Savage Heart

by M. G Scott

  Why was she so tired?

  She looked around the room, disoriented at first, and then realized where she was. She tried pushing herself up but her abdomen still felt swollen. Sighing, she eyed the bedside clock thinking she should’ve felt better by now. After all, it had been three days since Vua’s procedure.

  Why did she agree to do this?

  And then she thought about Blair and her death sentence. If nothing were done to help her, she would die. It was as simple as that. For Blair’s sake, it was worth the heart-wrenching decision she had to make. Blair was Gina’s friend and she would do whatever it took to save her, no matter how much Gregory was an asshole.

  Across the room, her roommate’s bed remained a motionless clump. She should be awake by now, she thought. “Helen?” Gina whispered, not sure whether she wanted to wake her or not, but feeling lonely at the same time.

  She didn’t budge.

  “Helen!” Gina repeated.

  The clump stirred and then Helen’s face popped out from beneath the sheets. “Ohhh,” she muttered.

  Feeling bad about waking her, Gina whispered back, “Go back to sleep. It’s not important.”

  A sigh. “No. No. It’s okay. I feel like I’ve been hit by a bus. What time is it anyway?”

  “Six.”

  “In the morning?”

  “Yeah, you’ve been out since yesterday.”

  Helen rubbed her eyes. “Seriously? I must’ve been asleep twelve hours.”

  “They took you in yesterday. Don’t you remember?”

  “Yes, of course.” She felt her stomach. “What a strange feeling. Almost like my body still feels like there’s something inside.” She turned toward the sliders that led to the small, outdoor deck. “I need to get my body going. You up for a little sun?”

  “Definitely.” Gina tried moving upright but the throbbing pain surged through her abdomen.

  “C’mon, old lady. Let me help you up,” Helen said as she reached out a hand. Gina grabbed it and they walked on to the sun deck to take in the warm morning. A touch of a breeze was blowing off the harbor, a single cloud hiding the sun.

  “You know, I never had a chance to tell you this, but I had the weirdest dream a few nights ago,” Gina said after settling into one of two matching loungers.

  “Really? Like how?”

  “I mean, it must’ve been a dream but it seemed so real. I woke up and felt as if someone was in our room.”

  Helen chuckled. “I’d definitely call that a dream. Maybe it was your nerves playing with you.”

  “That’s the thing … I didn’t have time to be nervous. I thought the procedure would be done a few days later but I guess they had other plans.”

  “Nice surprise … They must’ve pushed it up for a reason.”

  “I wonder why.”

  “Have no idea.”

  The sun finally escaped from behind the cloud. Gina covered her eyes. “I need to get my sunglasses.”

  “Do you mind getting mine?” Helen asked. “They’re in the top drawer.”

  “Sure.” Gina pushed through the slider back into their bedroom. Pulling open a drawer near Helen’s desk, Gina found them—a pair of amber colored oversized sunglasses—just where she said they were. Nice, she thought. Now where are mine?

  She opened and closed her drawers then realized they were still in her jacket. She pulled the jacket from her closet and reached into the side pocket, wrapping her hand around a tiny plastic object. Confused what it might be, she pulled it out and stared at a ruby red USB drive.

  She flipped it over, wondering whose it was. Mulling over what to do next, Gina decided the best way to stir a memory was to have a look. She pulled the cap off and plugged it into her laptop. The drive window popped on the screen with only one file showing—an MPEG called Watch-Me-Now. She looked out the slider at her roommate resting effortlessly in the lounger, oblivious to why Gina was taking so long. She returned her attention to the file and decided she needed to have a look.

  A grainy video started playing, taken with a cheap camera phone in some sort of operating room. The camera was facing two women but was far enough away that she couldn’t quite make out their faces. The two were talking but all she could hear were muffled voices. She reached for the laptop and turned the volume up.

  “I think I feel it!” the women to the left said.

  “The patient is doing fine,” the second woman replied, after glancing at the vital signs.

  Gina’s eyes widened as she realized it was a video of childbirth.

  “Suction,” the first woman said.

  The second woman reached in with a device while the first woman—her hands hidden from the camera’s view—struggled to complete the birth.

  “Ah, I’ve got ‘em,” the first woman finally said as she pulled her hands, bloodied from the effort, toward her chest.

  The second woman applied forceps to the placenta while the baby, no more the size of the woman’s hand, dangled motionless in her hand.

  Something wasn’t right. That baby … why were they taking him out so early? Then it struck her: It wasn’t a baby but a fetus—much the same age as the one she gave up. And it wasn’t a delivery but an abortion.

  The first woman took the fetus over to another table and set him down. Taking a scalpel from the tray next to her, she started pressing on the chest. Gina cupped a hand around her mouth and closed her eyes. Her body started shaking violently.

  Oh my God, what are they doing? And then it started making sense.

  A hand grabbed her shoulder. Startled, she opened her eyes. “I’m sorry it’s taken me so long,” she said, thinking it was Helen.

  “You just put your nose where you shouldn’t have,” a man’s voice said from behind.

  “What are you—” A hand wrapped around her mouth, muffling any screams she tried to muster. The other hand, holding a rag drenched in a foul-smelling liquid, smothered her nose and mouth.

  Her survival senses kicked in, trying to hold her breath as long as she could.

  “Don’t fight it,” the man stated.

  But she kept fighting until she could do it no more. They’ve won, she suddenly thought. She took the dreaded breath, feeling helpless as the rag’s vapors swirled through her nostrils.

  And then darkness collapsed around her.

  Chapter 32

  Three weeks later

  A rare windstorm rolled through the bay, causing Gregory to grasp the wheelchair tighter than he intended. With the sky a swirl of gray and white, he pushed his sister up the ramp of the building and into the protection of the patient atrium. Waiting for his arrival were two women—one dressed in black scrubs, the other in teal.

  “Welcome to the Heart Center,” one of the women gently said.

  “Thank you,” Blair whispered back with all the strength she had.

  Gregory added, “We’re ecstatic this is finally going to happen.” He put a hand on Blair’s shoulder. “It’s not a moment too soon.”

  The woman dressed in teal smiled. “Sometimes the stars align. We found a donor match right when your application was processed.”

  Blair looked at her brother. “I’m glad you met with Dr. Vua when you did.”

  Gregory rubbed her shoulders. “I am too. And as much as I’m happy now, I’ll be that much happier when you have your normal life back.” He then eyed the women. “We rushed down here as soon as I heard the news. I take it everything is still a go?”

  “Of course, Mr. Archer. Our facility has an incredible success rate and we expect your sister to fully recover … and be as healthy as ever.”

  Gregory smiled. That comforted him.

  “We don’t have any time to waste,” the woman dressed in black said. “We’d like to get started right away.”

  “Of course,” Gregory replied.

  “But as we tell all our incoming patients, please take a few moments for family time. We’ll wait over by the patient wing. When you’re ready, we’ll take Blair in.”<
br />
  Gregory nodded.

  The women backed away while Gregory knelt down next to his sister’s wheelchair. He took her hand. “I don’t want you to be afraid at all. Everything’s going to work out just fine.”

  Blair looked at her brother’s hand and nodded. “But I’m concerned how you’re going to be able to pay for this,” she whispered back.

  He shook his head. “Don’t worry about that. I’m gonna get it taken care of. The important thing is you need to get well and everything will be okay from there.”

  She reached over and grabbed his hand with her free one. “Gina—” she started.

  Gregory looked away. “I don’t want to talk about her. I know you loved her like a sister, and I loved her too, but she wants nothing to do with me.”

  She shook her head, struggling to get the energy to speak. “No. No. It’s not about that. She’s here.”

  Gregory looked confused. “What do you mean she’s here?”

  She nodded. “Here at the Center.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Because she told me in an email. She visited me in the hospital a month ago, saw the ad for the Acapulco Heart Center, and decided she would become a donor.”

  Gregory jumped to his feet. “A donor? But that’s impossible. That means—”

  Blair nodded. “Since they use the stem cells from the placenta, she must’ve been pregnant.”

  His body slumped with the thought that maybe he was the father. “But she wouldn’t do this without telling me. Would she?”

  “If she did, would you have let her come here and have the abortion?”

  He pondered the dilemma his sister proposed. In truth, he probably wouldn’t want her to but then what would’ve happened to Blair’s transplant?

  Blair added, “She didn’t want me to tell you but I needed to. She’s here for me, not you, and I just want you to know that … no matter what happens.”

  He turned away, his eyes welling with tears. “She’s an angel,” he whispered.

  “I’m glad you finally realize that.”

  Gregory knelt back down. Looking into her eyes, he said, “You’re right.”

  “Then you know what to do.”

  A nod. “I’m gonna change, Blair. That’s my commitment to you. And my commitment to Gina is to do whatever it takes to win her back.”

  She reached over and touched his lips with two fingers. “Don’t do it for me,” she whispered. “Do you it for yourself.”

  “Mr. Archer?” the woman dressed in black asked, interrupting their conversation. “We should get going.”

  Gregory nodded. “She’s ready.”

  One of the women grabbed the wheelchair and began rolling Blair toward the patient ward. As they pushed through the doors, Blair gave one last look back and smiled, and then the doors swung closed behind her.

  Another staff member, a man dressed in business attire, stepped up to him. “Mr. Archer?”

  “Yes?” he replied, standing.

  “Your appointment with the financing department is now … to talk through the remaining terms.”

  “Yes,” he said somberly. “Of course.”

  “Excellent. Let it be said, we’re happy to be working with you.”

  “I don’t doubt it.”

  * * * * *

  Gregory wiped the sweat accumulating on his forehead as he exited the Heart Center’s administrative offices.

  Paying off a hundred thirty thousand dollars was going to be a problem.

  To get Blair admitted, he gave the Center his complete life savings, which only amounted to thirty thousand. But for the operation to go forward, he had to take out a high interest loan for another sixty grand.

  Where was he going to get the rest when she was discharged?

  He looked around the Center’s expansive lobby—at the people passing him, blindly unaware of his circumstances. What was he going to do? Emotionally, he was a wreck and there was absolutely nobody in his life he could lean on.

  The receptionist nodded warmly as he walked by. A thought occurred: Maybe he could see Gina—at least thank her, even if she wasn’t interested in talking to him. He walked over to the receptionist’s desk, wrapped in aluminum with a black granite top. “Excuse me,” he said to her.

  The young, dark-skinned woman smiled from behind her laptop. “Hola! How can I help you?”

  “I was wondering if you could tell me what room Gina Hyde is in.”

  “Is she a patient or a donor?”

  A pause. “Donor.”

  The woman moved to her laptop and started typing. After a few seconds, she replied, “Are you sure of the last name?”

  “Yes. It’s spelled H-Y-D-E.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not finding anybody with that last name, or first name for that matter. Are you sure she’s checked in? Could she not have arrived yet?”

  “I’m told she’s supposed to be here. She talked to my sister about coming.” A pause. “I don’t think she’d lie about it.”

  “Maybe she checked out already.” The woman fired her fingers at the keyboard a few more seconds. “Hmm.”

  “Did you find something?”

  “No, not exactly. I did finally find her name in our records, but it’s been archived.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means she did have an appointment here, or even could’ve been here, but the visit was cancelled.”

  “Cancelled?”

  She nodded.

  “Can you tell if she at least arrived?”

  “No, her data isn’t available anymore.” She looked at him with sympathetic eyes. “Sorry I couldn’t be more help.”

  Gregory nodded and walked toward the entrance. He slammed his body into the door, causing it to bang against the building. “Damn it,” he murmured to himself. “Where is she?”

  Chapter 33

  Gina opened her eyes and focused on a white ceiling fan twirling slowly around.

  Where am I?

  She tried to move her arms and legs, but they wouldn’t budge. She was strapped to a narrow, dark vinyl chair—with a high back and tilted at a forty-five degree angle. Her eyes darted left and right, but again were drawn to the fan blades. A glimmer of sunlight flickered between the blades, reminding her of Dad’s old movie projector when the film ran out. Sighing, she closed her eyes. She was just too tired.

  “Tsk-tsk, Ms. Hyde. There’s no sleeping yet,” the soft male voice said behind her.

  She grudgingly reopened them, heavily swollen from sleep deprivation. “What do you want?” she replied, barely comprehending him.

  “I only want the truth.”

  “And what is that?” she whispered, rolling in and out of consciousness.

  “What do you know about the Heart Hospital?”

  “It’s a place to abort your unborn child, like I did, for the benefit of others.”

  “And what is that benefit?”

  “To cure terminally ill heart patients.”

  “Yes. But it’s not only to cure them but to give them a new beginning. And of course the benefit to us is they become an evangelist for BioHumanity.” He paused and then said, “Are you ready to become an evangelist?”

  She stayed silent, thinking hard about whether she could muster anything other than the truth. “I’m ready to expose your crimes,” she finally said. “That’s what I’m ready to do.”

  A sigh blew behind her. “I see, Ms. Hyde. It seems we still have quite a bit more work to do before we can release you on our staff. I would’ve thought the three-week training you’ve been through would’ve helped. You must, after all, conform to our approach.”

  The chair creaked behind her. Was he leaving? An echo of footsteps followed, each one growing softer and softer, before she heard the groan of the door—a heavy, metal door.

  “Good day, Ms. Hyde. I look forward to resuming our conversation tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the solitary use of our studio apartment. Just beware the sensors on your b
ody will pick up any sleep, and make sure to stir you awake with a bit of a shock. But of course you already know this. We’ve been doing this for days now.” And then the echo of the door slamming shut ricocheted around the barren, white room.

  Gina closed her eyes and instantly felt the shock to her arm. She cried in pain as her eyes shot open. I can’t keep this up much longer, she thought. And then through the blurry, uncontrollable world she was living, a moment of reason came to her. Gina smiled, nodding her head slightly.

  She had an idea of how to escape this nightmare with her dignity, and soul, intact.

  Chapter 34

  Sabrina’s cellphone chimed her favorite ringtone as it lay on the kitchen counter. But she refused to answer it. It rang again.

  Who was bothering her?

  The phone rang a third time. She opened her eyes as sunlight splashed across her face, blinding her. She quickly closed them, burying her head in the couch’s cushion. Her phone rang a fourth time. Leave me alone, she thought. Sighing, she slowly slid her legs straight after being in a fetal position for what seemed like hours, and kicked the armrest. “Why?” she screamed to the empty house. “Why are you bothering me?” Then again, why would anybody give a damn about me?

  She thought about the question.

  It was true. Nobody did care. How else could she explain the attempt on her life or the cruel way a widow died just for helping a reporter? She shook her head. No, it wasn’t that anybody didn’t care—it was the fact that she lived in a world run by savages. She glanced toward the floor. The envelope she had found at Carla’s house was strewn, half-ripped, across the room, along with the three photos found inside. She shuddered at the terrifying memory it stirred.

  Those pictures.

  She sighed deeply, burying her head into the cushion. Why didn’t Brieman return her messages? Yes, she had stood him up but she apologized three times to his stupid voicemail. He, of all people should … no, would understand.

  A stench of body odor rose from an outstretched arm. I really need to shower, she thought. But what did it matter? She hadn’t left her apartment in days and nobody seemed to notice … until the phone call today. Deciding to forget the shower, she picked up her head and sighed at the food spread all over the coffee table: melted ice cream, half-eaten tortilla chips, Chinese carryout, and a pile of diet soda cans.