Darrell's hands went still.
When he didn't respond, Rebecca rose on her tiptoes and pressed her lips gently against the beads of sweat rolling down his temples.
"Darrell, I know this is your flesh and blood too. But think about our child..."
The moment the words left her mouth, Darrell's hands moved with sudden, brutal force.
A loud, piercing wail split the air.
Through eyes blurred by sweat and tears, I saw my baby.
Eight years. Eight babies had lived inside me.
This was the first time I'd ever laid eyes on my own child.
"Darrell, what are you waiting for? Do it!"
He hesitated. Rebecca pulled out her phone and played a voice recording.
"Daddy, when are we going to be together again? I miss you so much..."
Rebecca wrapped her arms around Darrell's sweat-soaked waist from behind.
"Darrell, our child is waiting for you to come home. Hurry up."
The hesitation in Darrell's eyes drained away.
He spun toward the screaming infant and lunged.
The baby's cries grew weaker. Fainter.
No one was coming in time.
I threw myself upright on the operating table. The massive, unsutured incision across my abdomen meant nothing. I rolled off the edge of the bed, hit the floor, and grabbed Darrell's ankle with everything I had.
"Darrell, what are you doing? This is our child! Don't do this!"
He clearly hadn't expected me to be conscious. He stared at me like he was looking at a ghost, released his grip, and stumbled two steps back.
I looked up at him, trembling, fighting to keep my voice steady.
"Darrell, if you stop now, I'll pretend none of this ever happened. You're this baby's biological father. Don't let someone manipulate you into this!"
"Darrell!"
Rebecca cut me off. She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward her.
"Don't believe her. She's seen everything. She'll never let you go. Or have you forgotten? Before tonight, you already killed eight of them!"
"Darrell Farley, if you stop right now, I'll let everything before this go!"
"That's impossible, Darrell!"
Rebecca threw her arms around him, tears streaming down her face.
"Have you forgotten the promise you made me? Don't let a moment of weakness destroy me and our child!"
Something shifted behind Darrell's eyes. The wavering finally settled into resolve.
He kicked me aside and charged toward the wailing infant.
"Darrell Farley!"
"If anything happens to that baby today, you die too!"
His body stiffened for a fraction of a second. Then he let out a cold, contemptuous scoff.
He turned slowly, crouched down, and seized my chin in a crushing grip.
"Beverly, I regret keeping this thing alive until today. I had a shred of reluctance left, but after what you just said? This baby has to die."
"And not just the baby. You're going with it."
"Darrell—!"
He drove his foot down onto the open incision across my lower abdomen and ground his heel into it with every ounce of his weight.
Then he turned and rushed toward the infant.
His eyes locked on mine, savage and pitiless.
"I'm going to kill it first. Then I'm going to kill you."
"I'd love to see you try."
With that, his hands closed around the baby's tiny throat.
The infant's cries grew thinner. Weaker. Rebecca's laughter rang out, wild and unrestrained.
The cries faded to almost nothing.
Then the operating room door exploded inward.
A squad of heavily armed mercenaries poured through the breach, their weapons raised. Every muzzle locked onto Darrell.
