“You’re going to be okay,” she assured me. She combed my unkempt hair with her fingers, getting rid of the knots.
Agonizing pain came from my abdomen. When I lifted my gown, I gasped at the horror of the ugly, jagged stitches from incisions. “What have you done?” I rasped, then drifted intosleep. On day two, I woke up in my apartment bedroom, dizzy and disoriented. I had been in and out of consciousness because of the drugs and felt weak like a worm. I glanced at Holly standing at the doorway and smelled her sickening cherry scent.
“I’m sorry, Vera. You have an enemy, and I had to do this for her,” she confessed.
“Who did you do this for?” I demanded.
“A woman of wealth. That’s all I’ll say.”
“What have you done to me?”
“I performed a tubal ligation. It’s also known as having your tubes tied.”
“What?Are you fucking nuts?” I shouted hoarsely, feeling a dry itch in the back of my throat. I glared at the mad doctor. “You are supposed to help people, not hurt them. What did you do to me?”
“I had to sterilize you.”
“You fucking psycho,” I cried, feeling the shock and pain collide, causing me to scream in agony.
“The fallopian tubes are occluded. No hormonal changes will take place, and your menstrual cycle should be preserved going forward.”
“Speak in English to me. What does that mean?”
“Your tubes are closed because I tied them,” Holly explained. There was no expression on her face. Her soul had left her eyes.
“You’re evil,” I hissed. If I had all the energy and no compunction in the world, I would have ripped her throat.
“Here, you need to take these twice a day for the next week or so,” Holly said, handing me a packet of pills and a glass of water. “They have morphine in them. The pain will subside, and you’ll live a normal and healthy life.”
I took the pills and water from the bitch. “You piece of shit. Why did you do this?”
“I had to do it because my family comes first. Do you remember what I told you about my sister Libby?”
“Yes. Is she still rotting in jail in Mexico for smuggling drugs?”
“Libby’s in a small prison in northern Brazil, not Mexico. The only way I can free her is with the money from the woman who promised to help me in exchange for this,” Holly said as her eyes glanced at my abdomen. “The money covers the price that the prison officials asked for. I need to get my sister out of that hellhole, and that woman has connections there.”
“Who is this woman? Who sold me to you, you fucking bitch?” I snarled.
“I can’t tell you. She wanted me to pass on a message. Keep away from Alistair Scott.”
“SCREW YOU!” I screamed, feeling my body shake.
“Honey, I had no choice. Please understand that Libby would die in that prison if I chose you over her.”
“Don’t ‘honey’ me, you fucking psycho. You messed with my reproductive rights. I hate you.”
“Vera, I’ve left a pamphlet with information on life after the surgery. You’re a healthy woman, so I think you’ll recover soon.”
“How can you call yourself a doctor, huh?”
Holly began to back away, shuffling toward the door. “I’m leaving the country to find my sister and get her out of jail, Vera.”
“Who paid you? How long have you pretended to be my friend and lover?” I slurred, slowly drifting into drowsiness.
Holly shook her head, refusing to reveal my enemy’s name. “My flight leaves this afternoon, so I’m going to leave you. I’m sorry, Vera.”
Sorry was not enough. It meant nothing to me.
