Chapter 3
"Please, let Esme go. She's only four. She could die easily!" Mom pleaded.
A thug snorted and swung his bat. It missed her head, just grazing Mom.
He said, "You bitch, still trying to trick us? You already called the cops. Are you trying to get us all killed?
"You've got money? Ha! Your folks don't give a damn, your husband doesn't care, so how much cash could you possibly have?"
The thug kept beating Mom with his bat. She grimaced in pain, but stayed completely silent.
I knew she was just trying not to scare me.
Just then, someone burst through the door and rushed over to the thug, saying, "Boss, the client's gone missing. We've been set up. What do we do now?"
The thug was silent for a moment, then said, "What do we do? If we let them go, we're all headed straight to jail. Nobody gives a damn about them anyway. Let's just kill them!"
Mom broke down in tears, falling in despair.
Her whole body was drenched in blood as she grabbed the pants of the thug.
"Please, just let Esme go," she begged.
The thugs shot grinned at each other. "We never had a chance to mess around with a real heiress and you're not worth the trouble.
One of the thugs snickered. "I heard Mr. Langley's sister has a rare blood type, and Mrs. Langley is basically a walking blood bank for her.
"Organs with that kind of blood type sell for a fortune on the black market. Looks like we'll make a killing after all."
Even though I didn't know what 'organs' meant, I could see Mom start cowering.
The thugs' eyes sparkled with greed. They pulled out their phones, fiddled with them for a bit, and then laughed nastily.
Their hands reached for Mom's shoulders and started to roam down her body.
"Let's have some fun," one of them sneered.
I didn't want their filthy hands on Mom, so I jumped in front of her to protect her.
Mom shoved me away, telling me to run.
However, I wanted to protect her.
They tossed me aside and pinned Mom to the ground.
I burst into tears, crying out for Mom.
Mom just shook her head and told me, "Close your eyes."
That instant, I felt like I was about to lose her for good.
I was so heartbroken that I threw myself at Mom, hugging her tight and refusing to let go.
A thug grabbed me like I was nothing and flung me against the wall.
Blood streamed into my eyes, blurring Mom's face. However, I could still see them cutting open Mom's stomach with shiny knives.
Mom's screams echoed in my ears. Then everything went black for me.
*****
When I woke up, it was just me and Mom in the room.
Mom was lying there with nothing on.
I crawled over to her. When I got close, my hand landed in something sticky on the floor. The smell of blood grew stronger.
It smelled just like when I got a nosebleed. But this time, there was so much more. It was everywhere. It was like someone had spilled a whole bucket of blood.
"Mom," I called out again and again.
But no matter how many times I called, Mom just wouldn't answer me.
The moonlight outside spilled across Mom's face, making her look ashen and pale.
She was ice-cold, so I snuggled my tiny body against hers, trying to warm her up.
I lay close to Mom, breathing in the last bit of her scent, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, sunlight shone in through the little window, warming me up.
But Mom was still cold, like a popsicle.
"Mom, Esme's hungry," I said softly.
But Mom still didn't answer me. Her eyes stayed tightly shut, and her lips were cracked and bleeding.
Her whole body was covered in bruises, and her chest was nothing but battered, purple flesh.
I reached out and gently pushed her.
Right then, her stomach split wide open in front of me, and it was hollow inside.
Mom always had a scar on her belly. She told me that was where I came out, that a doctor cut open her belly to take me out.
My heart ached for Mom then, and I started bawling.
Mom comforted me, saying that as long as her belly was stitched up, she wouldn't die.
However, Mom's belly looked like a flower with its mouth wide open, as though it could devour someone alive. I had to fix it up for her.
I couldn't find a needle or thread. All I found was Mom's clothes lying in the corner.
I tied her clothes around her belly as tightly as I could. Her belly was finally closed up tight.
I let out a sigh of relief. But as soon as I let go, her belly split open all over again right in front of me. All I could do was cling to Mom, holding on to her as tightly as I could.
I kept wanting to sleep.
When I opened my eyes again, it was already night.
It was pouring outside, and inside, the ceiling was leaking so much it felt like it was raining in here as well.
The rain was falling on Mom, but she still didn't wake up.
Mom always said getting wet would make one sick, but I couldn't move her at all.
I was so anxious, tears just kept streaming down my face.
"Mom, it's raining," I called out.
But she still wouldn't wake up.
My stomach hurt so much. I wanted to eat cake, strawberries, or the meatballs Mom used to make.
But there was nothing here. All I could find was plenty of mouldy bread in the corner.
Mom always said I shouldn't eat food that was spoiled, but I was so hungry. I grabbed one and crammed it into my mouth.
It was dry, hard and tasted awful.
It was the worst thing I'd ever eaten.
Mom just lay there, quiet as ever. I thought maybe she was hungry too.