Page 43 of Good and Gone

"You just said you've been sick..."

I look down at my hands. "And you?" I nod at her stomach. "How'd you get away?"

"I haven't."

I swallow hard. Part of me expects one of those men to jump out at me at any moment. The other part feels frozen in place. As though there is going to be lifebeforethis meeting, and lifeafter.

"Do you know what a surrogate is?"

"Of course."

"Well, that's you, Hailey. They kidnapped you, put you in a room, pumped you full of drugs so that you could get pregnant, and kept you there until you finally did. Don't you see?"

"Did they send you here?” I glance around the café and then out toward the street. “Is that what this is? A trap?"

"Coming here might get me killed." She digs a piece of notebook paper from her bag and slides it across the table. "This is my name here,” she points. “My real name. The rest are other girls I've known over the years. All but two are dead. At least as far as I know. It's hard to say."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because you're free. Because you can give those girls' families peace of mind knowing what happened to them. But also because if I were you, I'd pack a bag and get yourself as far away from here as you can. They are going to get you—one way or another. It’s just a matter of time.”

"What if I go to the cops? What if you gave me their names?"

"I can’t.”

"Why not?"

“It’s cute that you still believe in justice, Hailey. But you have no idea who you’re dealing with.”

“Okay, sowhoam I dealing with?”

“These people—they have cops in their back pockets. Judges and politicians, too. There’s nothing money can’t buy.”

“Don’t you have family looking for you? Don’t you have any reason to want to get out?”

She shakes her head. “I’ve seen too much. They’ll never let me go. Same as you. And this baby…” She rubs her stomach and smiles. “This one is different. We're keeping him.”

"Who'swe?"

My pressing seems to get me no where. “I didn't plan to fall in love,” she tells me. “But he's not like the rest. He's going to let me keep the baby.”

“I see.”

“I don’t think you do,” she says. “But you will.”

“What elsecanyou tell me, Rose?”

“Well, if youarepregnant, one of the head guys fathered your baby. That guy—he's not so nice.”

"I know who he is. I remember. They called himBoss.”

“Yeah, he wanted someone with your genetics. He's real big into that.”

"What do you mean?"

Rose sort of shrugs. “He has a plan. He wants to populate the earth with his bloodline. He might be a little crazy, but he's determined to do it.”

There's a moment of silence between us before she speaks again. “I mean, I don't want to be pregnant, but I don't want to die either, you know what I mean? So I'm going to do whatever they say, anything to stay alive and be a mother to this baby.”

---