Black Betty

A knock on the door made Bethany sit up. A sheen of cold sweat plastered her black hair to her forehead. She glanced anxiously at Asha and found her still sound asleep. Quickly untangling herself from the blankets, Bethany got up and tumbled for the door. She kept the chain on and opened it slightly.

“Hi…Can I come in?”

The owner of the hotel was on the other side of the door. Bethany frowned in confusion. “Um, my daughter is still asleep. What is it?”

“Well, last night you seemed a little anxious. I thought I’d make sure you don’t need anything while you’re here.” The manager was nervous and slightly uncomfortable, but she appeared determined.

“Why?” asked Bethany, her voice laced with suspicion.

“Truthfully, you remind me of my sister.” the woman smiled sadly. “She was a single mom, and she always struggled. She was actually a drug addict.”

“I’m not a drug addict.” said Bethany uneasily. The woman was shockingly honest.

The owner’s eyes widened. “Oh, I didn’t mean to offend you or anything! I’m not saying you are one. You just made me think of how hard my sister had it, and how I wished I could have helped more.”

Genuine kindness was something Bethany hadn’t experienced since she was very young, and it made her guarded as well as bemused. Though she was still unsure she closed the door briefly to undo the chain. When the woman took a good look at Bethany in the daylight she felt really worried for her health.

“My name’s Audrey.” she said, taking a hesitant step inside.

Bethany took a stride backwards as Audrey got closer. “Bethany. That’s Asha.” she pointed over her shoulder to the tiny lump on the bed.

“What a pretty name. Does it mean something special?”

As she nodded the faintest bit of pride broke through the nerves on Bethany’s face. “It means hope.”

Audrey grinned. “Very pretty. Where are you two from?”

This one threw Bethany slightly. She hadn’t been planning to interact with regular people any time soon, so she hadn’t thought up a lie yet. It only took her a few seconds, but it was a long enough pause where Audrey raised one eyebrow a little.

“My boyfriend died a few weeks ago. I don’t have any other family and just a little money, so we’re just trying to find somewhere to start over.”

“That makes sense.” Audrey nodded, crossing her tan arms. “You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like. I never get a lot of guests so I think for a while we could just say this room is yours.”

Bethany wasn’t sure what to say. “I don’t know if I understand. Are you saying we can stay here for free?”

“Yeah, I am.” Audrey smiled. “My husband’s family owned this place for over thirty years, and I don’t think they’d mind if one room is unavailable.”

“That’s…I…Thank you, Audrey.”

“No problem. Well, it looks like someone’s awake. I’ll get going, but if you need anything don’t hesitate to come down to the office.”

Bethany could only nod as Audrey left, shutting the door behind herself. A high-pitched grunt made Bethany turn around to see Asha sitting up under the blanket, her hair tousled and her eyes questioning. After locking the door Bethany went over to the bed and helped Asha untangle herself.

“Are you hungry?” she asked in a slightly hoarse voice.

Asha nodded her head and reached up to Bethany, who took her and put her in the highchair quickly. They didn’t have to talk any more for Bethany to know what Asha wanted, handing her another one of the cupcakes on a napkin. Asha beamed and dug in while her mother sat down at the table and creased her brow in thought.

*

“How are you feeling today, Bethany?”

A small part of her wanted to ask if he really cared. Instead she swallowed and replied softly: “Fine.”

“Good. We’ll just be doing a few simple tests today, so you can relax.” Dr. Gregory smiled down at her. “Let’s see how the baby is doing.”

Goosebumps erupted along Bethany’s arms and legs as her shirt was raised, then Dr. Gregory was wiping over her stomach with something moist. It wasn’t as cold as usual, making Bethany look down warily. The substance wasn’t the almost clear blue anymore; it was a dark yellow and much less gooey.

“What’s that?”

Dr. Gregory started at her voice, pausing in the process of putting on a pair of rubber gloves. “Oh, it’s just…Don’t worry, Bethany. You’re going to be fine.”

His expression changed, much more anxious than normal. Bethany squirmed slightly, unable to see what his hands were doing on the table near her feet. Bethany tried to sit up but it was hard with the large hump of her stomach blocking the way. Dr. Gregory held up one hand and gestured behind Bethany’s head, and she winced as someone’s hands pressed her shoulders flat onto the table.

All Bethany could do was stare as a large security officer held her hands down and wrapped the restraints attached to the table tightly around her wrists. The same was done to her feet, and Bethany watched fearfully as Dr. Gregory held up a long needle.

“What are you going to do?”

“We just need a little amniotic fluid. It will only pinch a bit.”

That didn’t make her feel a whole lot better. She was used to the sting of needles, so why did Gregory need to tie her down? The smell of the yellow stuff on her stomach finally reached her nose, and Bethany knew it was some kind of cleanser. Like alcohol.

“Will it hurt her?”

Dr. Gregory stopped again, looking up into Bethany’s face for a moment. She had noticed before that he hardly looked her in the eye, but this was one of the times that he did.

“No, it definitely won’t. Just hold still and this will be over quickly.”

Shutting her eyes, Bethany tried to make herself calm and patient. She was accustomed to procedures, but this was different. They only made her nervous when her baby was involved. Dr. Gregory did something else on the table, and then he was lining the needle up against her skin.

Bethany clenched her eyelids together harder and waited for the pain to start. But when it did she wasn’t prepared for how bad it was. Her mouth opened in a silent cry of pain as the needle went deeper. Something in her stomach twitched, and Bethany looked down. The baby was struggling; she could feel it as well as see it.

“Stop!” she gasped. “Stop it!”

The doctor didn’t react to her words, his eyes narrowed in concentration as he pushed the needle in further. Bethany arched up slightly, able to sense the panic radiating from the tiny person inside of her. How could she feel it in a suppression chamber? Bethany didn’t know, but she knew she had to stop whatever Gregory was doing.

“NO!” yelled Bethany as loud as she could, startling Gregory and causing the guard to put his hands on her shoulders again.

“I’m almost done, Bethany.” Gregory told her in a level voice, filling up the syringe with an almost clear fluid from inside of Bethany.

She kept screaming, but Gregory seemed almost indifferent as he pulled the needle out and left the room. Bethany sobbed quietly at the fear that was coming from deep inside of her, her hands shaking so badly she was almost glad for the restraints. Feeling even more desperate than usual, Bethany turned her head to the guard and opened her mouth.

“Please…help me.”

He scowled and leaned over her, then said something that Bethany finally realized was the truth.

“No one here gives a damn about you, girl.”

*

Bethany was snapped out of her reverie by Asha finishing the cupcake and whimpering slightly to get her mother’s attention. After shaking herself Bethany went over and picked up Asha, wrinkling her nose when she smelled urine.

“You need a diaper change.”

Asha just smiled and looked at Bethany’s face. With that Bethany set Asha down on the bed and went into the bathroom, reaching under the sink for the diapers and wipes she’d stolen. It hadn’t been hard to disrupt the signal of the security cameras and make the only employee sit down and go to sleep while she took what she needed.

“I hate feeling like a thief.”

Asha watched Bethany curiously as she pulled the small pink pants down Asha’s legs, then set about changing the soiled diaper. She’d seen it done multiple times but it was still new to her. Asha was calm about it and patiently waited for Bethany to figure out the logistics of the situation.

“What are we going to do?” asked Bethany, not really expecting an answer but needing to voice her anxiety. She dressed Asha again and held her in a standing position in front of her. “It’s really nice of Audrey to let us stay here free, but I don’t know if it’s safe to be in one place so long. I don’t know if we’ll ever be safe.”

Asha watched Bethany’s face crumple for a moment before reaching her arms up to hug her mother tightly around the neck. Bethany sighed and held Asha to her chest, resting her cheek on top of the soft little head. A flickering image cropped up in Bethany’s head and she watched it, knowing it was from Asha.

Audrey’s smiling face and the softness of her eyes. From the tenor of Asha’s thoughts Bethany could tell what she meant, and a small grin started to form on her mouth. Bethany nodded and hugged Asha a little tighter.

“You’re right.” she whispered. “Wherever we have friends is the safest place for us.”

The small girl pulled back so she could look into her mother’s eyes, her hands still clutching onto Bethany’s shirt. Their eyes connected and Bethany could see much more understanding her daughter’s eyes than a one year old should possess. She remembered why she had wanted to get out in the first place, and that made all their troubles worth it.

Bethany kissed Asha’s pale cheek gently. “I know that we’ll be okay.”