Chapter 7

Moira

"Sure has gotten hot early this year," one of the women in the nursery states, fanning her face as a sheen of perspiration makes it appear shiny from the sweltering heat. "But Texas is always a crapshoot weatherwise anyhow."

Texas? I thought we were still in Virginia! Was I out of it for that long after they took me and beat on me after shoving me into the van? How will Kracken ever find me? Silent tears roll down my face as Hannah continues to sleep soundly in my arms.

"I can take her if you want," the woman offers, walking toward me.

I quickly shake my head; the weight of the little girl on my lap is keeping me sane. Well, as sane as I can possibly be at this point in time, anyhow.

With nothing but time on my hands, my memories continue to circle around in my mind. Growing up was not a Norman Rockwell picture, or even a Hallmark movie. There were no long, heartfelt pleas from my father after he hurt me. My mother didn't decorate our house for every holiday; there were no gifts at Christmas or even on my birthday.

Until Belle, I never experienced the joy and thrill of shopping for someone else, then seeing their surprise when they opened it and found something they had casually mentioned months before. Sleepovers were never a thing as a child, but when I met Belle, every night was a spend-the-night party with the two of us.

We'd make popcorn, then curl up in one of our beds and talk all night while watching cheesy romantic comedies. Some of my best memories have Belle in them, as well as her brother, Tony. He had taken me under his wing as though he was my big brother too, and when he brought stuff for Belle, he had things for me as well.

I miss my self-madefamily, I whisper in my head. Belle, Tony, Jingles, the men, and ol' ladies from the Roanoke chapter.

Because despite my horrible behavior, each and every one of them treated me kindly. The women shopped for me, the men were protective, especially Kracken, and I felt safe for probably the first time in my life after being taken.

It's probably wrong of me to say I hate someone, but I truly hate my father. I hate what he stood for, I hate how he treated me and my mother, I just simply hate him, I muse.

"It's not wrong, Moira," Hannah tells me inside my head. "I've seen how he behaved. He's an evil man. If hating him and what he stands for gives you the strength to keep on going, then hate him."

This girl is smarter than her short years should allow for. I slowly shake my head. Hate is a sin. That's what was drummed into my head my whole life by my father. Of course, the way he treated me was rather hateful, so maybe, just maybe, he was wrong?

"Hating someone just to hate them is wrong, Moira. But hate is just a feeling, and those are never, ever wrong," Hannah tells me.

It's a bit disconcerting to me that she can understand my thoughts, that's for sure. She's having a full-blown conversation with me in my head even though I'm not saying a word! Not only that, but she acts far older than she looks.

"Your feelings are valid, Moira. It's what you do with those feelings that makes them either right or wrong,"she continues, sounding way too wise for me to argue with. "Now, I'm hungry, so let's go get something to eat."

If there's one ‘advantage' to being with the kids in the nursery this time around, it's the fact that they do feed them far better than the women who are kept for breeding. Well, at least until they become pregnant. Then, they're on a specially formulated eating plan designed to ensure the child is healthy. I wonder if they realize that they're doing it kind of backwards or not, because they should make sure the woman is healthy before she gets pregnant. But none of these jerks can claim they're intelligent, although I suspect it's just the lackeys who are missing a few smarts. Because there's no way that there's not someone higher up in the food chain who's dictating what they're doing, and since they've never been shut down to my knowledge, someone has to be able to keep it on the downlow.

I allow Hannah to take my hand and drag me over to the table so we can eat. Might as well do what I can to build up my own strength so I can protect her and hopefully, myself.