Whispered Promises

Lea crossed her arms. “Only if you let me finish my joke.”

Mary glanced at the empty glass and huffed. “I’ll pass.”

Thankfully, Mary’s quick consumption of the rum and Coke seemed to mellow her out. From the moment she’d stepped into the apartment, she’d seemed to be on edge. Although Brie couldn’t blame her after everything she’d suffered, she hoped Mary understood she was with friends, and that this was a safe place.

Lea remained silent, sipping at her fruity drink while Brie talked openly about some of the things she’d experienced at the compound. Eventually, she went on to detail the steps Sir was taking to help her work through her trauma.

Mary said nothing but continued to nod as Brie spoke. It seemed Mary was distracted, as if her thoughts were elsewhere.

“What’s on your mind, Mary?” Brie finally asked her.

“I can’t stop thinking about the baby…” Her voice caught when she added, “They found his mother’s remains buried in the woods not far from the compound.”

“I remember when they reported about that,” Lea whimpered. “It’s so awful.”

Brie hated that the young woman died just days before they were rescued. It was so unfair.

She asked Mary softly, “Did you know her?”

“None of us knew each other. That was part of Greg’s strategy. It ensured his slaves remained passive and weak. But, I did see her in passing many times while I was there, and I was worried about her.”

Brie stared at Mary in horror. “You’ve been to the compound before?”

Mary’s eyes darkened. “He took me there whenever he needed to ‘correct’ me.”

Hearing Mary’s dark secret, Brie felt suddenly sick. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Greg said he would kill them all if I ever breathed a word about it.” Mary frowned and then became silent, a haunted look darkening her eyes. “…I’ve been tormented with guilt ever since.”

Brie shuddered, knowing Holloway had used that same tactic on her. She looked at Mary with profound sorrow. “Oh, Mary…”

“Don’t!” she snapped. “The last thing I want is anyone’s sympathy—especially you.”

The three of them sat there in uncomfortable silence for several minutes.

“I can’t stop thinking about that kid,” Mary finally spoke up, glancing at the two of them. “No one’s stepped up to claim him.” Shaking her head, she growled. “It’s not right!”

Brie immediately thought of Antony, her mother’s heart imagining her son lost and alone in the world because no one wanted him. It crushed her.

“Hasn’t any family come forward?” Lea asked.

Mary’s frown deepened. “No, and it pisses me off! If he was a puppy, people would be clamoring to take him, but because he’s a child born into this perverse situation, people don’t want anything to do with the kid.”

Brie was moved when she saw tears in Mary’s eyes when she choked out, “It’s like the world blames this little kid for what Greg did when he’s just a baby for Christ’s sake!”

Mary lowered her head as the tears continued to fall. “He deserves to be loved.”

Brie wondered if Mary identified with the child and wanted him to have the future she never had.

Lea spoke up. “Have you looked into adopting him?”

Mary swiped away her tears, rolling her eyes at Lea. “No one is going to allow a single woman to adopt a baby.”

“You’d be surprised,” Lea informed her. “It happens more often than you think. You’d make a great parent, Mary. As long as you lose your snarky attitude, get some parental counseling, and laugh a heck of a lot more.”

Mary stuck her tongue out at Lea.

“You know what they say—it takes two to tangle.”