Chapter 14

Kate opened her eyes slowly, she felt disoriented. She had no idea where she was. She couldn't see anything the room she was lying in was pitch black. She slowly got up and felt her way around trying to find a door or light switch or something. Her legs felt wobbly and her head spun as she got up but she bit her lip and continued on though, as she reached a wall she slowly moved alongside it her hands held out in front. She breathed a sigh of relief when she felt a switch flicked it on and closed her eyes against the sudden bright light flooding the room.

She blinked a few times and then looked around she was in a white hospital like room. It looked familiar and she tried hard to remember why. Her head felt fuzzy like she'd been asleep for too long. There was only a small bed and some cabinets with a microscope and a few other medical equipment. Where was she? Then she saw the needle and vial and it all came back to her, there was a man and he injected her with something. Right after he told her she was pregnant. Pregnant. Oh God. Was she really expecting Jack's baby or did they lie to her but why would they do that. Even as she tried to find a different possibility deep down she knew it was true it explained why she'd been feeling sick and something else something she couldn't describe but she just knew it was true.

She laid down on the bed curling up into a ball drawing her knees up to her chest. It was different not like before she told herself.

She had just turned 18 the week before and had been getting ready to leave for NY. She had been planning on going there all summer but she wanted to spend more time with Tom before he had to leave for college. They'd spent every possible waking- and sometimes not waking moment- together. Now fall had come and Tom had gone off to med-school. He'd asked her to come with him but she was reluctant, yes she wanted to get away but she also felt guilty of leaving her mother behind with Wayne

But now she was sitting in the bathroom clutching a box reading the instructions over and over again. Finally after what felt like hours she threw it across the floor, Dammit! She got up to once again look at the home pregnancy test lying on the side of the bathtub. The two red lines were still there as if mocking her. She cursed herself, what did she expect that they'd just disappear and the test would turn out to be negative minutes after she checked it the first time?

She had no idea what she was going to do. How could she tell Tom she was pregnant now when he was on the brink of starting a new life of becoming a doctor? They'd talking about getting married one day but she knew it was just talk they were both so young still and neither of their parents would permit it, not that she cared but Tom had a close relationship with his parents she knew he would never go against them like that and the fact that they didn't particularly like her or their relationship sure wasn't helping. Plus Tom was so excited about becoming a doctor, she didn't want to ruin that for him. So she decided to keep quiet for now, maybe it would be best to have an abortion before anyone found out.

Kate jumped when she heard the door open. The same man that had injected her earlier came into the room.

"Glad to see you're awake, you were really out of it, slept for nearly a day straight. I'll take you back to your room now. I've arranged for some food, you must be starving"

"Not particularly" she muttered under her breath.

"Well you have to eat, you're eating for two now"

"Where's Alex?" Kate suddenly remembered the other woman she hadn't seen her since they were caught again.

"She's taken care of"

Kate started panicking, what did they do to her? She tried to escape and even worse tried to help her escape. "What did you do to her? I want to see her. Know she's ok"

"You're in no position to make demands Kate. Alex is fine, she wasn't harmed but she won't be having any more contact with you" He said with a tone that clearly said there won't be any more discussion on the subject.

He walked over to the cabinet and got out another vial and syringe.

"No way! You're not injecting me with anything again" Kate got up quickly tried to get to the door as fast as she could.

"Don't worry Kate. I told you already it won't hurt you or the baby."

She waited for him to get closer and then quickly made a decision she was not about to get drugged with god knows what again.

She reached for a bedpan next to her on another counter and swung it out towards him as hard as she could as soon as he was close enough.

The movement came so quick and unexpected that it hit him against the left side of his face with a shattering blow he dropped the syringe and went down in a great big heap on the floor.

Kate drew in a breath. She didn't take time to check if he was alive or not though, she was at the door in two big steps she swung the door open and practically ran straight into the big man with the beard.

"woah, where do you think you're going"

She looked around frantically tried to pass him but he grabbed her arm and twisted her around so fast she barely had time to contemplate.

She twisted in his grip but it was no use as he pushed her back into the room seeing the other man unconscious on the floor he called for help in the direction of the open door. Henry was there in seconds giving her a quick glance before checking on the man on the floor.

When he was satisfied that he was alive he came over towards her and without saying a word reached for the rope on the floor next to the bed. He continued to tie her arms behind her back. The two men continued to pull and drag her back to another room, the one she'd been kept in before the escape attempt.

She fell down on the bed her hands still tied behind her back. Tears of frustration rolled down her cheeks as they closed and locked the door behind them.

She'd laid low for the following week pretty much avoiding everyone. She'd been to the local pharmacy again to buy another test to make sure but when that had also turned pink she knew she had to do something. She had no idea how far along she was so she had made an appointment at the doctor before she was going to do anything else.

She had enough money saved up to go have the abortion in NY but she'd started to lose her nerve. She felt guilty every time she looked at Tom so she'd decided to tell him. She couldn't keep it from him and just continue as if nothing had happened.

She'd decided to tell him when she'd been to the doctor she only had one more day to go.

The next morning she was about to leave the house early, as she got to the kitchen she heard Wayne and her mother arguing again.

"I didn't make an appointment at any doctor" She heard her mother's voice pleading. Kate stopped in her tracks.

"Well why would they phone to cancel an Ms Austin's appointment then?" She could hear Wayne was intoxicated again. Trust him to be drunk at 8am.

Kate bit her lip dammit he must've answered the phone, if he realised it was her… She knew she had to get out of there before he out two and two together, but he was about to beat up her mother again for something she had nothing to do with.

She made a quick decision and went into the kitchen. "It wasn't her, leave her alone"

"Kate?" Diane asked her face fearful as she tried to move away from him as far as she could.

Wayne just stared at her for a few seconds then crossed the floor and before she could fully comprehend what was happening his fist connected with her jaw she felt her teeth rattle. He was too fast she had no time to get up or away before he punched her in the stomach again and again.

She could hear her mother try to calm him to make him stop but he only swung a fist out once to her too, to make her stop and cower in the corner.

She woke up hours later in the hospital. The doctors told her she'd lost the baby.

After she got out of the hospital she went to put a plan in motion to get away from everyone and everything as soon as possible. She never phoned Tom to tell him about what happened back then, what was the point she thought?

The night before she planned to leave she ran into an old school buddy, Chris, at the local bar and after a few drinks things got serious and he ended up confessing that he had a crush on her since primary school. As fate would have it he was also on his way out of town so they decided to leave together. They drove out west; a week later ended up in Vegas and on the spur of the moment got married in a little chapel. She'd known it was a mistake from the beginning; her heart was still with Tom. The marriage lasted about 3 months before they got divorced and each went their separate ways. She hadn't seen him since.

And now here she was pregnant and alone again. She missed Tom and still thought about him but her heart belonged to Jack now if only they could have a chance at happiness she thought, but how was that ever going to happen if she was going to be locked up in this room for god knows how long?