"Nova Vita" - Chapter 11
Title: Nova Vita
Author: Shannon - shannyfish
Disclaimer: I do not own "Sanctuary" or its characters, Syfy and other people do. This is merely for entertainment purposes only.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Magnus, Druitt, and Tesla are captured. A group (possibly the Cabal) capture them and attempt to find a way to reproduce a super abnormal from source blood parents. Takes place after “Neutiquam Erro”.
Warning: Season 1-3 is fair for sure, if I have spoilers for 4, it’s by complete accident.
Author's Note: Reviews are glorious!
. . .
Chapter 11 - “ No Rest for the Wicked”
The security alarms going off in the middle of the night was not a welcomed sound. The first thing Helen did after pulling the gun from under the pillow was to bolt out of bed to check on Olivia. Bigfoot was sitting next to the cradle with her daughter in his arms; a bottle was in his hand. She hadn’t even heard him enter. John had, she could tell by the look on his face. He wasn’t surprised to see Bigfoot there.
“I wanted to make sure you were able to rest,” Bigfoot told her.
Olivia started to cry and Helen was sure it was because of the alarms sounding. She held out her arms, wanting to hold her child. If the Sanctuary was under attack, she wanted to have her daughter as close as possible. Bigfoot handed the swaddled baby over and she watched as he set down the bottle.
“We should see what’s triggered the alarms,” she said as she bouncing Olivia a bit to try to quiet her.
“Perhaps you may want to put on pants first,” John suggested.
Helen had almost forgotten that she’d gone to bed in only her shirt and panties. Not exactly the outfit to run around the Sanctuary in. John was close by, so she passed Olivia to him. She knew he hadn’t been able to spend a lot of time with her and she figured this was a good moment.
She quickly pulled on her pants and shoes and was back to John to collect Olivia from him within minutes. She wasn’t worried about how she looked right now. She was worried about why the alarms were going off and having her daughter close to her.
. . .
“You have got to be kidding me!” Henry exclaimed as they looked at the security footage.
“It appears that your protégé has decided that he’s ready to take over the whole Sanctuary Network…by force if necessary,” Tesla commented as he turned and looked over at her.
They were all gathered. Halia was standing close to her and John, which she thought was probably for the best because if something happened they could protect her. She wasn’t used to life in the Sanctuary and the possible need to defend one’s self.
They could tell from the cameras on the outside that Will and Kate and a bunch of others had gathered outside and were trying to take down their defenses. “Our defenses aren’t going to hold for that long with all of them working to get in,” Declan said.
“Maybe Henric and I can work to keep them out longer,” Tesla suggested.
“And Erika,” Henry spoke up.
“The question is why are they here? Are they after Helen or Olivia? Or all of us?” Druitt asked.
“I think a better question is why is he doing all of this?” Tesla proposed.
“He never revealed his reasons,” Helen spoke up. “He just wanted me to trust him and he said eventually he hoped that I would understand.” She honestly couldn’t wrap her head around any of this. Will wasn’t like this, not normally. Helen frowned as she looked up at the live camera feed and then looked down at Olivia in her arms. She couldn’t fathom what Will’s reasoning behind separating her from her daughter. “We have to factor in the possibility that Will and Kate may be infected by some kind of virus or micro-abnormal.”
“We were all at the Sanctuary when he went crazy,” Tesla pointed out. “The rest of us aren’t infected.”
“We left,” Halia spoke up for the first time. “Henry, Erika, and I were gone.” She looked over at her father. “And you three…and the baby…maybe your source blood protects you.”
Helen blinked. She hadn’t had this super complicated talk with Halia. They’d told her the basics. But she didn’t know who Tesla was. This was pretty much the first time he’d been in the same room with Halia. “How-“
“Henry told me everything,” Halia said. “About the source blood…The Five…Ashley…”
Henry frowned a bit. “I sort of had to, Doc,” he was quiet a moment. “I know you two probably wanted to tell her slowly, but it had to be done in order to explain things.”
“Henry was very good about explaining it and everything,” Erika piped up.
“She’s right, though,” Tesla spoke up. “Smart half-blood offspring.” He smirked over at Halia. “Are you sure Druitt’s your father?”
Halia smiled at him. “Pretty sure.”
John growled a bit at Tesla and glared at him.
“Behave boys,” Helen said as she took a step forward. “Declan, we need to find a way to neutralize them without hurting them. If Will and Kate are infected, then who knows who else out there may be as well.”
“If that’s true, then is it possible that those of us without source blood running through us can be infected?” Declan asked.
“What he said,” Henry spoke up and pointed to Declan.
Helen looked at all of them. “I honestly don’t know.”
. . .
“John has a point,” Tesla spoke up. “And that’s something I don’t admit often…well…ever.”
Helen shook her head. “I can’t just leave you all.”
“The Big Guy can go with you,” Declan spoke up. “You two take Olivia and Halia and get them to safety. Whatever Will’s plan is, it obviously involves you and Olivia. Until we find out what he wants…it’s best that we keep you two safe.”
“He’s unstable, he won’t hesitate to lock you all up,” Helen pointed out. “He’ll throw you all in the SHU like he did the three of us.”
John took a hold of her and turned her towards him. He stared in her face. “Helen, you listen to me. You have to trust all of us standing in this room. We’re telling you that we’ll stay and hold as long as we can. You take Halia and Olivia and you get our girls to safety,” John told her. “Take your bigfoot with you to keep you safe. You need someone to watch your back…and as much as I’d love for it to be me…I’m needed more here.”
“John-“
“I have to keep them from destroying this place,” John told her, his voice softening. “Your old home…the place that James kept preserved for so long…”
Tears filled her eyes, but she didn’t allow them to fall. She couldn’t argue with him. She trusted them all. That didn’t mean that running away was made any harder. Though anyone could take Halia and Olivia, they deserved to have a parent of some kind with them, just in case. She nodded after a moment.
“There are blueprints of this Sanctuary, the catacombs and their exits are listed on them,” Helen spoke up after a moment. “There’s a chance that we’ll run into someone if we take that route.”
“Do we really have many other safe options?” Bigfoot asked as he entered. He had three bags that he set down before he approached the group. “We take the tunnel that’s going to take us to the exit farthest from the Sanctuary. If we run into people, then we’ll be prepared for them,” Biggie said.
“You two have to go somewhere off the map,” Declan said. “Will knows you and the Sanctuary Network well enough to find you if you merely try to hide at one of the other houses. You really have to hide.”
Helen hated the thought of not being able to take sanctuary at any of the other houses. They would have to be forever vigilant out wherever they would go. She couldn’t even think of a place right now. They would figure it out, but she would rather have a plan to start with.
“Let’s get you on your way,” John said as he turned to her again.
“I don’t want to leave you all to this,” Helen admitted. John held out his hands for Olivia and she handed their child over to him.
“We’ll be okay, Magnus,” Declan said with confidence.
She still felt close to crying. This was incredibly hard for her. She approached Henry and hugged him, holding him close. “You promise me that you’ll take care of yourself and Erika,” she whispered. Henry was like a son to her and she’d just brought herself to admit it not too long ago and leaving him behind was hard. He’d grown up in all of this and sometimes she wondered if that had been wrong of her to subject Henry and Ashley to her world.
“We’re going to be fine, Doc,” Henry said.
Erika touched her shoulder and Helen reached out and held the other woman’s hand for a moment. “I mean it, watch out for each other.”
“We will,” Erika promised.
She turned to Tesla and Druitt. John was still holding Olivia and talking to her. He seemed so happy, this made it that much harder. Nikola held up his hand before she could touch him.
“Don’t go hugging me,” Tesla said. “We both know you won’t be able to peel yourself away from me if you even touch me.”
Helen couldn’t help but laugh at that. Oh Nikola, how she loved him. He had this way about him that always kept her from taking things far too seriously. The tears fell, but she wiped them away immediately.
“Don’t worry… I’ll keep John and the children from dying,” Tesla went on after a moment.
She knew what he meant. “Thank you,” she whispered with a smile.
Saying goodbye for now to John was something she really didn’t want to do. He handed Olivia to her and he turned to Halia. Helen held Olivia close as she waited to speak with John, but she found Olivia being pulled from her arms by Bigfoot and a jacket being held out to her.
“I thought I was the one that was supposed to be mothering,” Helen commented as she accepted the jacket and pulled it on. She buttoned it up and watched as her old friend bundled up Olivia with a larger and warmer blanket.
“Helen,” John spoke up behind her. She turned to him, not wanting to say goodbye. She would see them all again soon enough, she knew this. “No matter where you go, I will find you. We’ll make it safe for you and the girls…and we’ll bring you home. I promise you that.”
She nodded. She still didn’t want to leave them, but how could she argue with the safety of Halia and Olivia? Helen was trying to keep from becoming any more emotional than she already was. It would only make things harder for everyone. John pulled her into his arms and she wrapped hers around him. She closed her eyes and didn’t want to leave him. When he released her, she opened her eyes and looked up at him. He kissed her forehead.
“Stay safe, Helen.”
Helen smiled a little. “Always.”
. . .
With jackets and backpacks in place, they headed into the catacombs. Halia and Bigfoot had the flashlights as she held tight to Olivia. She was happy that Olivia didn’t seem to cry very often. If the alarms went off, she cried, but she just seemed happy to be held right now. They moved at a reasonable pace and she found herself happy that someone else was going with her.
“We need to start thinking about where to go, Magnus,” Bigfoot spoke up as they continued ahead.
“Once we’re far enough away, then we’ll figure it out,” she replied. She couldn’t concentrate on that now. First, they needed to get out of here.
She honestly thought they were home free. Helen had been in those catacombs enough when she was younger. How she missed London. How she missed her home. She missed the old days, but she wouldn’t give up the family she had right now. She’d give anything to have Ashley and James back, though.
The blast came out of nowhere. Halia was down before she could blink. They were so close to the end of the catacombs. “No! Please! She’s just a child!” Helen yelled.
“Relax, it’s just a stunner.” Flashlights across from them were lit and she could see two people she hadn’t expected to see. Kate and Abby. Kate had been the one speaking. “Couldn’t risk her teleporting.”
Bigfoot moved between her and them. He was protecting her and Olivia. “Why are you doing this?” she asked.
“You’ll understand, Doc, but just not now,” Kate told her.
“Let us pass,” Bigfoot said.
“We can’t,” Abby spoke up.
“I won’t let you hurt them,” he said before running at them. Bigfoot made it about half the distance before he was stunned and fell to the ground.
“Sorry,” Abby said and cringed as he hit the ground.
Helen took a step back and held Olivia close. “Please don’t do this! He’ll take her away again!” She couldn’t bear to be separated from her baby again. Tears filled her eyes. How had they gotten here? “Please tell me so I understand!” she pleaded as they both held up stunners on her.
“I wish we could,” Abby said quietly.
“You can!” Helen yelled at her. Olivia started to cry and Helen tried to figure out someway to escape. She could take down Abby and Kate, she was sure even with the stunners in their hands, but doing it so that Olivia was kept safe was another thing. She didn’t think she could do it. There was too high a risk. She didn’t know what a stray stunner hit on an infant would do.
“You have to give her to Abby,” Kate said.
Helen shook her head as tears fell. She kneeled down between Halia and Bigfoot. This was as far as they were going. They wouldn’t see the outside world…whatever hideaway they would have come up with. “Please,” she pleaded as she rocked Olivia in her arms.
“I’ll keep her safe,” Abby said as she approached her. She’d set her stunner down and as much as Helen knew she could take down Abby and Kate, there was still far too much risk involved in it.
“Please…at least don’t take her away,” Helen cried. “I’ve already lost Ashley…I can’t handle Olivia being taken away again…” Her heart was already breaking inside of her. The darkness that had consumed her before was fighting to pull her back to that void. She didn’t want to be locked away there; she wanted to stay in the sun with Olivia.
“Olivia?” Abby asked. “That’s a beautiful name.” She was close now, but wasn’t pushing her.
“Tell Will that I’ll come voluntarily if he lets me keep her,” Helen said. “Please…” she said as she looked up at them both.
Kate shook her head. “That’s not how it’s going to work. I’m sorry. Really.”
Helen continued to rock Olivia; she had quieted at the very least. Small blessings. “I don’t understand,” she cried as she stared at Abby. “She’s the one thing in the world that I love the most…why does she have to be taken away from me?”
“I promise she’ll be safe,” Abby said as she held out her arms.
She couldn’t. She looked down at her sleeping daughter. Her precious Olivia. She kissed her forehead and Helen closed her eyes for a moment. Helen didn’t know what else she could do. They weren’t going to let her go, they’d made that quite clear. Helen opened her eyes and looked back at Abby. “What will happen to her?”
“She’ll be taken care of,” Abby told her. “I promise nothing’s going to happen to her.”
“He’ll send her away again,” Helen said.
“No,” Abby told her. She reached out and touched her shoulder. Helen pulled away for a moment. “I promise you, I will watch over Olivia and make sure she’s okay. Once you’re settled back in Old City, I promise you that I’ll make sure you can see her.”
“Abby-“ Kate said from behind.
Abby looked back over her shoulder. “I can promise at least that.” She looked back at her. Helen still didn’t want to give her up. Tears were still rushing down her face. As if she were ripping out her own heart, Helen handed Olivia over to Abby. Sobs overtook her as she doubled over and wrapped her arms around herself. How it felt like her heart had been ripped out.
“I’m sorry,” Kate spoke up and the last thing Helen heard was the sound of the stunner.
. . .
TBC…
Author: Shannon - shannyfish
Disclaimer: I do not own "Sanctuary" or its characters, Syfy and other people do. This is merely for entertainment purposes only.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Magnus, Druitt, and Tesla are captured. A group (possibly the Cabal) capture them and attempt to find a way to reproduce a super abnormal from source blood parents. Takes place after “Neutiquam Erro”.
Warning: Season 1-3 is fair for sure, if I have spoilers for 4, it’s by complete accident.
Author's Note: Reviews are glorious!
. . .
Chapter 11 - “ No Rest for the Wicked”
The security alarms going off in the middle of the night was not a welcomed sound. The first thing Helen did after pulling the gun from under the pillow was to bolt out of bed to check on Olivia. Bigfoot was sitting next to the cradle with her daughter in his arms; a bottle was in his hand. She hadn’t even heard him enter. John had, she could tell by the look on his face. He wasn’t surprised to see Bigfoot there.
“I wanted to make sure you were able to rest,” Bigfoot told her.
Olivia started to cry and Helen was sure it was because of the alarms sounding. She held out her arms, wanting to hold her child. If the Sanctuary was under attack, she wanted to have her daughter as close as possible. Bigfoot handed the swaddled baby over and she watched as he set down the bottle.
“We should see what’s triggered the alarms,” she said as she bouncing Olivia a bit to try to quiet her.
“Perhaps you may want to put on pants first,” John suggested.
Helen had almost forgotten that she’d gone to bed in only her shirt and panties. Not exactly the outfit to run around the Sanctuary in. John was close by, so she passed Olivia to him. She knew he hadn’t been able to spend a lot of time with her and she figured this was a good moment.
She quickly pulled on her pants and shoes and was back to John to collect Olivia from him within minutes. She wasn’t worried about how she looked right now. She was worried about why the alarms were going off and having her daughter close to her.
. . .
“You have got to be kidding me!” Henry exclaimed as they looked at the security footage.
“It appears that your protégé has decided that he’s ready to take over the whole Sanctuary Network…by force if necessary,” Tesla commented as he turned and looked over at her.
They were all gathered. Halia was standing close to her and John, which she thought was probably for the best because if something happened they could protect her. She wasn’t used to life in the Sanctuary and the possible need to defend one’s self.
They could tell from the cameras on the outside that Will and Kate and a bunch of others had gathered outside and were trying to take down their defenses. “Our defenses aren’t going to hold for that long with all of them working to get in,” Declan said.
“Maybe Henric and I can work to keep them out longer,” Tesla suggested.
“And Erika,” Henry spoke up.
“The question is why are they here? Are they after Helen or Olivia? Or all of us?” Druitt asked.
“I think a better question is why is he doing all of this?” Tesla proposed.
“He never revealed his reasons,” Helen spoke up. “He just wanted me to trust him and he said eventually he hoped that I would understand.” She honestly couldn’t wrap her head around any of this. Will wasn’t like this, not normally. Helen frowned as she looked up at the live camera feed and then looked down at Olivia in her arms. She couldn’t fathom what Will’s reasoning behind separating her from her daughter. “We have to factor in the possibility that Will and Kate may be infected by some kind of virus or micro-abnormal.”
“We were all at the Sanctuary when he went crazy,” Tesla pointed out. “The rest of us aren’t infected.”
“We left,” Halia spoke up for the first time. “Henry, Erika, and I were gone.” She looked over at her father. “And you three…and the baby…maybe your source blood protects you.”
Helen blinked. She hadn’t had this super complicated talk with Halia. They’d told her the basics. But she didn’t know who Tesla was. This was pretty much the first time he’d been in the same room with Halia. “How-“
“Henry told me everything,” Halia said. “About the source blood…The Five…Ashley…”
Henry frowned a bit. “I sort of had to, Doc,” he was quiet a moment. “I know you two probably wanted to tell her slowly, but it had to be done in order to explain things.”
“Henry was very good about explaining it and everything,” Erika piped up.
“She’s right, though,” Tesla spoke up. “Smart half-blood offspring.” He smirked over at Halia. “Are you sure Druitt’s your father?”
Halia smiled at him. “Pretty sure.”
John growled a bit at Tesla and glared at him.
“Behave boys,” Helen said as she took a step forward. “Declan, we need to find a way to neutralize them without hurting them. If Will and Kate are infected, then who knows who else out there may be as well.”
“If that’s true, then is it possible that those of us without source blood running through us can be infected?” Declan asked.
“What he said,” Henry spoke up and pointed to Declan.
Helen looked at all of them. “I honestly don’t know.”
. . .
“John has a point,” Tesla spoke up. “And that’s something I don’t admit often…well…ever.”
Helen shook her head. “I can’t just leave you all.”
“The Big Guy can go with you,” Declan spoke up. “You two take Olivia and Halia and get them to safety. Whatever Will’s plan is, it obviously involves you and Olivia. Until we find out what he wants…it’s best that we keep you two safe.”
“He’s unstable, he won’t hesitate to lock you all up,” Helen pointed out. “He’ll throw you all in the SHU like he did the three of us.”
John took a hold of her and turned her towards him. He stared in her face. “Helen, you listen to me. You have to trust all of us standing in this room. We’re telling you that we’ll stay and hold as long as we can. You take Halia and Olivia and you get our girls to safety,” John told her. “Take your bigfoot with you to keep you safe. You need someone to watch your back…and as much as I’d love for it to be me…I’m needed more here.”
“John-“
“I have to keep them from destroying this place,” John told her, his voice softening. “Your old home…the place that James kept preserved for so long…”
Tears filled her eyes, but she didn’t allow them to fall. She couldn’t argue with him. She trusted them all. That didn’t mean that running away was made any harder. Though anyone could take Halia and Olivia, they deserved to have a parent of some kind with them, just in case. She nodded after a moment.
“There are blueprints of this Sanctuary, the catacombs and their exits are listed on them,” Helen spoke up after a moment. “There’s a chance that we’ll run into someone if we take that route.”
“Do we really have many other safe options?” Bigfoot asked as he entered. He had three bags that he set down before he approached the group. “We take the tunnel that’s going to take us to the exit farthest from the Sanctuary. If we run into people, then we’ll be prepared for them,” Biggie said.
“You two have to go somewhere off the map,” Declan said. “Will knows you and the Sanctuary Network well enough to find you if you merely try to hide at one of the other houses. You really have to hide.”
Helen hated the thought of not being able to take sanctuary at any of the other houses. They would have to be forever vigilant out wherever they would go. She couldn’t even think of a place right now. They would figure it out, but she would rather have a plan to start with.
“Let’s get you on your way,” John said as he turned to her again.
“I don’t want to leave you all to this,” Helen admitted. John held out his hands for Olivia and she handed their child over to him.
“We’ll be okay, Magnus,” Declan said with confidence.
She still felt close to crying. This was incredibly hard for her. She approached Henry and hugged him, holding him close. “You promise me that you’ll take care of yourself and Erika,” she whispered. Henry was like a son to her and she’d just brought herself to admit it not too long ago and leaving him behind was hard. He’d grown up in all of this and sometimes she wondered if that had been wrong of her to subject Henry and Ashley to her world.
“We’re going to be fine, Doc,” Henry said.
Erika touched her shoulder and Helen reached out and held the other woman’s hand for a moment. “I mean it, watch out for each other.”
“We will,” Erika promised.
She turned to Tesla and Druitt. John was still holding Olivia and talking to her. He seemed so happy, this made it that much harder. Nikola held up his hand before she could touch him.
“Don’t go hugging me,” Tesla said. “We both know you won’t be able to peel yourself away from me if you even touch me.”
Helen couldn’t help but laugh at that. Oh Nikola, how she loved him. He had this way about him that always kept her from taking things far too seriously. The tears fell, but she wiped them away immediately.
“Don’t worry… I’ll keep John and the children from dying,” Tesla went on after a moment.
She knew what he meant. “Thank you,” she whispered with a smile.
Saying goodbye for now to John was something she really didn’t want to do. He handed Olivia to her and he turned to Halia. Helen held Olivia close as she waited to speak with John, but she found Olivia being pulled from her arms by Bigfoot and a jacket being held out to her.
“I thought I was the one that was supposed to be mothering,” Helen commented as she accepted the jacket and pulled it on. She buttoned it up and watched as her old friend bundled up Olivia with a larger and warmer blanket.
“Helen,” John spoke up behind her. She turned to him, not wanting to say goodbye. She would see them all again soon enough, she knew this. “No matter where you go, I will find you. We’ll make it safe for you and the girls…and we’ll bring you home. I promise you that.”
She nodded. She still didn’t want to leave them, but how could she argue with the safety of Halia and Olivia? Helen was trying to keep from becoming any more emotional than she already was. It would only make things harder for everyone. John pulled her into his arms and she wrapped hers around him. She closed her eyes and didn’t want to leave him. When he released her, she opened her eyes and looked up at him. He kissed her forehead.
“Stay safe, Helen.”
Helen smiled a little. “Always.”
. . .
With jackets and backpacks in place, they headed into the catacombs. Halia and Bigfoot had the flashlights as she held tight to Olivia. She was happy that Olivia didn’t seem to cry very often. If the alarms went off, she cried, but she just seemed happy to be held right now. They moved at a reasonable pace and she found herself happy that someone else was going with her.
“We need to start thinking about where to go, Magnus,” Bigfoot spoke up as they continued ahead.
“Once we’re far enough away, then we’ll figure it out,” she replied. She couldn’t concentrate on that now. First, they needed to get out of here.
She honestly thought they were home free. Helen had been in those catacombs enough when she was younger. How she missed London. How she missed her home. She missed the old days, but she wouldn’t give up the family she had right now. She’d give anything to have Ashley and James back, though.
The blast came out of nowhere. Halia was down before she could blink. They were so close to the end of the catacombs. “No! Please! She’s just a child!” Helen yelled.
“Relax, it’s just a stunner.” Flashlights across from them were lit and she could see two people she hadn’t expected to see. Kate and Abby. Kate had been the one speaking. “Couldn’t risk her teleporting.”
Bigfoot moved between her and them. He was protecting her and Olivia. “Why are you doing this?” she asked.
“You’ll understand, Doc, but just not now,” Kate told her.
“Let us pass,” Bigfoot said.
“We can’t,” Abby spoke up.
“I won’t let you hurt them,” he said before running at them. Bigfoot made it about half the distance before he was stunned and fell to the ground.
“Sorry,” Abby said and cringed as he hit the ground.
Helen took a step back and held Olivia close. “Please don’t do this! He’ll take her away again!” She couldn’t bear to be separated from her baby again. Tears filled her eyes. How had they gotten here? “Please tell me so I understand!” she pleaded as they both held up stunners on her.
“I wish we could,” Abby said quietly.
“You can!” Helen yelled at her. Olivia started to cry and Helen tried to figure out someway to escape. She could take down Abby and Kate, she was sure even with the stunners in their hands, but doing it so that Olivia was kept safe was another thing. She didn’t think she could do it. There was too high a risk. She didn’t know what a stray stunner hit on an infant would do.
“You have to give her to Abby,” Kate said.
Helen shook her head as tears fell. She kneeled down between Halia and Bigfoot. This was as far as they were going. They wouldn’t see the outside world…whatever hideaway they would have come up with. “Please,” she pleaded as she rocked Olivia in her arms.
“I’ll keep her safe,” Abby said as she approached her. She’d set her stunner down and as much as Helen knew she could take down Abby and Kate, there was still far too much risk involved in it.
“Please…at least don’t take her away,” Helen cried. “I’ve already lost Ashley…I can’t handle Olivia being taken away again…” Her heart was already breaking inside of her. The darkness that had consumed her before was fighting to pull her back to that void. She didn’t want to be locked away there; she wanted to stay in the sun with Olivia.
“Olivia?” Abby asked. “That’s a beautiful name.” She was close now, but wasn’t pushing her.
“Tell Will that I’ll come voluntarily if he lets me keep her,” Helen said. “Please…” she said as she looked up at them both.
Kate shook her head. “That’s not how it’s going to work. I’m sorry. Really.”
Helen continued to rock Olivia; she had quieted at the very least. Small blessings. “I don’t understand,” she cried as she stared at Abby. “She’s the one thing in the world that I love the most…why does she have to be taken away from me?”
“I promise she’ll be safe,” Abby said as she held out her arms.
She couldn’t. She looked down at her sleeping daughter. Her precious Olivia. She kissed her forehead and Helen closed her eyes for a moment. Helen didn’t know what else she could do. They weren’t going to let her go, they’d made that quite clear. Helen opened her eyes and looked back at Abby. “What will happen to her?”
“She’ll be taken care of,” Abby told her. “I promise nothing’s going to happen to her.”
“He’ll send her away again,” Helen said.
“No,” Abby told her. She reached out and touched her shoulder. Helen pulled away for a moment. “I promise you, I will watch over Olivia and make sure she’s okay. Once you’re settled back in Old City, I promise you that I’ll make sure you can see her.”
“Abby-“ Kate said from behind.
Abby looked back over her shoulder. “I can promise at least that.” She looked back at her. Helen still didn’t want to give her up. Tears were still rushing down her face. As if she were ripping out her own heart, Helen handed Olivia over to Abby. Sobs overtook her as she doubled over and wrapped her arms around herself. How it felt like her heart had been ripped out.
“I’m sorry,” Kate spoke up and the last thing Helen heard was the sound of the stunner.
. . .
TBC…