CONVICTED
Chapter Sixteen
Months passed by, and I was sure
I was going to give the baby up. My darling baby was due in April and my
stomach was growing larger with each passing month. Jack seemed tired and
overworked a lot of the time, and I knew I was making the right choice, giving
my baby up.
I wasn’t quite sure what had
happened with the police. Cal was a hothead, and I knew he wasn’t going to give
up so easily, so he must be planning something. But as my due date drew near, I
grew more and more worried.
Around the last week in March,
Jack came home late at night, spent. He didn’t even make it to the couch before
he passed out. Suddenly, my stomach began to feel tight.
"Oh, shit! I’m going into
labor!"
I roughly shook Jack’s shoulder,
and he was up in a second. Soon, we were off to the hospital in a car Jack had
flagged down.
"Are you sure about your
decision, darling?" Jack asked softly.
I panted and gripped my stomach.
"Of course."
As soon as the hospital came into
view, I was wheeled on a stretcher into one of the rooms. My labor was long and
hard. Jack was not allowed into the room, and childbirth was painful beyond my
wildest dreams.
After several long hours, my baby
was born. A beautiful baby girl, with golden hair matted on top of her head.
Blue eyes, but they might be green later on. A nurse wrapped the baby in a
blanket and handed her to me.
"Oh, God…she’s so
beautiful."
"What’s her name,
Ma’am?" the nurse asked, pulling out a clipboard.
"Lindsey," I answered
without hesitation.
Jack came into the room a few
hours later and hovered over my shoulder as he stared at Lindsey. A smile crept
across his handsome face.
"If we can create a child
this beautiful, I know I’ve lived a good life," Jack finally said.
I laughed and wrapped Lindsey up
in more blankets. She cried a bit, but not too much. I handed her to Jack and
he cradled her in his arms.
"Are you still sure we’re
giving her up for adoption?" Jack asked for the umpteenth time.
But my answer was different this
time.
"Actually…I don’t know.
Jack, we love each other, but we’re not married and our lives changed so
much…"
Soon, a nurse came by and whisked
the baby away from me. Jack held my hand and sat next to the bed.
Suddenly a doctor walked in, his
face grim.
"Excuse me, Mr. Dawson. I’m
afraid you’ll have to come with us," the doctor said.
Jack stood up and backed against
the wall.
"What do you mean? What’s
going on?"
"Well, we received word from
a doctor in Maine that you are an escaped convict from Ireland."
"Damn it! I knew that guy
was trouble!" Jack cursed, punching the wall.
A bunch of police officers came
in and drew their guns. I was petrified, waiting to see how Jack would react to
this. Suddenly, he broke the glass of the window and jumped out, running down
the street.
The police piled out the window
after him. I cursed loudly and climbed out the window. I couldn’t run as fast
as I would have liked. My whole body ached, but my one concern was Jack.
I reached the police where they
had Jack cornered near the sea. All of them had their guns drawn. I was too far
away to hear exactly what they were saying, but I caught most of it.
"…come now…!" the
police shouted.
"I…framed…innocent…!"
Jack retorted.
I heard the sound of guns click
and an expensive car drove up. Cal stepped out of the car with another man.
"…come…boy…convict…!"
Cal yelled at Jack.
"…he…framed…!" Jack
yelled.
I broke into a run, pain searing
up and down my legs. Cal was about to order something, so I jumped, stupidly,
onto his back.
Cal turned and twisted, but I
held onto him like riding a horse. Half the police turned away from Jack and
tried to pry me off of Cal.
"You framed him, you son of
a--" I didn’t finish my sentence.
Cal tossed me off him and
demanded I be arrested as well.
"Jack, just let it go! We’ll
sort this out later! And they can’t arrest me! I was still in the hospital with
my child!" I told Jack.
"No, Marie! I’m sick of this
mistreatment!"
Jack reached into his coat pocket.
"Jack, no!" I screamed.
Two of the police officers pulled
their triggers, and Jack went down into the sea.