta go. Wait fer me here,
ya may play with the kids until I return." With that he
quickly left.
Rebecca stood inside the room for some
time, then walked out, determined to walk away without
Miles' help. ~I was wrong~ she thought, walking along
the corridors. ~So I may not worry about Sabie's fate
now. If she lives in such good conditions, she won't
need me at all. I may even visit her sometimes, why
not. I could bring her toys to play with and books to
read, maybe some other stuff kids like…~ Suddenly she
stopped at her tracks. When she had walked with
Miles beside her, the way seemed easy and clear.
However, now it seemed that nothing was familiar in this place. She frowned. ~Damn, I
should have waited for Miles~ she thought, and paced
some more steps before stopping again. Now it was
clear that she was lost.
Cursing her own determination, she paced along the
corridor, when she heard a sob. It was so clear in the
silence of the corridor that she jumped and spun
around to see the source of it. She listened, but no
sound followed. She let out a nervous chuckle and made
some more steps when another sob followed, soon
replaced with a quite howl that was suddenly cut off.
Frowning, she came to the wall where the noises came
from, and looked close. Yes, there was a door there,
so perfectly hidden it was barely visible in the dim
light of the corridor. With hesitation pressed Rebecca
her ear to the door. ~you don't even know what's on the
other side, it's not good to peek…~ but she already
put her fingers on the knob and turned it slowly. Ever
so slowly, the door moved inside, revealing a long
room/corridor, lighten as dim as the corridor she
stood it, except for the spot at the far end of the
room.
There she saw the guardian, or at least he
looked like one. She squinted her eyes to see he had a
gun on his waist, and something else on the table near
him. Narrowing her eyes helped her to see the
object, and she gagged. It was the whip, a four foot
long horse whip. ~why does he need the whip here?!~
she frowned in disbelieve, when the sob came from the
side of the room. Her eyes moved to its source, and
she had to press her hand to her mouth not to make a
sound. There were cages along both walls. Small, about
two squared feet, and there was something moving in
them. her heart raced.
The kids.
Many kids, of various
kind, each one in one of the cells. She swallowed
hard. The sob came from the boy who seemed about five
or something. The guardian gave him an evil glance.
"Shuddup" he muttered through gritted teeth. The kid
let out another sob, but at the sight of an enraged
man he took a deep breath and let out a yell. "I said
shuddup!" the man growled, getting up.
The whip hissed through the bars and the sound of
crying cut off. The kid now lay at the side of his
cage, the girl from the cage next to his reached her
thin arms through the bars and was now trying to calm
the kid down. Rebecca felt her knees giving way.
Silently, she closed the door and paced to where she
came from. Step by step, like a robot, she got to the
hall with the kids room Miles showed her. He was
already waiting for her, pacing around impatiently.
"Were have ya been?!" he yelled at her, then suddenly
stopped, looking at her dead-pale face. "Something's
wrong?" he asked worriedly, with a strange squint in
his eyes.
Rebecca forced herself to smile. "Nno… just
got lost. Ya see, I decided to go alone and not to
disturb you anymore, so I went along the corridors,
but got lost. I called and no one answered me, I just
got so scared…" She let out a sigh. By the look of
Miles he had swallowed her lie in one gulp.
"Well, I
told ya not to go alone here. The corridors are such a
net…" with that he took her hand and led her in right
direction. "Ya sure ya'r okay? Ya'r all shivering."
She gave him a glance. "Just scared. Must be the
aftershock, you know I'm afraid of being lost." That
was true, and he believed it.
###
The moment the door closed behind Miles she turned on
her heel, leaned to the door with her back and cried.
At first quietly, then her sobs got harder in minutes.
How could they?! Showing her the room with ten
happy kids – and throwing another hundred in cells…
She slid down along the wall till she was sitting on
the floor. The image burst into her mind. Sabie,
already grown up, in a cell whip marks on her face and
body, sobbing softly, begging for a drop of water,
dying from thirst… The crying came again, harder than
before. "I won't let them, Sab'… I won't… they ain't
taking ya there…" Rebecca balled on the floor in the
hall, sobbing quietly, her blouse damp with tears, and
didn't feel as the sleep claimed her.
###
6th of July, 6 days left
"So, how was the boarding school?"
Rebecca clenched
the fist in her pocket and force d a smile. "Not bad…
but you know, I didn't like it much. Too bright and…
no privacy for kids. Are there any ways to prevent
Sabie from getting in there?"
Garry thought for a
moment. "Actually I never thought about it. If the kid
doesn't have parents, it always goes into the
boarding-school. But if you want… no, I dunno what to
do."
Rebecca sighed. "Okay, Garry, thanks. Just… if
you come up with any ideas – call me immediately, okay?"
he nodded with surprised look.
"She's crazy about that
kid" he muttered as she left.
"No, there's no way to avoid her getting there" Lara
shook her head. "All kids go there, and Sabie isn't an
exception. Don't worry, she'll be okay there, you saw
those rooms, you even said you liked them." ~yeah, the
rooms were nice… the cells weren't though…~
"Sorry, but I don't think you can leave her here,
'Bec" dr. Warson stated. "You know how miserable the
budget of our center is, we're looking for any
possible ways to shorten the quantity of the patients
here – and you're asking me to leave an orphan
mutant kid. Think with your brains, 'Bec, not with
your… hmm… spinal cord."
###
7th of July, 5 days left
"So, you want the kid to avoid the FOH's boarding
school? May I ask why?"
Rebecca shifted uncomfortably
under layer's stare and mumbled "It's just that I want
her to be close to me. I work in the center, so if
there are ways of leaving her… I'd be grateful if you
tell me about them."
Mr. Parkinson thought for a
moment, then nodded. "I haven't met with such a case
yet, everyone always tries to get rid of homo superior
kids, but as for you… okay, I'll look for the
possibilities and call you this evening."
###
When the phone rang, Rebecca was ready to jump out
of her skin. "Yes?…" she questioned with shivering
voice. But it wasn't the lawyer, but dr. Warson, her
chief.
"You haven't been on duty today. What's wrong?"
he asked calmly.
Rebecca sighed. Yes, she had spent
the whole morning at the lawyer agency, and then she
was too nervous to go on duty, so she just visited
Sabie on her way back and went home.
"I felt sick this morning, so I'm afraid I'll have to take a day
off." ~come on, swallow that, I haven't passed on the
duties that much yet~
"Okay" the phone said "When will
ya get back to us?"
~yeah!~ "Dunno. Maybe in a week,
but I hope I'll be okay sooner."
"Well then. 'hope
you'll get better soon."
"Hope too". With that she
put the phone down and bit into her lip. What if she
had missed the lawyer's call?!… but no, it followed
just some minutes after.
"Ms. Rebecca?"
"Yes, Mr. Parkinson?"
"Remember you asked me about that homo
superior kid?" She nodded, but then realized he
couldn't see that, so she said
"Yes, sure I asked
you."
"There's one way I found. The kids with families
live with their families till the age of 21 without
the right to marry till they face the court. The same
is with the adopted kids." He paused.
Rebecca gagged.
"You mean you're proposing me to adopt her?…" her
voice trailed off.
"Yes. If you want her not to live
in FOH's boarding school, it's the only way. Still, as
I heard these schools aren't that bad, so you can
leave her…"
"Thanks, Mr. Parkinson." She was sick of
those "good schools" already.
"When may I contact you
about the official adopting?"
"Well…" he looked
through his notebook. "Will next Wednesday be okay?"
Rebecca counted for a moment. Sabie will be two days
in the boarding school already.
"Sorry but no. How
about tomorrow?" There was silence on the other side,
then a sighed followed.
"Okay then. Tomorrow 11:00am."
"Fine with me" Rebecca smiled. "Good bye"
"Good bye."
She put the phone down and jumped. "Yyyyes!
Yesyesyes!" she jumped across the room, realizing how
Funny it must be for a thirty year old woman to be jumping like a
madman.
Suddenly she stopped. Adoption. Of the mutant
kid. With all troubles it provides… not knowing that
everything is all right with the kid or not… living in a
steady danger of her powers' manifesting… who knows
what gifts the girl carries? Pyrokinesis?
Telepathy? Those eye beams? Hypnotizing ability?
Moving through objects?
Rebecca swallowed. Whatever it
was, no one knew what could happen. Even now, in
barely a month, Sabie was showing weird behavior,
evolving faster than any other kid. Every time Rebecca
neared her, she knew who was coming, even if she
didn't see her. She was weird. ~Are you ready to
settle her in your own house and live with her next 21
year?~ she questioned herself, and was ready to shake
her head, when the image of whipped kids stood in front
of her eyes. She took a deep breath. "Whatever".
###
8th of July, 4 days left
"Hello" Rebecca said as she sat in the comfortable
armchair in front of layer's wooden neatly polished
table.
"Hello, Ms. Sangerson." He smiled. "So you've
made a decision?"
"Yes. I want to adopt the kid."
"I'd like to
ask you some questions before I start. First, what
about the flat you live in? Remember, you'll be living
with a kid."
With a sigh, Rebecca put on the table a
pack of documents. "Here it goes: the three rooms
flat, normal salary, no family, etc, whatever you
need. I know how it goes, I also want you to know her
mother is insane and her father is dead, so I have all
rights to adopt her."
Mr. Parkinson rose his eyes
frowning "Her mother's insane? That may cause a
problem of the kid having psycho diseases, and…"
"No,
no, she went insane just after the kid's birth, so I'm
sure the kid is okay." Rebecca reassured quickly. He
rubbed his nose.
"Well then… I think the documents
will be ready in two days."
She smiled "Thanks"
###
9th of July, 3 days left
Rebecca was rocking the kid when the man entered the
room. She noticed the FOH signs on his sleeves and
chest. "Is the kid named Sabie here?" he asked.
Rebecca turned pale. "Yyes… but hey, are you going to
take her now?!"
He nodded "Why not? Dr. Warson asked
us to take the kid today, and I see nothing bad in it.
What do those two days matter?"
"Three days" Rebecca
corrected, and the man stepped back in surprise.
"You're counting?" he asked with his brows arched.
"I do" she answered simply. "I'll take care of this."
With that she stepped outside the room with the kid
purring in her arms.
###
"Dr. Warson, by what right do you let this man take
the kid three days earlier then the term?" she
questioned.
He blinked at her and the FOH member
behind her back. "I thought it doesn't matter when to
give her up. Three days there, three days here – who
cares?"
"I care" Rebecca stated firmly. Dr. Warson
chewed on his lips. "Remember I told you about the
lack of funds?"
"Remember the law?" she was determined
to win "A month old. A whole utter month. Not a
day earlier, you see?" He turned to her, evil light
playing in his eyes.
"I rule here, not you. You stop
me – and your carreer comes to an end." Rebecca's eyes
narrowed threateningly while her hands kept pressing
the kid to her chest.
"You give her away – and you'll
spend the rest of your life in a court. I promise
that." for a minute they just stared at each other,
and it only FOH member who threw glances at them, not
daring to stop their soundless fight. Then Dr. Warson
took a deep breath.
"Three more days. On Monday they
come and take her."
Rebecca's face lit with a smile
"Sure" she answered, rocking the kid.
###
10th of July, 2 days left
"So what about documents?" She asked. Mr. Parkinson
chewed at his lower lip.
"You see, I'm afraid I'll
have to delay the procedure, Ms. Sangerson, as…"
"WHAT?!!" He took a step back in sudden fear of
Rebecca's twisted face.
"I mean… you see, the
documents aren't ready yet, and it's Sunday tomorrow,
we don't work on Sunday, all I can promise is to have
them ready until Monday evening…"
"She'll be with
those FOH mutherfuckers by Monday!" Rebecca yelled,
and his eyes grew wide. She took a deep breath and
said. "I'll pay you double, but the documents shall be
ready by this evening. Do whatever you want, I don't
care, just do it. damn ya." She end up growling lowly,
and Mr. Parkinson gave her a nod.
"Okay, okay, I'll do
all I can do, they'll be ready by… hmm… I'll call
you when they'll be ready." Rebecca took a notebook
out of her pocket, wrote there something and tore the
page out.
"Here. It's my cell phone. As soon as you're
ready, you call me." He gave her a nod, and she walked
out.
###
"Like the view?" Lara asked, standing by the window.
It was already dark outside, and only the lights
outside lighted the landscape.
"Nope, but she does"
Rebecca motioned on the kid in her arms. Sabie was
staring outside with visible interest and occasionally
banging her small palm onto the window glass. "Still
can't get used to the idea she won't be living here?"
Lara pulled her friend closer.
"Come on, the life
doesn't end up with her getting into that
boarding-sch…" Rebecca spun around and pinned her with
killing stare.
"You say that again – you learn to
fly." Lara took a step back, circling a finger near
her temple.
"Ya'r crazy, 'Bec…"
"Let it be then." With
that she turned back to the window, letting Sabie
press her nose to the glass.
"Insane bitch…" Lara
mouthed as she paced away along the corridor. 'Can't
even take the offered help well… fuck…"
###
It was 10:34 when her phone rang. Rebecca carefully
put the kid into the bed and took the phone. "Yes, Mr.
Parkinson?" The voice on the other end sounded tired.
"Everything's ready. Just for you to sign."
"Thanks.
I'm coming right now." She got her cell phone back on
her waistband and paced to the administrator. "I'll be
back in half a hour, okay?" The woman made a face.
"You know, girl, I'm waiting here for god knows what
for two hours already. I should have been home at nine
o'clock, but here I am. So I put it like this: you go
– I go too. Clear?" Rebecca blinked. "But… it's just
half an hour, thirty minutes only…"
"It's far too late
for anything you have in mind, besides it's Saturday,
and I ain't gonna stay here a minute longer." Rebecca
sighed.
"Okay. I'll stay here with you." She smiled her
best smile she could effort.
The woman sighed. "Okay.
I stay, if you buy me coffee."
"Sure" Rebecca smiled
even wider and ran into the kitchen, taking the phone
on her way. "Mr. Parkinson?"
"Yeah?…" the voice on the
other side was sleepy. "You've gotta come here to
the Valentine's Medical Center."
There was a pause,
then an answer followed. "Wha… okay, but is it that
serious? Can't we delay?…"
"No. One last time. It's
very important, ever so important."
"Yeah?…"
She
sighed. "You come here, and I promise you to end this
all up right here and now." Another pause.
"Okay. I'll
be there in fifteen minutes."
###
"Are you sure your lawyer's gonna come?" The
administrator asked.
"Sure he will, Mrs. Longlife"
Rebecca poured the coffee into the mug. "You can't
even imagine how important it is for me, I'm so
grateful you're so kind to stay here and…"
"Okay, let
it be, girl. I'm here, and I ain't going anywhere till
your damn lawyer comes with whatever he's gonna come
with."
It was eleven already when Mr. Parkinson came in.
Rebecca leaped to him and grabbed his hand, pulling
him to the table. "Here they are" he pulled out the set
of documents, and Rebecca went on putting her
signature on the papers under the frowning look of the
administrator woman.
"So… here they are" Rebecca handed her the documents.
The woman looked through them and rose her eyes.
"You're adopting Sabie?!" Rebecca nodded. The woman
smiled. "Good. I never wanted her to get into that FOH
school or whatever they have. It's always better to
live in a family." With that she took the file and
looked through it, then another one. Soon she gathered
a pack of documents, accompanied by the birth card.
"Sign here, 'Bec" she pointed at the sheet, and Rebecca
put her small signature there. The woman smiled. "Here
we are" with that she handed Rebecca a small file of
documents. "Sabie is your official daughter from now
on." She felt her knees getting weak. It was done. She
had won. She had saved the kid from those monsters…
and got a family. Now she had a family. On the weak
buckling legs she paced to the infirmary and walked
in. The kid was in her bed, her eyes shining slightly
in darkness. "We did it, girl" Rebecca whispered in
the dark air of the room.
###
12th of July, 0 days left
"Yes?" Dr. Warson rose his eyes at the knock in his
door. The familiar man in FOH's uniform went in.
"Where's the kid we came for?" Doctor frowned.
"Isn't
she in place?…hmm…" he lowered his head muttering
"damn Rebecca", took the phone, linking with the
admin. "Did Ms. Sangerson take the kid named Sabie
from the infirmary?"
"Yes she did." The answer came.
He was close to growling.
"Then why the hell didn't
you stop her?!!"
The admin's voice was calm. " She has
the right to take the kid wherever she wants."
"Wha…?!!… how come?!"
"She had adopted the cub"
"When?!"
"On Saturday evening she brought all the
documents and signed them in the presence of the
lawyer." Dr. Warson took a deep breath and put the
phone down.
"So what about the kid?" the man
questioned.
He sighed "The kid has a family from now
on." The man blinked. "You've got nothing to do here
then." Doctor pushed. The man chewed on his lip, but
due to the lack of arguments he had to leave. Dr.
Warson turned his armchair to look through the window
onto the rainy clouds. "Bitch." He muttered. "But damn
clever one."
She's sleeping, you see, she fell asleep
And there's no right to wake her till the morning comes
The dark night had balled her up and helped her to close her eyes
She'll wake up when the sun will rise, when the birds will get in the blue sky
Don't wake her up, I beg you, my friend, so I won't have to kill you up.
It's good that she still doesn't know how much blood turned into water
And how many souls fly into the sky after far too short life in their bodies
And how much tears will the sky pour, taking the dampness from people's eyes
That the strength holds on the weakness, and those who's weak
Have no chance to survive.
I gotta save her, at least cover her with my weak body
So the sticky hands of ugly fear won't touch her tiny shoulders
Let her sleep while she has time, and let her dream about the sea and the rain
And please, ask her to forgive me when I steal her sorrow and pain
I'll be dying
Breaking hearts
But if I kill
1.1 I go to the end
For every pain ya inflict on her, for every hair that
falls from her head
I'll rub the salt into ya'r wounds and tear ya'r guts
out with a blunt knife
And let her sleep for nor, you better don't wake her up
The world's gonna shock and scare her if her eyes will be opened by love
I'll be dying
Breaking hearts
But if I kill
I go to the end.
("Tenderness", Dolphin, translated from Russian by
Sabie)
(July 2018,
Sabie – 1 month)
"Have you seen the kid, Lara?" Rebecca asked, and the tall dark haired woman nodded.
"She's cute like an angel. The weirdest thing is that she's already coordinating her moves somewhat, even tries to roll onto her stomach."
"Wow, really?!" She nodded, "I was shocked too, as she's barely a month old, but you
know, she isn't human, who knows how it goes by them?"
Lara shook her head "It always goes weird by muties. Thank God she doesn't have those laser rays coming out of her eyes."
Rebecca made wide eyes "Is that possible?!"
She nodded, "It sure is! Remember those mutants we've seen on TV? One of them had a visor on his face, and it was said he has those rays coming out of his eyes 24/7."
Rebecca gagged, "24/7?! Is that possible?! That means he can't see without that visor,
right?!"
She nodded, "Right."
Rebecca shuddered, "Poor parents." Lara stated, "By the way, where do those mutants come from?"
She shrugged, "Dunno. No one really knows. They just come from nowhere, save the
day and disappear back to nowhere."
"Do they actually
save the day?"
"I wouldn't say so. Maybe they just work for some candidate so we'll vote for him when it gets known what he done for us, saving us from… hmm, did they actually save someone?"
"Must have. At least that's what I've heard. They also made a mess of the Statue of Liberty."
"Wow, really?! I thought it was just a rumor."
"It was closed for two weeks after that, remember?" Rebecca took a deep breath.
"Yeah. Well… I'll go see if Sabie is okay?"
"Yep, look after her, maybe she had already crawled out of the bed and
chewed away all your dinner." They both giggled at that and separated.
As Rebecca came into the nursery, the cub turned her
head and purred. She was long ago fascinated by
Sabie's manner to let out a cat-like purr where other
kids would coo. It was actually the first mutant kid
she got so closely in touch with. That meant the kid
had an obvious mutation, not like those with different
color of eyes or like telepaths, but it was obvious
she was a mutant. That in it self was exciting.
The kid reached out her hand and made a grabbing motion.
"I'm commin', dear," Rebecca soothed, reaching out for
kid's palm. Tiny fingers curled around her finger and
a smile made its way onto her face. She took the kid
into her crooked arms and rocked her slightly.
Sabie turned her head to the side, observing the world
from the new height. Now, that was a big world, full of
different things the meanings of which she couldn't
comprehend yet. Not that she tried to comprehend them
though, they were just things, they were her
surroundings for now.
The only thing she knew was that
scent near her. It meant warmth and comfort and the
new observation of the world the high position gave.
She turned her head to the side to where the light was
coming from, when her stomach felt some weird itching
and she let out a searing yell.
"Shhh…" Rebecca rocked the kid for some seconds, but
the yell just got louder. "Okay, okay, if you mean
it's time to feed you already, let's go get some milk
then…" she carried her out of the room to another one
on the same floor.
Thank God, Helen had the milk
surplus and had nothing against feeding other two
orphan mutant cubs in the med-center.
Must be because her
own son was a mutant. Beside the weird orange skin, he
had quills all along his spinal cord.
As she entered the room, Helen was sitting in the
armchair with her kid in a small bed near her. She
rose her eyes and smiled at the sight of Rebecca.
"Hungry again?" She nodded, motioning to the child
with an apologetic look on her face.
"She eats twice
as much as a normal kid. Dunno why, but I just can't
do a thing about it."
Helen shrugged indifferently.
"Simon almost doesn't eat at all, so they're gonna
balance each other." Rebecca handed her a pack, and
Helen removed the sheet from cub's face. Sabie smiled
and cooed/purred to her, stretching her hand in
woman's direction. "Wanna get a hold of me?" Helen
questioned with a grin and bared her right breast to
feed the kid.
###
In the evening Rebecca put the kid back into the bed
and watched her fall to sleep. Weird, but along with
extra-eating, Sabie was developing faster than any
other kid she knew. She was hearing and seeing
perfectly at the age of a week when the other kids do
it about two weeks later. Besides, she wasn't sleeping
in the daytime, so Rebecca had to be with her the
entire day. Not that she objected though. She didn't
have much work for now, so most of her time was free.
She had spent time with Sabie almost the entire month,
almost from the first day of the kid's life.
At first she
just had to, as she had to watch the orphan cubs in
their first weeks at the center. But now she felt she
was getting closer to that little frail in the bed.
Rebecca took a deep breath. Maybe it was that she
didn't have her own kids nor a family. Maybe it was
the green-eyed wonder Sabie that took more of her
attention.
Anyway, now it wasn't just one of those
kids their moms left, but it was beginning to be
something more special.
Silently, Rebecca switched the light off and stepped
out of the room that was filled by the soft snoring of
the kid.
###
Next day she was stopped by a nurse she hadn't seen
before. "You're Rebecca, right?" She nodded. "Have you
seen Sabie's birth-card?" Rebecca shook her head.
"Anything wrong?" she questioned worriedly, her
imagination already drawing her pictures of dying kid.
"Yeah. I can't find that damn card, and as you seem to
be close to that kid, I just hoped you may have her
birth-card."
Rebecca frowned. "And why do you need the
card so soon?" Maybe there were some rules in this
center of those she didn't know yet? She had been
working here for only two months anyway, so it was
possible.
"The kid is almost a month old, so we're giving her away soon." Rebecca's heart stopped.
"Where?" she managed to ask. The woman rolled her
eyes.
"Have you fallen down from the moon or what?!"
"Sorry…" she mumbled "It's just that I haven't worked
with… homo superior kids yet, so I just dunno…"
The woman sighed. "At the age of one month mutant kids
shall be taken from the med-center to go to FOH's
boarding-school, see? Sabie's about a month old
already, so it's just time to shake her off, and I
can't find the damn card…" she mumbled, walking past
Rebecca along the corridor, desperate to find the
card. Rebecca's heart sank and she sighed. A month
old. She knew Sabie was born on 12th of June. It was
4th of July today. There was only 8 days left. She
spun on her heel and paced to kid's quarters.
###
Sabie felt the familiar scent approaching.
Instinctively she reached out with her arms to the
frame that bent over to her. In a moment the world
around spin as she was lifted up. Here she could feel
more scents flying around, and she smiled as her nose
caught a nice one coming from the window. She let out
a purr, so the frail will bring her to the window, but
it didn't understand.
Sabie let out another purr and
turned her head to where the scent was coming from.
The frail soothed something and moved right where
Sabie wanted it to move. The scent got sharper. As
much as Sabie could comprehend, it was coming from
bright rosy things that were attached to green things
and stood on the window. She examined them for some
moments, then reached out to take one, but was
suddenly pulled back as the frail stepped aside
bringing the scented thing out of her reach. Sabie
sobbed, then let out a sudden catlike yell.
###
5th of July, 7 days left
"What's that FOH boarding school mean?" She asked. The
woman with raven black hair sipped coffee out of the
paper cup and replied
"It's like every boarding
school. Here the mutant kids live till they get 21 and
can face the court."
"And?"
She shrugged. "And the
judge decides whether the mutant is dangerous or not.
If he's dangerous – he gets the death sentence, the
death penalty follows. If not – then he lives the
normal life, though his rights are limited."
Rebecca
kept silence for some time, then asked "And… what
limits do their rights have?"
Lara shrugged "Like,
hmm… they can't move to another state without
permission, they shall always warn their employer
about their mutation… let's see what else… oh, they shall not use their mutation without
permission."
Rebecca made wide eyes "What do you
mean?"
"I mean that they write an obligation to use
their mutation only if it's permitted by the
parliament or president. The permission is needed for
each case if using mutation."
"But… doesn't it mean
they have ever so thin chance for using their gifts?"
Lara nodded "Practically no chance. By the way, why do
you ask?" Rebecca dropped her eyes. "It's 'cos of
Sabie, right?"
She nodded. Lara put her hand on
Rebecca's shoulder. "You see, I understand you on
that. She's a cute kid and all, but you can't help her
with that. She's a mutie and it's her fate anyway. By
the way, you even don't know who her father was, and
her mom… wasn't much of a reliable person, you know.
So… I think it's for the best if they take her to the
boarding school. At least she'll be with those like
her. Well?" Lara smiled.
Rebecca nodded. "Yeah, I know
it's not my problem what's gonna happen. It's just…
dunno, maybe I got too close to her." She shrugged.
Lara smiled even wider. "She's the first mutant kid
you nursed, right?"
Rebecca nodded "Then it's all
clear. It usually happens like this the first time.
People try to save them. but then, after the third
kid, they understand even the cutest of them are
nothing but freaks. Even Sabie, you see?" Rebecca
nodded.
###
At home she put some "Whiskas" in a plate for Furry
and eased down on the chair. Why was she actually
worrying about the kid? Was it hers anyway? No and she
had nothing to do with it. Even more, she shouldn't
care about every mutant she meets, she's no kind of
Charity Fund. All mutants live in those boarding
schools, so why shouldn't Sabie be there too, huh?
Maybe she'll even be proclaimed safe, get a job and
live a normal life, huh?! Who is she to change her
fate if anything?…
She sighed. It all sounded fine, but it was just that
she couldn't let this kid go into nowhere. "Damn" she
whispered and got up, grasping form the phone. "Why
shall it be 'nowhere', actually?"
###
"It's okay there, you see?" Miles said, walking beside
her. "Just like any other boarding school, well?"
Rebecca nodded. "I know, but I wanna see it with my
own eyes, so I'll be sure about her future."
"Muties
don't have a good future anyway," he muttered. "Every
FOH member says so,"
she parried, "but I object."
He shrugged. "Ya'r choice then." They walked into the
gray building and went along the corridors. Soon they
stopped at the door. "This is where the kids from 2 to
4 years old live," Miles mumbled, opening the door.
Rebecca went in. The walls were covered with
multicolored papers, and thick yellow carpet covered
the floor. Different dolls and cars and other kid's
stuff were lying everywhere. Here was the bunch of
kids too, playing around and making that deafing noise
that always claims the kindergarteners. "Ya see now,"
Miles questioned, bored.
Rebecca nodded. And why
did she ever think it was bad here? The kids seemed
happy, well fed and cared about, so why did she think
it could be bad at all? "Yeah, I see. It was nice."
Miles smiled to her reply, when the pager on his
waistband beeped. "Damn… I gotta go. Wait fer me here,
ya may play with the kids until I return." With that he
quickly left.
Rebecca stood inside the room for some
time, then walked out, determined to walk away without
Miles' help. ~I was wrong~ she thought, walking along
the corridors. ~So I may not worry about Sabie's fate
now. If she lives in such good conditions, she won't
need me at all. I may even visit her sometimes, why
not. I could bring her toys to play with and books to
read, maybe some other stuff kids like…~ Suddenly she
stopped at her tracks. When she had walked with
Miles beside her, the way seemed easy and clear.
However, now it seemed that nothing was familiar in this place. She frowned. ~Damn, I
should have waited for Miles~ she thought, and paced
some more steps before stopping again. Now it was
clear that she was lost.
Cursing her own determination, she paced along the
corridor, when she heard a sob. It was so clear in the
silence of the corridor that she jumped and spun
around to see the source of it. She listened, but no
sound followed. She let out a nervous chuckle and made
some more steps when another sob followed, soon
replaced with a quite howl that was suddenly cut off.
Frowning, she came to the wall where the noises came
from, and looked close. Yes, there was a door there,
so perfectly hidden it was barely visible in the dim
light of the corridor. With hesitation pressed Rebecca
her ear to the door. ~you don't even know what's on the
other side, it's not good to peek…~ but she already
put her fingers on the knob and turned it slowly. Ever
so slowly, the door moved inside, revealing a long
room/corridor, lighten as dim as the corridor she
stood it, except for the spot at the far end of the
room.
There she saw the guardian, or at least he
looked like one. She squinted her eyes to see he had a
gun on his waist, and something else on the table near
him. Narrowing her eyes helped her to see the
object, and she gagged. It was the whip, a four foot
long horse whip. ~why does he need the whip here?!~
she frowned in disbelieve, when the sob came from the
side of the room. Her eyes moved to its source, and
she had to press her hand to her mouth not to make a
sound. There were cages along both walls. Small, about
two squared feet, and there was something moving in
them. her heart raced.
The kids.
Many kids, of various
kind, each one in one of the cells. She swallowed
hard. The sob came from the boy who seemed about five
or something. The guardian gave him an evil glance.
"Shuddup" he muttered through gritted teeth. The kid
let out another sob, but at the sight of an enraged
man he took a deep breath and let out a yell. "I said
shuddup!" the man growled, getting up.
The whip hissed through the bars and the sound of
crying cut off. The kid now lay at the side of his
cage, the girl from the cage next to his reached her
thin arms through the bars and was now trying to calm
the kid down. Rebecca felt her knees giving way.
Silently, she closed the door and paced to where she
came from. Step by step, like a robot, she got to the
hall with the kids room Miles showed her. He was
already waiting for her, pacing around impatiently.
"Were have ya been?!" he yelled at her, then suddenly
stopped, looking at her dead-pale face. "Something's
wrong?" he asked worriedly, with a strange squint in
his eyes.
Rebecca forced herself to smile. "Nno… just
got lost. Ya see, I decided to go alone and not to
disturb you anymore, so I went along the corridors,
but got lost. I called and no one answered me, I just
got so scared…" She let out a sigh. By the look of
Miles he had swallowed her lie in one gulp.
"Well, I
told ya not to go alone here. The corridors are such a
net…" with that he took her hand and led her in right
direction. "Ya sure ya'r okay? Ya'r all shivering."
She gave him a glance. "Just scared. Must be the
aftershock, you know I'm afraid of being lost." That
was true, and he believed it.
###
The moment the door closed behind Miles she turned on
her heel, leaned to the door with her back and cried.
At first quietly, then her sobs got harder in minutes.
How could they?! Showing her the room with ten
happy kids – and throwing another hundred in cells…
She slid down along the wall till she was sitting on
the floor. The image burst into her mind. Sabie,
already grown up, in a cell whip marks on her face and
body, sobbing softly, begging for a drop of water,
dying from thirst… The crying came again, harder than
before. "I won't let them, Sab'… I won't… they ain't
taking ya there…" Rebecca balled on the floor in the
hall, sobbing quietly, her blouse damp with tears, and
didn't feel as the sleep claimed her.
###
6th of July, 6 days left
"So, how was the boarding school?"
Rebecca clenched
the fist in her pocket and force d a smile. "Not bad…
but you know, I didn't like it much. Too bright and…
no privacy for kids. Are there any ways to prevent
Sabie from getting in there?"
Garry thought for a
moment. "Actually I never thought about it. If the kid
doesn't have parents, it always goes into the
boarding-school. But if you want… no, I dunno what to
do."
Rebecca sighed. "Okay, Garry, thanks. Just… if
you come up with any ideas – call me immediately, okay?"
he nodded with surprised look.
"She's crazy about that
kid" he muttered as she left.
"No, there's no way to avoid her getting there" Lara
shook her head. "All kids go there, and Sabie isn't an
exception. Don't worry, she'll be okay there, you saw
those rooms, you even said you liked them." ~yeah, the
rooms were nice… the cells weren't though…~
"Sorry, but I don't think you can leave her here,
'Bec" dr. Warson stated. "You know how miserable the
budget of our center is, we're looking for any
possible ways to shorten the quantity of the patients
here – and you're asking me to leave an orphan
mutant kid. Think with your brains, 'Bec, not with
your… hmm… spinal cord."
###
7th of July, 5 days left
"So, you want the kid to avoid the FOH's boarding
school? May I ask why?"
Rebecca shifted uncomfortably
under layer's stare and mumbled "It's just that I want
her to be close to me. I work in the center, so if
there are ways of leaving her… I'd be grateful if you
tell me about them."
Mr. Parkinson thought for a
moment, then nodded. "I haven't met with such a case
yet, everyone always tries to get rid of homo superior
kids, but as for you… okay, I'll look for the
possibilities and call you this evening."
###
When the phone rang, Rebecca was ready to jump out
of her skin. "Yes?…" she questioned with shivering
voice. But it wasn't the lawyer, but dr. Warson, her
chief.
"You haven't been on duty today. What's wrong?"
he asked calmly.
Rebecca sighed. Yes, she had spent
the whole morning at the lawyer agency, and then she
was too nervous to go on duty, so she just visited
Sabie on her way back and went home.
"I felt sick this morning, so I'm afraid I'll have to take a day
off." ~come on, swallow that, I haven't passed on the
duties that much yet~
"Okay" the phone said "When will
ya get back to us?"
~yeah!~ "Dunno. Maybe in a week,
but I hope I'll be okay sooner."
"Well then. 'hope
you'll get better soon."
"Hope too". With that she
put the phone down and bit into her lip. What if she
had missed the lawyer's call?!… but no, it followed
just some minutes after.
"Ms. Rebecca?"
"Yes, Mr. Parkinson?"
"Remember you asked me about that homo
superior kid?" She nodded, but then realized he
couldn't see that, so she said
"Yes, sure I asked
you."
"There's one way I found. The kids with families
live with their families till the age of 21 without
the right to marry till they face the court. The same
is with the adopted kids." He paused.
Rebecca gagged.
"You mean you're proposing me to adopt her?…" her
voice trailed off.
"Yes. If you want her not to live
in FOH's boarding school, it's the only way. Still, as
I heard these schools aren't that bad, so you can
leave her…"
"Thanks, Mr. Parkinson." She was sick of
those "good schools" already.
"When may I contact you
about the official adopting?"
"Well…" he looked
through his notebook. "Will next Wednesday be okay?"
Rebecca counted for a moment. Sabie will be two days
in the boarding school already.
"Sorry but no. How
about tomorrow?" There was silence on the other side,
then a sighed followed.
"Okay then. Tomorrow 11:00am."
"Fine with me" Rebecca smiled. "Good bye"
"Good bye."
She put the phone down and jumped. "Yyyyes!
Yesyesyes!" she jumped across the room, realizing how
Funny it must be for a thirty year old woman to be jumping like a
madman.
Suddenly she stopped. Adoption. Of the mutant
kid. With all troubles it provides… not knowing that
everything is all right with the kid or not… living in a
steady danger of her powers' manifesting… who knows
what gifts the girl carries? Pyrokinesis?
Telepathy? Those eye beams? Hypnotizing ability?
Moving through objects?
Rebecca swallowed. Whatever it
was, no one knew what could happen. Even now, in
barely a month, Sabie was showing weird behavior,
evolving faster than any other kid. Every time Rebecca
neared her, she knew who was coming, even if she
didn't see her. She was weird. ~Are you ready to
settle her in your own house and live with her next 21
year?~ she questioned herself, and was ready to shake
her head, when the image of whipped kids stood in front
of her eyes. She took a deep breath. "Whatever".
###
8th of July, 4 days left
"Hello" Rebecca said as she sat in the comfortable
armchair in front of layer's wooden neatly polished
table.
"Hello, Ms. Sangerson." He smiled. "So you've
made a decision?"
"Yes. I want to adopt the kid."
"I'd like to
ask you some questions before I start. First, what
about the flat you live in? Remember, you'll be living
with a kid."
With a sigh, Rebecca put on the table a
pack of documents. "Here it goes: the three rooms
flat, normal salary, no family, etc, whatever you
need. I know how it goes, I also want you to know her
mother is insane and her father is dead, so I have all
rights to adopt her."
Mr. Parkinson rose his eyes
frowning "Her mother's insane? That may cause a
problem of the kid having psycho diseases, and…"
"No,
no, she went insane just after the kid's birth, so I'm
sure the kid is okay." Rebecca reassured quickly. He
rubbed his nose.
"Well then… I think the documents
will be ready in two days."
She smiled "Thanks"
###
9th of July, 3 days left
Rebecca was rocking the kid when the man entered the
room. She noticed the FOH signs on his sleeves and
chest. "Is the kid named Sabie here?" he asked.
Rebecca turned pale. "Yyes… but hey, are you going to
take her now?!"
He nodded "Why not? Dr. Warson asked
us to take the kid today, and I see nothing bad in it.
What do those two days matter?"
"Three days" Rebecca
corrected, and the man stepped back in surprise.
"You're counting?" he asked with his brows arched.
"I do" she answered simply. "I'll take care of this."
With that she stepped outside the room with the kid
purring in her arms.
###
"Dr. Warson, by what right do you let this man take
the kid three days earlier then the term?" she
questioned.
He blinked at her and the FOH member
behind her back. "I thought it doesn't matter when to
give her up. Three days there, three days here – who
cares?"
"I care" Rebecca stated firmly. Dr. Warson
chewed on his lips. "Remember I told you about the
lack of funds?"
"Remember the law?" she was determined
to win "A month old. A whole utter month. Not a
day earlier, you see?" He turned to her, evil light
playing in his eyes.
"I rule here, not you. You stop
me – and your carreer comes to an end." Rebecca's eyes
narrowed threateningly while her hands kept pressing
the kid to her chest.
"You give her away – and you'll
spend the rest of your life in a court. I promise
that." for a minute they just stared at each other,
and it only FOH member who threw glances at them, not
daring to stop their soundless fight. Then Dr. Warson
took a deep breath.
"Three more days. On Monday they
come and take her."
Rebecca's face lit with a smile
"Sure" she answered, rocking the kid.
###
10th of July, 2 days left
"So what about documents?" She asked. Mr. Parkinson
chewed at his lower lip.
"You see, I'm afraid I'll
have to delay the procedure, Ms. Sangerson, as…"
"WHAT?!!" He took a step back in sudden fear of
Rebecca's twisted face.
"I mean… you see, the
documents aren't ready yet, and it's Sunday tomorrow,
we don't work on Sunday, all I can promise is to have
them ready until Monday evening…"
"She'll be with
those FOH mutherfuckers by Monday!" Rebecca yelled,
and his eyes grew wide. She took a deep breath and
said. "I'll pay you double, but the documents shall be
ready by this evening. Do whatever you want, I don't
care, just do it. damn ya." She end up growling lowly,
and Mr. Parkinson gave her a nod.
"Okay, okay, I'll do
all I can do, they'll be ready by… hmm… I'll call
you when they'll be ready." Rebecca took a notebook
out of her pocket, wrote there something and tore the
page out.
"Here. It's my cell phone. As soon as you're
ready, you call me." He gave her a nod, and she walked
out.
###
"Like the view?" Lara asked, standing by the window.
It was already dark outside, and only the lights
outside lighted the landscape.
"Nope, but she does"
Rebecca motioned on the kid in her arms. Sabie was
staring outside with visible interest and occasionally
banging her small palm onto the window glass. "Still
can't get used to the idea she won't be living here?"
Lara pulled her friend closer.
"Come on, the life
doesn't end up with her getting into that
boarding-sch…" Rebecca spun around and pinned her with
killing stare.
"You say that again – you learn to
fly." Lara took a step back, circling a finger near
her temple.
"Ya'r crazy, 'Bec…"
"Let it be then." With
that she turned back to the window, letting Sabie
press her nose to the glass.
"Insane bitch…" Lara
mouthed as she paced away along the corridor. 'Can't
even take the offered help well… fuck…"
###
It was 10:34 when her phone rang. Rebecca carefully
put the kid into the bed and took the phone. "Yes, Mr.
Parkinson?" The voice on the other end sounded tired.
"Everything's ready. Just for you to sign."
"Thanks.
I'm coming right now." She got her cell phone back on
her waistband and paced to the administrator. "I'll be
back in half a hour, okay?" The woman made a face.
"You know, girl, I'm waiting here for god knows what
for two hours already. I should have been home at nine
o'clock, but here I am. So I put it like this: you go
– I go too. Clear?" Rebecca blinked. "But… it's just
half an hour, thirty minutes only…"
"It's far too late
for anything you have in mind, besides it's Saturday,
and I ain't gonna stay here a minute longer." Rebecca
sighed.
"Okay. I'll stay here with you." She smiled her
best smile she could effort.
The woman sighed. "Okay.
I stay, if you buy me coffee."
"Sure" Rebecca smiled
even wider and ran into the kitchen, taking the phone
on her way. "Mr. Parkinson?"
"Yeah?…" the voice on the
other side was sleepy. "You've gotta come here to
the Valentine's Medical Center."
There was a pause,
then an answer followed. "Wha… okay, but is it that
serious? Can't we delay?…"
"No. One last time. It's
very important, ever so important."
"Yeah?…"
She
sighed. "You come here, and I promise you to end this
all up right here and now." Another pause.
"Okay. I'll
be there in fifteen minutes."
###
"Are you sure your lawyer's gonna come?" The
administrator asked.
"Sure he will, Mrs. Longlife"
Rebecca poured the coffee into the mug. "You can't
even imagine how important it is for me, I'm so
grateful you're so kind to stay here and…"
"Okay, let
it be, girl. I'm here, and I ain't going anywhere till
your damn lawyer comes with whatever he's gonna come
with."
It was eleven already when Mr. Parkinson came in.
Rebecca leaped to him and grabbed his hand, pulling
him to the table. "Here they are" he pulled out the set
of documents, and Rebecca went on putting her
signature on the papers under the frowning look of the
administrator woman.
"So… here they are" Rebecca handed her the documents.
The woman looked through them and rose her eyes.
"You're adopting Sabie?!" Rebecca nodded. The woman
smiled. "Good. I never wanted her to get into that FOH
school or whatever they have. It's always better to
live in a family." With that she took the file and
looked through it, then another one. Soon she gathered
a pack of documents, accompanied by the birth card.
"Sign here, 'Bec" she pointed at the sheet, and Rebecca
put her small signature there. The woman smiled. "Here
we are" with that she handed Rebecca a small file of
documents. "Sabie is your official daughter from now
on." She felt her knees getting weak. It was done. She
had won. She had saved the kid from those monsters…
and got a family. Now she had a family. On the weak
buckling legs she paced to the infirmary and walked
in. The kid was in her bed, her eyes shining slightly
in darkness. "We did it, girl" Rebecca whispered in
the dark air of the room.
###
12th of July, 0 days left
"Yes?" Dr. Warson rose his eyes at the knock in his
door. The familiar man in FOH's uniform went in.
"Where's the kid we came for?" Doctor frowned.
"Isn't
she in place?…hmm…" he lowered his head muttering
"damn Rebecca", took the phone, linking with the
admin. "Did Ms. Sangerson take the kid named Sabie
from the infirmary?"
"Yes she did." The answer came.
He was close to growling.
"Then why the hell didn't
you stop her?!!"
The admin's voice was calm. " She has
the right to take the kid wherever she wants."
"Wha…?!!… how come?!"
"She had adopted the cub"
"When?!"
"On Saturday evening she brought all the
documents and signed them in the presence of the
lawyer." Dr. Warson took a deep breath and put the
phone down.
"So what about the kid?" the man
questioned.
He sighed "The kid has a family from now
on." The man blinked. "You've got nothing to do here
then." Doctor pushed. The man chewed on his lip, but
due to the lack of arguments he had to leave. Dr.
Warson turned his armchair to look through the window
onto the rainy clouds. "Bitch." He muttered. "But damn
clever one."
She's sleeping, you see, she fell asleep
And there's no right to wake her till the morning comes
The dark night had balled her up and helped her to close her eyes
She'll wake up when the sun will rise, when the birds will get in the blue sky
Don't wake her up, I beg you, my friend, so I won't have to kill you up.
It's good that she still doesn't know how much blood turned into water
And how many souls fly into the sky after far too short life in their bodies
And how much tears will the sky pour, taking the dampness from people's eyes
That the strength holds on the weakness, and those who's weak
Have no chance to survive.
I gotta save her, at least cover her with my weak body
So the sticky hands of ugly fear won't touch her tiny shoulders
Let her sleep while she has time, and let her dream about the sea and the rain
And please, ask her to forgive me when I steal her sorrow and pain
I'll be dying
Breaking hearts
But if I kill
1.1 I go to the end
For every pain ya inflict on her, for every hair that
falls from her head
I'll rub the salt into ya'r wounds and tear ya'r guts
out with a blunt knife
And let her sleep for nor, you better don't wake her up
The world's gonna shock and scare her if her eyes will be opened by love
I'll be dying
Breaking hearts
But if I kill
I go to the end.
("Tenderness", Dolphin, translated from Russian by
Sabie)
