001 — Six Long Years

Olivia's POV.

It’s been six years.  

Six long years since I’ve been trying to conceive again after I got married to the love of my life, Victor Ashford. We've been married for six years, and after having my first child, I've always wanted to give him another child. Always wanted to give my daughter a sibling.

I sat alone on the high stool at the far end of the bar. The wood under my hands felt sticky and rough. The air smelled of old beer, cigarette smoke, and something sour.

My fingers shook as I reached for the bottle. I poured a glass of whiskey, the amber liquid catching the weak yellow light from the sign above the cracked mirror. I lifted the glass and downed it in one go, letting it burn. The burn slid down my throat and settled hot in my empty stomach. I poured again.  

Two months gone and just a day I told my husband the good news, I lost my second child.  

The words sat heavy in my chest. This morning the bleeding had started while I still lay alone in my bed.The sharp cramps that followed felt like someone was pulling something alive out of me. Victor wasn't around as at the time it hit me. 

My driver did his best, rushing me to the hospital. Even though the hospital lights were too bright, the ultrasound screen stayed dark. No little flicker. No heartbeat.  

The doctor spoke softly, his tone already highlighting the worst that I'd thought of.

 “I’m sorry, Mrs. Ashford. The placenta began to separate too early. You lost a lot of blood. The pregnancy is gone.”  

I had stared at the ceiling while they cleaned me and gave me fluids. My body felt hollow. Cold.  

Now, in this cheap bar, I poured another glass and drank it the same way. The burn was the only thing that felt real.  

Just as the heat settled, my phone rang on the sticky counter. Victor’s name lit the screen. I left it ringing. My hands went instead to the envelope I had shoved into my handbag earlier. Hospital papers. I pulled them out. My eyes were already wet as I scrolled through the words again.  

Severe placental abruption. Significant blood loss. No viable pregnancy.  

“No. It can’t be. It can’t be.”  I whispered the out loud, my voice cracking.

The tears came hard and fast. They spilled over and ran down my cheeks in hot streams. My chest tightened until each breath hurt. I pressed the paper against my face, my whole body shook.

The phone rang again. Victor.  

I saw his face in my mind— how devastated he will be when I tell him this. The thought of it alone pierced my heart more. I folded forward on the stool and sobbed harder. Ugly sounds scraped my throat raw, tears flowing. My nose ran. I could taste whiskey and pure grief.  

Just as murmurs and whispers grew around me, it made me pull myself together.  

“Oh my gosh, it’s late.”  

I sniffed hard, then wiped my face fast with the back of my hand. I stuffed the envelope and my phone into my handbag, my fingers clumsy.  

“Oh… damnit.”  

I almost fell when I stood. The heel of my shoe caught on the leg of the stool. I staggered, grabbed the edge of the bar, and forced myself upright. My legs felt like water. The blood loss from this morning still left me shaky and light-headed.  

I paused just outside the door, taking in some cool air. The night air was damp and smelled of rain and city garbage. I turned to look at the bar and the environs.  

This was my first time here and certainly my last. The place was not to my taste. The kind of dim lights. Sticky floors. Cheap signs buzzing above a cracked mirror. The kind of bar that smelled of old beer and desperation. Places like this were for other people. Not for Olivia Ashford.  

“At least there were no phones aimed at me in sight. No one who recognized me tonight.”

"It's so late. Victor must be waiting for me.."  I concluded in my head, ready to head home .

I moved fast, heading toward the street where I could get a ride home. Already so tired for tonight and wanting to rest so bad. My body now became so weak. Every step felt heavy. The alley was narrow and dark. Puddles reflected the distant streetlights.  

Just as I moved fast, paving my way through the alley, a random guy hit me, his hard shoulder against mine. I stumbled but kept moving. Then another one hit me again, only much harder. The force knocked the air from my lungs. I fell hard on the wet concrete. Pain shot up my hip and elbow.. My eyes were still blurry from crying, but I was sure there were more than two of them. From their voices and nasty laughter, I could tell that it was a gang.  

Just when I thought this night couldn’t get worse…  

I struggled to stand up, blinking twice. I could count them. Five men.  

This is my first time in my entire life that I’ll be a victim of assault.  

I concluded that in my head after seeing them more clearly now—their dark hoodies, the way they circled, the thick atmosphere of the alley that suddenly felt too narrow.  

I turned around fast, realizing I was cornered. There's no one in sight.  

One of them stepped closer, grinning wide.  

“Wow. What are you doing here, rich lady? Are you lost?”  

He smirked, his eyes going scanning me all the way down to up, licking his lips in a shitty way that's up to no good.

“Look at those shoes. Look at that bag. You don’t belong in this alley, princess.”  

They laughed together, their voices thick and rough.

“She’s shaking already. Look at her. Yo, easy guys”  

They kept coming closer, laughing out loud, their voices filling the narrow space.  

“Pl.. please, let me go. I will give you anything you want. I promise —”  

I moved back, my legs unsteady, my heart thumping really hard I could hear it, sending a sharp ache to my head. My scraped palm stung. 

“Anything?”  

One of them reached out and touched my hair. His fingers were rough. His smile sent shivers down my spine.  

“I’ll give you money…”  

“Shit! We made enough money tonight—”  

He cut me off sharp, closing in on me as I staggered back. His men answered with more laughter, the kind that made me question if I would be able to get out of this unscathed.  

I shrank back, couldn’t speak anymore. I felt the chill of his hands on my arm.  

“It’s you we want.”  

He laughed, turning to his men behind him. It turned out they were all thinking the same thing while I was about to go crazy, my head spinning slowly but still there… helpless as I stared at his face.  

“How about a gangbang?”

“Please, let me go…”  

I shivered, as tears trickled down my face to no avail. My scraped palm burned. My heart hammered so hard I felt it in my ears.  

The man in front of me leaned closer. His breath smelled of cigarettes and something sour that hit me sharp, making my head spin even more.

“Don’t worry… We’ll be gentle—”  

He gripped my face now, his hands tight. Thick fingers dug into my cheeks. I could not turn my head. I could not pull away. There was nothing I could do. I could not look at him this close. His eyes were dark and cold, no a single whim of pity. I closed my eyes, hoping if there was a way… just hoping silently in my mind.  

Please.. Please.. Someone.. Anyone..

His thumb pressed harder against my jaw. One of the others laughed behind him.  

“Look at her shaking... She’s gonna cry more.”  

I kept my eyes shut tight.. Tears still leaked out and ran down to his fingers. My whole body trembled. The blood loss from the morning left me weak. My head started to ring sharply.

Then a loud bang cracked through the alley.  

His hands left my face immediately.  

I fell onto the ground, palms slapping the cold wet concrete. I tried to get what’s happening as I kept hearing their voices.  

I pushed myself up on shaky arms. My vision swam as blurry shapes moved fast in the dark. Five men and one more. 

Just for a second I managed to see the back of the man as he fought them. Broad shoulders. Dark clothes. The way he moved without fear.  

Then the ground rushed up. It hit me like a crashing wave. My knees buckled as the world tilted violently. Everything turned upside down. My vision dimmed — edges going black, colors fading fast

Everything went black.  

I passed out.